Black Applicants' Self-reported Reasons for Applying to a Doctor of Physical Therapy Program

Lack of access for minoritized groups to health care providers with a similar background negatively affects health outcomes. Adequate representation in the workforce begins with representation in health care education. The purpose of this study was to describe Black applicants' primary reasons for pursuing physical therapist education.

Prior surveys of enrolled Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students have categorized factors influencing the decision to pursue physical therapy, with consideration of student demographics.

One thousand eight hundred nine Black applicants who applied to DPT programs through the Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service (PTCAS).

In this retrospective holistic narrative analysis, essay responses from the 2020-2021 PTCAS application cycle (n = 17,801) were categorized by 2 reviewers into one of 9 categories based on the primary reason for applying to a DPT program. Interrater reliability was almost perfect (Kappa 0.946) based on a sample of 48 essays. Racial demographics were compared with US Census and DPT program acceptance and enrollment data from the same year.

Black individuals are underrepresented among both applicants to and enrollees in DPT programs when compared with US census data from the same year. Black applicants indicated personal experience with the field (33%, n = 597), observation in the field (28.7%, n = 520), and alignment with personal values and interests (27.6%, n = 500) as the most common reasons for applying.

Experience with the field and alignment with values and interest were the most commonly cited reasons among Black applicants for pursuing physical therapist education. Understanding why Black students apply to a DPT program is important for developing strategies to increase the number of Black students enrolled in physical therapy programs and ultimately the workforce.