Recent education requirement changes for physical therapist will require physical therapists to have a phD in the future for entry level practice. Online transitional phD education programs are an affordable way for students to make the transition. The need for physical therapists is expected to increase faster than the average industry in the future with an increase of 27% between 2006 and 2016. In 2006 there were 173,000 employed physical therapist.

People with bachelors or masters degrees in fields other than physical therapy may be elible for online direct bachelors to phD or masters to phD physical therapy programs. This is a great way for someone who want to be a physical therapist get into this fast growing and lucrative career. This bridge program is usually completed in 2 years.