How Many Years it Takes to Become a Physiotherapist ?

Due to sedentary lifestyle of many people in this modern era, problems like back pain, leg pain or any kind of body joint pain is very common, not only for old people but this is seen even in the younger generation. This problem has given rise in demand for a good physiotherapist all around the world making it a promising career options for many students.

It takes anywhere between 4 to 8 years of education after completing High School to become a certified Physiotherapist. The exact number of years to become a Physiotherapist varies based on the certification, course, university and the country.

In this article, we are going to look at how much time it can take a student to become a physiotherapist in 5 different countries all around the globe to give you a better sense of understanding. This will not only give you a general idea about the time frame you may need to invest to become a physiotherapist but also the career pathway as well.

Who is A Physiotherapist ?

Physiotherapist are healthcare professionals who helps patients to restore their body movements. They treat people of all age groups whose body function and movements got impacted due to any certain diseases, injury, health condition or old age.

Physiotherapist

Courses to become a Physiotherapist are mostly same all around the world but the pathway to become a certified Physiotherapist varies from country to country. This is due to different laws and requirements to practice Physiotherapy in countries which makes time periods requires to become a “Certified Physiotherapist” different as well.

Let’s take a look at 5 different countries from all around the globe to give you a general idea about the time require to become a Certified Physiotherapist.

How Many Years it Takes to Become a Physiotherapist in India ?

It takes 3 or 4 Years Minimum to become to a Physiotherapist in India based on the selected course. After completing high school, a student can go for either Bachelors courses such as BPT (Bachelor in Physiotherapy) and BSc in Physiotherapy which is a 4 Years course or they can go for a Diploma in Physiotherapy which is a 3 years course.

Once your bachelors is complete, you can then go for a post graduation and doctoral courses as well in Physiotherapy to increase the career opportunities. Here is the brief information about all the physiotherapy courses in India.

After completing a bachelor course such as BPT (Bachelors of Physiotherapy) or BSc in Physiotherapy, students can go for Post Graduation course such as MPT (Master of Physiotherapy) and Doctoral courses such as PhD in Physiotherapy. Apart from all these, student can also choose to go for a Diploma courses as well.

Course NameDuration
Diploma in Physiotherapy2 Years
BPT (Bachelor in Physiotherapy)4 Years
BSc in Physiotherapy3 Years
MPT (Masters in Physiotherapy)2 Years After Completing BPT or BSc in Physiotherapy
PhD in Physiotherapy3 Years After completing MPT Post Graduation

How Many Years it Takes to Become A Physiotherapist in Canada ?

It takes 6 years after completing High School to become a Physiotherapist in Canada. Minimum eligibility requirement to become a Physiotherapist in Canada is to complete a Master courses in Physiotherapy (MscPT) from any of the 15 accredited universities in Canada. To go for a Master of Physiotherapy which is a 2 year programme, you will need to first complete a 4 years Bachelor course in Physiotherapy.

Here is the list of all 15 acceredited universities in Canada (Source) which offers Master in Physiotherapy as of 2022:

Accredited Universities in Canada for Masters in Physiotherapy:
University of British Columbia
University of Alberta
University of Saskatchewan
University of Manitoba
Western University
McMaster University
University of Toronto
Queen's University
Université d'Ottawa
McGill University
Université de Montréal
Université de Sherbrooke
Université Laval
Université du Québec à Chicoutimi
Dalhousie University

How Many Years it Takes to Become A Physiotherapist in the USA ?

It takes 7 years to become a Physiotherapist in the USA. A student needs to first complete a 4 years undergraduate degree from an accredited institution and then apply for a DPT (Doctor of Physical Therapy) programme which will take another 3 years.

Once your doctoral degree is complete, in order to practice Physiotherapy professionally, student has to first clear the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) and then get a license to practice which depends on each state.

NPTE is conducted by FEBPT (Federation of State Board of Physical Therapy). You can take upto NPTE Examination upto 3 times a year and you can check with your state board to get the license to practice Physiotherapy after that. The license last for 1 or 2 years depending upon the state and in order to maintain the license, the physical therapist must meet the continuing education requirement every 2 years.

How Many Years it Takes to Become A Physiotherapist in Australia ?

It takes around 4 years to become a Physiotherapist in Australia after completing High School. After high school, students can directly apply for a 4 years undergraduate course in Physiotherapy, alternatively they can also go for a 3 years undergraduate course in other similar subject and then another 2 years for Masters in Physiotherapy or 3 years for Doctor of Physiotherapy.

This career path will take 6 Years and is recommended to those who have completed graduation in some other subject but are considering to switch to physiotherapy as a career. In that case, it will take only 2 or 3 years more depending whether you are going for Masters in Physiotherapy or Doctor of Physiotherapy (DPT).

Irrespective of the career path you go for, under Australian Law, all Physiotherapist must be registered with the Physiotherapy Board of Australia before practicing through Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA). You can apply here 6 weeks before your graduation.

Afterwards, you can practice physiotherapy but you must complete 20 Hours of CPD (Continued Professional Development Annually) which can include lectures or conferences, journals reviewing or presenting education sessions at work.

How Many Years it Takes to Become A Physiotherapist in Nigeria ?

It takes 6 years to become a Physiotherapist in Nigeria which includes 5 years of Bachelors education from a university and 1 year internship programme in an accredited hospital/clinic. All the Physiotherapist in Nigeria are to be registered under a governing body called The Medical Rehabilitation Therapist Board of Nigeria (MRTB) to practice Physiotherapy.

In order to become a Physiotherapist in Nigeria, a student has to complete BPT (Bachelor of Physiotherapy) from a university. Currently only 13 Universities in Nigeria offers Physiotherapy as an entry-level course out of which only 4 offers post-graduation programs.

List of Universities offering Physiotherapy courses in NigeriaLocation
Bayero University Kano (BUK)Kano, Nigeria
Bowen UniversityIwo, Nigeria
Federal University Ndufu Aliko-Ikwo (FUNAI)Achoro-Ndiagu, Nigeria
University of Benin (UNIBEN)Benin City, Nigeria
University of Ibadan (UI)Ibadan, Nigeria
University of Lagos (UNILAG)Lagos, Nigeria
University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID)Maiduguri, Nigeria
University Of Uyo (UNIUYO)Uyo, Nigeria
University Of Calabar (UNICAL)Calabar, Nigeria
University Of Ilorin (UNILORIN)Ilorin, Nigeria
Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK)Awka, Nigeria
Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU)Ife, Nigeria
University Of Nigeria (UNN)Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria

To get admission into BPT in one of these universities in Nigeria, a candidate must have a decent score in JAMB (Atleast 200) and (5) O’ Level Credits in English Language, Maths, Biology, Physics and Chemistry, apart from this they must posses at least (2) A’ Level passes in Physics, Chemistry or Biology.

Conclusion:

Physiotherapy is one of the best rising career choice among many students and whether you are planning to pursue your education in the countries mentioned in the article or anywhere else, the procedure is nonetheless same. Depending on the country, it will take anywhere between 4 to 8 years to become a certified physiotherapy. This is because, in some countries, it requires atleast a post graduation qualification to practice Physiotherapy whereas in some country, all you needs is bachelors to be a certified physiotherapist.

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