Ask students what the community is like at Tufts School of Medicine, and you’ll hear things like friendly, collaborative, inclusive, and diverse. We take great pride in being a place where students feel supported in their personal and professional growth. Our students work together in our community of learners and create meaningful relationships with classmates and faculty that last a lifetime. We offer a range of ways to engage from active participation in student-run clubs and organizations to meaningful civic engagement and volunteerism in professional organizations.
Embark on an enriching journey as a physical therapy student at Tufts DPT. Our program offers invaluable advice for physical therapy students, ensuring a transformative DPT experience. With a focus on mentorship, support, and personalized guidance, we empower physical therapy students to excel academically and professionally. Join our community of passionate learners and embark on a fulfilling path towards becoming a skilled and compassionate physical therapist.
My experience in the program has been incredible so far. I have the unique experience of being in the first cohort. With anything new, there are uncertainties but that is also what makes it so exciting. Being in a hybrid/accelerated program can be challenging, but I feel incredibly lucky to have such supportive classmates and faculty. Everyone wants each other to succeed because that is what is going to make our profession even better.
Tufts DPT has been intentional about building a diverse community of learners and providing services to support our students. Our programs—located in Boston, Phoenix, and Seattle—each follow their own unique approaches to create a student support network that is integral to the success of the educational process. These student-centered approaches take on greater significance in the DPT programs given the accelerated curriculum and distance learning.
The academic coaching model of the Boston and Seattle programs includes the intentional pairing of students and faculty to promote personal and professional goal achievement. In the Phoenix program, students are placed in intimate learning communities led by faculty who will serve as mentors.
The confluence of academic coaching or learning communities, the Office of Graduate Student Services, and Talk One2One counseling services provides an environment that addresses each student's individual needs at the program, institution, and community levels. These relationships and services demonstrate our commitment to addressing our students' diverse retention and remediation needs.
Before beginning the program, Tufts DPT students are matched with their academic coach and begin building relationships. This intentional pairing of academic coaches and students provides an intimate, supportive, and collaborative community throughout the program. Academic coaches foster team building through the discovery of individual and group strengths and characteristics. Coaching teams and individual students explore how these traits can be leveraged to promote collaborative success. Coaches meet with their students individually and in groups both formally and informally across the program. Academic coaches and coaching groups serve as a consistent resource for students.
As part of the DPT program in Phoenix, students are placed into learning communities, which are intentionally constructed to enhance the student experience, maximize learning, and create longitudinal relationships with faculty and peers. Tufts DPT students in the Phoenix program will be placed into their learning communities prior to orientation. Within each learning community, students in their first year will be assigned a faculty coach and will meet throughout the program individually and as a group to foster a supportive community.
Following orientation, DPT-Seattle students are assigned to an academic coaching team, consisting of six-10 students and a faculty coach, who helps each student develop skills, behaviors, and habits that contribute to success in the program. The teams are formed based on geographical location and results from self-assessments to assemble complimentary and diverse groups. Coaches work with students on academic and career goal setting, learning strategies, time management and organization, self-regulation, and self-efficacy to support students in meeting their goals. Ultimately, the coaching program is essential for fostering academic success, establishing effective communication, and supporting a cohesive, collaborative, and professional culture.