American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education
ABPTRFE accredits several non-clinical residency and fellowship programs to assist educator development. 

The following resources are for both PTA and PT educators.

New Faculty Development Workshop
The APTA Academy of Physical Therapy Education provides this workshop to facilitate an understanding of the roles and responsibilities of faculty in higher education. Opportunities to network and learn more about how to function more effectively as a faculty are included in this program.

Mid-Career Faculty Development Workshop
The APTA Academy of Physical Therapy Education hosts this workshop to assist mid-career physical therapy education faculty with teaching clinical reasoning, teaching with technology, and managing career progression.

Resources on this page are recommended for both PTA and PT educators.

Physical Therapy Clinical Education Glossary
From the Academy of Physical Therapy Education.

Guidelines to Promote Excellence in Clinical Education Partnerships
APTA House of Delegates, Guidelines and description of aspects of the clinical partner site, the site coordinator of clinical education, and the clinical instructor needed to promote excellence in clinical education.

APTA's Credential Clinical Instructor Programs
This course provides enhanced clinical education skills for instructors, grants up to 1.6 CEUs, and for PTs and PTAs, the APTA CI credential.

Interested in adding to your Credentialed CI knowledge and expertise? Learn about the CCIP Level 2 Course

Clinical Performance Instruments
The Physical Therapist and Physical Therapist Assistant Clinical Performance Instruments are performance assessments designed to evaluate student performance during their clinical experiences. The CPI is completed by the Clinical Instructor at midterm and at the end of the clinical experience. Students also complete a self-evaluation using the same tool. During the student's clinical experience, the CI provides opportunities that allow the student to practice specific skills and behaviors that correspond with the student's current level of academic preparation.

Clinical Site Information Form
Once logged in, click the "Clinical Site Profile" tab at the top of the program home page. The primary purpose of the APTA Clinical Site Information Form is for physical therapist and physical therapist assistant education programs to collect information from clinical education sites to facilitate clinical site selection and student placements, assess the learning experiences and practice opportunities available to students, and provide assistance with documentation relevant for accreditation.

Clinical Educator Community on APTA's Hub
Exclusive to PT and PTA clinical educators (CIs, SCCEs, ACCEs, DCEs) that are APTA members. The Clinical Education community is a collaborative space to network about issues related to clinical education. To request access, email cpi@apta.org and include Hub Community Access in email subject line.

Reference Manual for Site Coordinators of Clinical Education
This reference manual is currently undergoing revision. 

Model Position Description for the ACCE/CDE: PT Program
This description is meant to serve as a resource and guide and primarily emphasizes roles and responsibilities associated with the management of the clinical education program with the understanding that additional responsibilities are expected of a faculty member related to teaching, service, and scholarship. Expected roles and responsibilities for this individual ultimately lie with the individual academic program and institution.

Model Position Description for the ACCE/DCE: PTA Program
The position description represents an aggregate perspective of a broad continuum of activities and responsibilities assumed by ACCEs/DCEs in physical therapist and physical therapist assistant programs in 2002. This description is meant to serve as a resource and guide and primarily emphasizes roles and responsibilities associated with the management of the clinical education program with the understanding that additional responsibilities are expected of a faculty memberrelated to teaching, service, and scholarship. Expected roles and responsibilities for this individual ultimately lie with the individual academic program and institution.

Assessments in Physical Therapy Education
Use these assessments to gain feedback to enhance your teaching. APTA provides these tools to support the education of physical therapy students and enhance the effectiveness of education programs.

Credentialed Clinical Instructor Program (CCIP)
This course provides enhanced clinical education skills for instructors, grants up to 1.6 CEUs, and for PTs and PTAs, the APTA CI credential

Core Competencies of a Physical Therapist Resident
The competencies, with their associated evaluation instrument, assure the public that graduates of a physical therapist residency program have the
knowledge, skills, and abilities they need to perform their roles in society.

PTA Clinical Performance Instrument
This free online course provides a standardized training program and assessment designed to educate physical therapist assistant students, clinical instructors, center coordinators of clinical education, academic coordinators of clinical education/directors of clinical education and faculty about the appropriate, valid, and reliable use of the APTA Physical Therapist Clinical Performance Instrument: Version 2006. 

From APTA's Learning Center

Clinical Education Simulation for a PTA Program: Innovation and Execution
Educators should leave this session with a clear understanding of the development and implementation of a novel Simulated Clinical Experience for a PTA program. Specific approaches will be reviewed including use of virtual and in person case simulations and adaptive learning techniques. Participants will have a chance to participate in a question and answer session.

Closing the Loop: Providing Effective Student Feedback
One of the most challenging roles for both academic and clinical faculty is providing feedback to students. From an educational standpoint, feedback is vital to guiding the student in developing an accurate evaluation of their clinical and professional skills so they can make appropriate adjustments to be successful. Without effective feedback, the student does not have the ability to determine if their skills meet the required standards of the profession. Although academic and clinical faculty have been trained in their clinical skills, sometimes the skill of providing effective feedback to students is lacking. Recognizing student communication styles must also be assessed to create a successful environment to provide effective feedback. The lack of knowledge in effective strategies to provide effective feedback to students can create a frustrating learning environment for both the student and the academic or clinical faculty. The purpose of this course is to provide clinical and academic faculty with strategies for providing effective feedback to students in both the clinical and classroom environment.

Demystifying Item Writing
Item writers support their profession by helping to ensure that candidates taking NPTE examina-tions receive sound, high-quality questions that reflect a broad range of practice.

Emotional Intelligence: Foundational Skills for Student Success
Providing an overview of Emotional Intelligence, this session will explore how the 5 key components contribute to a student's success. Awareness and regulation of emotions can impact collaboration and personal performance. Motivation impacts a student's success with self-efficacy. Each of these aspects will be explored so that faculty and advisors can support their students' growth and development.

Surviving and Inspiring the Gen Y PT Student
The main purpose of this educational session is to provide clinical and academic instructors with practical strategies for engaging the Generation Y physical therapy student. Generation Y students are known to be tech-savvy, feedback-dependent, kinesthetic and visual learners. This session will explain characteristics of Generation Y which have an impact on the learning experiences in physical therapy curriculums and clinical education. Each characteristic will be followed-up with a practical strategy for participants to implement in their academic or clinical education programs. Participants will learn communication and teaching skills to enhance learning experiences in the classroom and clinical setting.

From APTA Sections

Academy Learning Center
American Academy of Sports Physical Therapy

Residency/Fellowship Education SIG Think Tank Compendium
Academy of PT Education

APTA Academy of Education Mid-Career Faculty Workshop

APTA Special Interest Groups for Educators

Many APTA sections offer special interest group participation for educators as a way to boost their ability to teach in a specific area of practice and enhance their knowledge and education base in these areas. v

Residency/Fellowship Education SIG Think Tank Compendium
Academy of PT Education

Orthopaedic Residency Curriculum
Academy of Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Performing Arts SIG
Academy of Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Pediatric PT Residency and Fellowship Development Resource Manual
Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy, APTA

Explore all APTA special interest groups.

Leadership Development
Ongoing faculty development is necessary to provide contemporary physical therapy education. These leadership opportunities range from new faculty to seasoned faculty and directors in physical therapy education programs.

Education Leadership Partnership
This group includes representatives from APTA, the APTA Academy of Education, and the American Council of Academic Physical Therapy. The partnership is intended to be a group with a more global perspective than that of any one organization represented or any other stakeholder.

Grant Writing & Mentoring in Educator Research Workshop
This annual workshop provides participants with the expertise and support to be successful at the national level in obtaining funding for physical therapy education research. 

APTA Fellowship in Education Leadership
Developing a community of visionary, innovative, and influential directors in physical therapy educational programs to advance the health of society, the Fellowship in Education Leadership provides you with the skills and resources you need to be an innovative and influential leader.

LAMP Leadership Institute
This program is for anyone interested in understanding himself or herself so that they can then develop skills to lead others.  Whether you are a student, early professional or seasoned/formal leader, this certificate program offers “a-ha” moments of personal and professional growth. This program is designed for anyone in the healthcare field.  We have provided training to PT, PTA, OT, COTA, SLP, Physicians, Nurses, Human Resources, Coders, educators and others in the field. 

From APTA's Learning Center

Communication and Leadership in Private Practice: How to Create Your Dream Team
What is Leadership? Leadership is the ability to significantly and consistently influence the thoughts, feelings, emotions and actions of another person. In our current healthcare environment where change is imminent, we need to move beyond trying to manage the chaos to survive. How can we inspire our team so we are able to thrive? During this session participants will identify not only their own leadership style, but also how to influence others to in a way that brings out their natural strengths and talents. Participants will be able to create a plan to create trust and respect as a leader, propose a plan to inspire others, and recognize tools that can be used to navigate communication breakdowns.

Combining Leadership With New Practice Models for a Long-Term Succession
Learn how you can take your practice to the next level by being that entrepreneur business leader who just happens to be a PT, instead of the other way around. What if there was a way for you to act like a property owner whose assets are managed by a property management company that is responsible for growing your practice valuation, all while maintaining your 100% ownership over the practice. This webinar will discuss the details of how to make your practice successful while positioning it for growth under your 100% control. With the proper structure, personnel and systems of accountability from a well-trained management team, you will no longer be left with a limited number of choices such as (1) selling to another PT; (2) closing your doors; or (3) partial corporate sell-out resulting in working for someone else.

Leadership: Cultivating Your Leaders of Tomorrow
Are leaders born or made? To grow your organization, do you grow your people or do you hire a superstar? Once a leader is in place, how do you sustain that positive trajectory? A strong culture propels an organization towards sustainable excellence and creates an environment where people are excited about coming to work. In the U.S., only one-third of the work force is engaged at work. Strong leadership and mentorship are needed to create a team committed to the mission and purpose of the organization and for employees to feels a sense of pride for their place of employment. Why is something so important so difficult to create and sustain? This program will draw on the philosophy and experience of two leading physical therapy organizations that focus on culture and leadership development to transform their businesses. Through lecture, examples, interactive small group discussion, and evidence from the literature, participants will gain practical and concrete examples of best practices on how to define and create culture with strategies that can easily be implemented to begin building an engaged and motivated team.

Leadership Development: Engineering the Growth and Future of Your Practice
This program will outline the benefits and results of leadership education and development of high potential staff members in a physical therapy company. The session will discuss both tangible and intangible benefits and make a case for practice leaders to incorporate leadership training into their company. The presenters will highlight three different models from a small, medium, and larger practice and give case studies of how they have benefited those organizations. They will then distill the six core components of developing a leadership program in any private practice. The program will give a framework and next steps for each participant to create their own leadership program.

Education Leadership Conference
In October of each year, APTA Academy of Physical Therapy Education and the American Council of Academic Physical Therapy sponsor the three-day Education Leadership Conference to address contemporary topics and issues relevant to academic and clinical physical therapy education.

Grantsmanship and Mentorship in Education Research
Held annually, this four-day intensive workshop provides participants with the expertise and support to be successful at the national level in obtaining funding for education research. (Cosponsored by the Education Leadership Partnership, which includes representatives from APTA, the Academy of Physical Therapy Education, and the American Council of Academic Physical Therapy.)

APTA Fellowship in Education Leadership
The APTA Fellowship in Education Leadership is a 52-week, blended learning program that is intended to develop visionary, innovative, and influential directors in physical therapist and physical therapist assistant educational programs to advance the health of society.

ACAPT Leadership Academy
The Leadership Academy is designed to identify and cultivate resources to achieve excellence in academic physical therapy.

Earn CEUs!

Courses from APTA's Learning Center

Closing the Loop: Providing Effective Student Feedback
One of the most challenging roles for both academic and clinical faculty is providing feedback to students. From an educational standpoint, feedback is vital to guiding the student in developing an accurate evaluation of their clinical and professional skills so they can make appropriate adjustments to be successful. The purpose of this course is to provide clinical and academic faculty with strategies for providing effective feedback to students in both the clinical and classroom environment.

APPT Clinical Reasoning Theatre
The purpose of this clinical reasoning theater is to provide students and PT programs with access to content modules called clinical reasoning theaters to facilitate the learner's clinical reasoning process when working with children and their families. This would include video footage of children with special needs and their families, clinicians, and academic faculty dialoguing in movement analysis and determining appropriate tests and measures, interventions, and family education. Video guides for clinicians and faculty would be provided as well as assignments and assessment guides for student learning.

Collaborative Clinical Education: Success in the 2:1 Model
The prospect of students returning to the clinic while the COVID-19 pandemic continues may seem overwhelming to students and CIs alike. Collaborative clinical education (a model with more than 1 student per CI) has emerged as one strategy to create a supportive environment for students and CIs through peer learning and guided academic support. This interactive session outlines the evidence supporting benefits of collaborative education for all parties and offers specific tools and resources to structure the 2:1 experience.

Cultivating Your Leaders of Tomorrow
This program will draw on the philosophy and experience of two leading physical therapy organizations that focus on culture and leadership development to transform their businesses. Through lecture, examples, interactive small group discussion, and evidence from the literature, participants will gain practical and concrete examples of best practices on how to define and create culture with strategies that can easily be implemented to begin building an engaged and motivated team.

PTA Leadership Development Course
The role of PTAs in leadership has changed over the 50 years they've been in the profession.  Learn more about the skill set of PTAs, identify leadership opportunities in clinical and non-clinical envrionments and how PTAs can be leaders in the profession and APTA. 

Successful Mentorship for Residency and Fellowship Education
This course provides in-depth instruction in the educational structure and skill development necessary for residency and fellowship clinical mentoring. The course is designed to guide individuals in how to design, implement and evaluate mentoring experiences in post-graduate residencies and fellowships.

One of the best methods to develop your knowledge-base is to share your experiences, knowledge, and collaborate with other educators.

Connect, Collaborate, Glean Good Intel

APTA Academy of Education
The APTA Academy of Education's mission is to inspire all PTs and PTAs in their roles as educators and to enhance the development and implementation of evidence-based education practices.

The American Council of Physical Therapy Education
The purpose of ACAPT is to advance the enterprise of academic physical therapy – including clinical education and post-professional education -- by promoting the highest standards of excellence.

American Council on Education
The American Council on Education is a membership organization that mobilizes the higher education community to shape effective public policy and foster innovative, high-quality practice. It is the major coordinating body for the nation’s colleges and universities and is the only major higher education association to represent all types of U.S. accredited, degree-granting institutions: two-year and four-year, public and private.

American Education Research Association  
The American Educational Research Association, a national research society, strives to advance knowledge about education, to encourage scholarly inquiry related to education, and to promote the use of research to improve education and serve the public good.

Association for the Study of Higher Education
The Association for the Study of Higher Education promotes collaboration among its members and others engaged in the study of higher education through research, conferences, and publications. ASHE values rigorous scholarly approaches to the study of higher education and practical applications of systemic inquiry.

Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching aims to build a field around the use of improvement science and networked improvement communities to solve longstanding inequities in educational outcomes.

Community Campus Partnerships for Health
Community-Campus Partnerships for Health is a nonprofit membership organization that promotes health equity and social justice through partnerships between communities and academic institutions. This organization mobilizes knowledge, provides training and technical assistance, conducts research, builds coalitions and advocates for supportive policies.

Council for Advancement and Support of Education
The Council for Advancement and Support of Education is the global association for professionals in advancement-alumni relations, communications, development, marketing, and advancement services-who share the goal of championing education to transform lives and society.

Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice Resources
Interprofessional education and collaborative practice resources provide information on various topics that may inform curriculum development and clinical education, as well as offer other opportunities available to physical therapy educators and clinicians.

National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine's Global Forum on Innovation in Health Professional Education
The Global Forum on Innovation in Health Professional Education (IHPE Forum) is an ongoing, convening activity of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine that brings together diverse stakeholders to network, discuss and illuminate issues for the benefit and promotion of health professional education. Currently, there are 37 member-sponsors of the Forum who are academic experts and health professionals representing 17 different disciplines from multiple developed and developing countries. APTA has been a member-sponsor since 2017.

The IHPE Forum typically hosts two workshops each year that focus on innovation in health professional education. The proceedings from these workshops can be purchased in hardcopy for a $45 fee or downloaded for $0 (Free). Link to proceedings: https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/global-forum-on-innovation-in-health-professional-education#sl-three-columns-a524bd50-db74-4343-a8a6-1b67428bc1cc

PTA Educator Interest Group (Orthopaedic Academy)
The purpose of the PTA Educational Interest Group (PTA EIG) is to: provide educational programming to AOPT membership; serve the Academy as an educational & practice resource for Academy members; and develop and recommend practice standards & terminology.