ON CAMPUS PROGRAM: Full-time, face-to-face
Whatcom Community College offers a two-year Associate in Science Degree Program to prepare PTA's for immediate employment. The PTA degree contains prerequisite courses including study in anatomy and physiology, general education/related instruction requirements such as English, math and social science, and the PTA core of physical therapy application courses and practical clinical experience.
The full-time, on campus PTA program is offered in a 1+1 design format: the first year to complete program prerequisites and general education requirements and the second year to complete PTA core classes spanning five quarters, starting each Fall.
Students must complete the prerequisite courses before being admitted to the sequence of PTA core courses. The prerequisite courses may be completed at another college or university and transferred to WCC. There is a selective application process for entry into the PTA core courses.
PTA core courses must be taken in sequence. The program is a rigorous and academically demanding course of study. It is recommended that students admitted to the PTA full-time program limit their outside obligations as much as possible. The program demands an average of 20 hours per week outside of class on homework assignments. The final quarter of the on campus format consists of two full-time clinical affiliations scheduled 40 hours per week.