Athletic Training Versus Physical Therapy

I have chosen to study athletic training because it allows me to still participate and be involved in sports as well as be able to help athletes recover from injuries while gaining valuable clinical experience for physical therapy. Growing up I have always had a love for sports but I have not been graced with the abilities to become a professional athlete. With my love for sports as a youth I watched a lot on television with my father and I would see athletes get injured and medical personnel rush out to their aid. When I found out they were athletic trainers and physical therapists, I knew that is what I wanted to do when I grew up. All throughout high school I was involved in sports and unfortunately had an injury or two. Although our school did not have an athletic trainer, I went to many different specialists and

     As we begin to grow up and come to the end of our high school career we must start to begin to start thinking about what type of career we want to be in.     It is very important that a person picks the right type of career for them. Otherwise you will be unhappy with what you are doing and will not enjoy it at all. I am not entirely sure what I want my career to be but I have a pretty good idea as to what type of job it will be. I would like to go into the field of a physical therapist and sports medicine, I fell I will enjoy this more than any other type of career just because I already have a lot of interest in it.

With the job outlook of the physical therapy field being expected to grow by 34 percent by 2024, faster than the average occupation, the average annual wage at a whopping $84,020, paid sick and vacation days and the flexible work environment, this seems like the perfect profession to enter. Having a career in physical therapy can be very rewarding because a physical therapist gets to watch as his or her patients improve every appointment through treatment. Unfortunately, this is not always the case in this profession. There are many disadvantages, and knowing these will help anyone interested in this field have a better understanding of how tough pursuing a career in this field can be. Being a physical therapist can be a rewarding experience and have amazing benefits. However, it is important to be aware of the disadvantages: the extreme amount of education, physical demands, emotional demands and the continuation of education requirements.

To me an Athletic Trainer is someone that graduates from college certified to provide help to people that are injured, right out of college. This major can be obtained in four years without and further education, however; must take classes to keep up with the ever growing medical field. The main thing I think of when I think about going into Athletic Training is working at a school with the schools sports teams, however; they also can work in physical therapy clinics, hospital settings, nursing homes, etc. Athletic Trainers focus on prevention, treatment, what is wrong, and getting the patient back to health as well as working along side a doctor or physical therapist for further assistants.

Athletic Trainers work with athletes so that those individuals are well conditioned and are able to pursue their sport or activity with a reduced risk of injury.

There are numerous of job titles that fall under this career. The most common job positions under an exercise and sports science career are athletic trainers, physical therapists, occupational therapists, exercise physiologists, physical education teachers, strength and conditioning coaches, personal trainers, medical physicians, and sports nutritionists. Although there are many different job titles to choose from, this career has a lot of competition. The job titles within this career has its differences and similarities.

Athletic trainers are important to every sports organization. Athletic trainers try to prevent, or rehab an injury. With a degree in athletic training there are a couple of different environments that I could work in. I chose this career because I love sports and being outside, two things athletic trainers must do regularly. It is important to understand the education or training requirements, skills, or talents needed, salary and benefits offered and the duties for a particular career when making this decision.

In fact, another great option about being an Athletic Trainer is traveling. When traveling one would get to see most parts of the world you would not normally get to see at a regular job. Traveling also gives you a great experience in life. A person can learn different parts of the world while working. One can meet people and may have chances to operate on some really great athletes. Yes, of course there are jobs that are similar to Athletic Training. By being an Athletic Trainer that is the only one that travels. For example, if you’re an Athletic Trainer for a football team or basketball team. One will get to travel to different parts of the state during your job. Some teams travel to different parts of the country. It all just depends on which level you are at. Traveling could be a great

The athletic trainers take a lot of dedication into their job because they care for the athlete until he/she is ready to perform to their best potential the sport in which they got injured. I having watch my teachers (athletic trainers) I know that they take a lot of dedication into what they do. Athletic trainers work with a team which means that “may work evenings or weekends and travel often” (http://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/athletic-trainers.htm#tab-3) Person who is an athletic trainer needs to prepared to travel often so I believe that one needs to be dedicated to being an athletic trainer.

I interviewed a physical therapist in my hometown who has been working in this career for several years now. She gave me a great insight how physical therapy really works and all the small things you need to know for this career that wouldn’t necessarily need to have. First, the most interesting information she told me was when I asked her, where do you think the future of this occupation is going? Her answer was, physical therapists would soon be right hands to surgeons so the patient doesn’t have to keep going back to the doctor or the PT (Tronstad). Also, that PT will transition into becoming a PA, physician associate, who performs examinations or procedures, prescribe medication, get ahold of medical histories almost similar to what a physical therapist

The one thing good about being a Physical Therapist is the money you get paid around 80-100 thousands dollars in a year so you and your family is set for anything and you really wouldn't have to worry about money your financial set for life as long as you're smart with your

Physical Therapist or known as PTs, Physical Therapist Assistants, and a Geriatric Physical Therapist all sound like great careers. They are all the same in a way just different job hours, different responsibilities, and different places of work. I would rather be a Physical Therapist than a PT assistant and a Geriatric Physical Therapist, because PTs get paid relatively well. Also I would like to do more than to assist a therapist. My research shows that a Physical Therapists duty is to restore maximal functional and independence to each individual patient. They evaluate, diagnose, and make a treatment plan to each individual patient’s needs. It is offered to a wide variety of patients such as: Newborn babies, children, adults, and

Physical therapy and criminal investigating are two careers with high interest. Many people want to become them when they get older and they are steadily growing. Both a physical therapist (PT) and a criminal investigator (CI) must be in great physical shape and both must learn a lot to perform in their profession. As well as great mental and physical shape, they must maintain training throughout in order to succeed and stay in the job. These jobs appeal to me because I think I am in both physical and mental shape. Also, I am excited to learn new things and that is required by both professions. When looking at the differences however, there are much more. A PT must be a people person and help rehabilitate injured persons while a CI looks into crime either locally or federally and does not necessarily have to be a social, interactive person. Although both of these jobs have desirable aspects, I would prefer to be a physical therapist because I would like to interact with people more and physically help them recover.

I don’t know too much about the details of physical therapy but the salary is just above what is known to be the happiest salary in the country, on average physical therapists earn $75,000. Physical therapy also has an excellent growth rate of 36% which is about double the average in this country. So there will be plenty of jobs available after I get the necessary education, Which is only 3 years after obtaining a bachelor 's degree. The work itself isn’t too intense, generally just helping patients rehab after surgery or an injury. I got this information from bls.gov, which is a very authentic site.

What is a sports physical therapist? A sports physical therapist is a physical therapist who specializes in the field of sports medicine. This type of therapist is qualified to work with patients who have suffered debilitating injuries from sporting events (Thyberg). Sports physical therapists work with a number of patients with problems ranging from muscle pains to sports injuries. Their work doesn’t consist of only working with injured patients; sports physical therapists must come up with care plans, fill out paper work, and check in with their patient’s doctors for status updates. There are several components that make up the job of a sports physical therapist.