Employment patterns and related opinions: a survey of physical therapists

Physical therapy educators require specific information about the number of graduates who remain in the profession and about their opinions related to undergraduate training and their postgraduate requirements. A mail questionnaire survey of physical therapists who graduated from an Ontario university's physical therapy program between 1969 and 1978 was conducted to determine: occupational patterns, satisfaction with undergraduate preparation for employment, interest in graduate studies and, if the graduate was unemployed at that time, the need for re-entry preparation for employment. With one follow-up mailing to non-respondents, a response rate of 93.4 per cent was obtained. Of the 141 respondents, 110 were working full-time and 15 were working part-time in physical therapy. Eighty-eight per cent of employed physical therapy graduates agreed that their education had prepared them sufficiently for employment. Fifty-three per cent of the graduates indicated that they would like to pursue an area of clinical specialization through graduate study. It is concluded that the graduates of the program under study believe that they have been well prepared for employment; not only do they maintain a clinical interest in the profession, but they aspire to personal and professional advancement through graduate studies.