Pursuing A Master's Degree

Participation in sport alone has not been enough for me. A degree in Sport and Exercise Science is the obvious option to satisfy my fascination with how the human body functions, a deep-rooted passion which has only been amplified by my own exploits as an athlete.

Currently attending the University of Dubuque, this bright-eyed young man found himself falling in love with the health wellness and exercise science program. Dreams of being able to work with the NFL or NBA as a professional physical therapist. Keeping his head on right is allowing him to successfully get through his first semester strong and well-balanced. With his background in football itself, he knows the ins and outs of what makes a person who is an athlete tick. Being able to aid someone who is hurt,

Striving for excellence through determination is essentially beneficial for the student as well as classmates and patients. The end goal of a physical therapy program is to equip students with important knowledge about the field to effectively treat each patient in a safe and informative manner. A patient’s health and well-being is relied heavily upon the therapist’s knowledge while being treated. Optimizing each learning opportunity as a student is critical in becoming a professional and well-educated physical therapist upon

Some of the activities that I did during the research included observing mice with osteoarthritis and analyzing the difference in their step length based on their recorded running trails on a small treadmill video system. These activities motivated me to pursue this profession thus prompting my desire to become a physical therapist assistant. My purpose in undertaking this graduate study is to learn how to provide proper treatment and care for patients. I believe that through continuous exposure to the clinical and educational setting in the program, I will be able to gain skills that will enable me to interact with patients

Mrs. Hannah Lowe is a Physical Therapist at Danni Jones Physical Therapy & Wellness Lab. While she was at Louisiana Tech she started off as a Biology major. After completing two classes of biology she soon realized that wasn’t for her. Eventually she switched to Kinesiology, but she still wasn’t for sure what she wanted to do after graduating. Mrs. Lowe graduated with her bachelors in 3 years then went on to get her master in Exercise Science at Louisiana Tech as well. While getting her masters she taught a few exercise classes. The first day of her internship at Danni Jones Physical therapy she fell in love with everything about Physical Therapy and knew then that’s what she wanted

Throughout high school and half of my college career, I believed that I was going to be a physical therapist. I thoroughly enjoyed the challenges this profession presented, as well as the sincere interactions with people and commitment to their health. However,

Although many goals we set at times may seem never ending or hard to achieve them, however they are not. With the influence of an early college high school and the shadowing of a Physical Therapist my goal of becoming a Physical Therapist has never been closer than ever. With all this said one must strive to achieve what I and many others, dream to

Physical Therapy has become an extremely desirable career within the past ten years, growing steadily each year. The interest generally sparks in students that are athletes and who are interested in the body. However, most prospective students don’t comprehend the time, effort and enormous dedication required to pursue a career in physical therapy. In addition to the ignorance, they also are unaware of the actual description and roles of being a physical therapist. While many believe it just consists of showing people exercises and helping them work out, there is so much more to being a

As a child grows its needs change and its social environment adapts to respond to those needs; contrastingly, as a system grows it must change and adapt to adequately respond to the needs of its users. The ever-present quality of the human society to undergo transformation and expansion entails that the underlying systems upholding its effective functioning must parallel educational, technological and social advancements in order to avoid being thrown into disarray. One of the largest systems in the United States is the healthcare industry. Being a vital necessity of any developed society, structured functioning of the healthcare industry is one of the primary concerns of any governing body and new regulative steps are continually taken to ensure that health care is accessible to all members of society.

By obtaining a degree in Kinesiology I can pursue my dreams of becoming a Physical Therapist. I want to become a Physical Therapist so that I can help assist the injured. Due to my participation in numerous sports, I personally know what it feels like to be injured. I believe that having gone through several injuries will allow me to connect with people on a more personal level and earn their trust. As of right now, I am interested in either working with the injured sport players, the elderly, or the wounded veterans. I wish to make a positive difference in someone’s

“Colleen Murnane, PhD in Physical Therapy”. Hearing those words will mark the beginning of accomplishing a long list of goals. I have always known that helping people and exercise, two of my favorite hobbies-would lead to my perfect career choice. I plan on graduating college with high honors, receiving my doctorate, and opening my own Physical Therapy practice. However, I cannot reach those goals without attending college and putting forth the effort to graduate.

The profession requires graduation upon an accredited PT school which typically follows after receiving a B.S degree. As of now, I plan to major in kinesiology because I feel this major will best prepare me with the necessary pre-requisites for further schooling, as well as incorporate all of my academic interests into one major. Outside of the classroom, I dive deeper into this field by being a member of both the Kinesiology Club and Pre-Physical Therapy Club. Both of these provide excellent opportunities to ask questions and converse with others who are in a similar situation to me. Looking ahead, I plan to volunteer at an orthopedic center this summer to explore this field even further.

This is an exciting time as our profession is moving to an entry level doctorate in Physical Therapy (DPT). The first class of DPT’s graduated from Creighton University in 1996. The APTA has mandated that all programs will be transitioned to doctoral programs by 2020, and 213 out of 232 physical therapy programs have already transitioned. 1 The transition to the DPT will make Physical Therapist more knowledgeable autonomous clinicians using evidence based practice and moving towards direct access.

As a student affairs graduate student, I would like to consider my decisions to pursue my degree. I decided to pursue a master’s in student affairs because of my involvement as an undergraduate student. While in undergraduate, I was involved with Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Campus Activities Board Directors, Student Support Services, Student Government Association, Residential Housing, and the Department of Student Developments. Pursuing a Master’s degree has always been an interest of mines, but I never knew what degree to pursue. While working as a student worker for the department of student activities, I gained a love for the college campus environment. This love led to my decision to pursue a master’s in student affairs. Reflecting on the material learning in this course, I would like to think the Chickering’s Seven Vectors and Schlossberg’s Transition Theory has helped me gain more self-awareness about my development and identity. In addition, theories such as: Phinney’s Model of Ethnic Identity Development and Social-Cognitive Theory of Gender Identity Development would be beneficial in my career as a Student Affairs Professional.

The internship that I acquired during the summer of 2010 at the Greenwood Sports and Industrial Rehabilitation Center (GSIRC), allowed me to gain an immeasurable amount of experience during my tenure at this facility. Within this period, the exposure to new concepts within the physical therapy industry allowed me to observe and work hands on with patients of all ages and disabilities that exposed me to various treatment plans and programs to restore client’s mobility. The essential Physical Education and Exercise Science (PEES) courses taken at Lander University were beneficial to my academic knowledgebase, which prepared me and developed me for the opportunity within the physical therapy discipline. Working as