What Makes the Tufts DPT Program Unique? A Faculty Perspective from Tufts DPT-Atlanta

Prospective Doctor of Physical Therapy students often want to know what makes a program stand out and who will be guiding them along the way. In this Q&A, Moyo B. Tillery, PT, DPT, assistant professor and director of admissions for the Tufts University Doctor of Physical Therapy program in Atlanta, shares insights into their journey into physical therapy, their decision to join Tufts, and how the program prepares students for clinical practice. From innovative hybrid learning to mentorship and professional development, learn what makes the Tufts DPT experience distinctive.

What inspired you to become a physical therapist, and what led you to a career in DPT education?

"I learned about physical therapy [what I consider] late in my undergraduate career. I spent the first few years of college actually changing my major from Architecture & Design to Biological Sciences, thinking I wanted to pursue Dentistry. However, I was having trouble getting call backs from local clinics to shadow a dentist, so I attended a pre-health club meeting during the Fall of my Junior year and that was the first time I learned about PT! A physical therapist was there, and what resonated most with me was the way they shared their love and passion for physical therapy as the art and science of using movement to heal. I also remembered the way they discussed spending quality time interacting with patients outside of what I know to be the 'traditional’ model of medicine, where one-on-one time with patients is much more limited. The next day, I called local clinics and set up volunteer hours and the rest is history, 15 years later!"

Why did you decide to join Tufts?

"I decided to join Tufts for a number of different reasons. I will be honest that the first reason is the people. Through professional associations, I knew many of the faculty members at Tufts DPT. These are individuals who taught me in PT school, wrote textbooks from which I learned, and held leadership positions in our professional associations at the national level. The individuals at Tufts DPT model the ideals that I value personally and professionally, and these are excellence, mentorship, and social responsibility. I knew that Tufts would be a place I could grow and broaden my own perspectives on higher education across the realms of teaching, service, leadership, research, and community. All of these things led me to take a deep dive into Tufts University itself, and what drew me in even more is learning that Tufts University is an Antiracist Institution, and is an institution that values inclusion, collaboration, and student-centeredness. In short, I joined Tufts because of shared values!

How does Tufts help students connect classroom learning with real-world clinical practice?

"Well I think this question is the perfect segway from my previous response about student-centeredness. Specific to Tufts DPT, I think we are unique in that we have always been a hybrid, accelerated program. As such, I find that Tufts DPT is intentional throughout the curriculum in keeping the end in mind, the end being excellence in clinical practice. The hybrid experience lends itself to team- and case-based learning already, where synchronous sessions are intentionally designed to connect asynchronous lectures with practical application, where sometimes in traditional programs, students and faculty view these areas in a siloed manner, and students do not make the connection to clinical practice until they are on their clinical experiences. Here at Tufts DPT, this remains at the center of student learning. Another way we connect classroom learning to real-world clinical practice is during clinical skills lab immersions, where we bring in associated faculty with diverse professional and clinical experience to assist during labs, bring with them their wealth of personal, professional, and clinical experiences."

What makes the Tufts DPT student experience unique?

"This is a topic I could go on and on about but will do my best to be concise. The Tufts DPT student experience is unique because the hybrid structure of our program lends itself, like I send to intentionality. We are intentional about the student experience while they are distant from us. We collaborate at an in-depth level with our Educational Technology Specialists to curate a quality experience for them as they move through their asynchronous material. We are intentional about the student experience when we are in-person. Their in-person clinical skills labs feature a variety of learning experiences, including simulation and live patient examinations. What excites me most is the innovation that is Tufts DPT, and with building the program in Atlanta, the fourth program, we are being intentional in incorporating lessons learned over the years to continue to innovate this already innovative DPT program, and I am very excited to see these efforts come to fruition over the next year as we work to welcome our inaugural cohort."

What advice would you give prospective students considering the Tufts DPT program?

"If you are a traditional learner in the sense of needing to have a 'Sage on the Stage' where the professor is lecturing at you, and the information transfer and experience feels rigid and unidirectional, Tufts DPT is not for you. If you want to be an active participant in your learning experience, with more access to your faculty and peers (thanks to technological advancements and support), while seeking to remain primarily in your environment of comfort, consider Tufts DPT. If you are interested in learning from faculty who are leading the profession in research, leadership, engagement, consider Tufts. If you are seeking to learn about the impact you will have as a physical therapist, beyond the classroom and clinic, consider Tufts DPT!"

If you could brag about anything in terms of your career, what would it be?

"This is easy: I have been a physical therapist for 15 years, and I have yet to be burned out or bored. Physical therapy is a dynamic field of truly endless possibilities. Outside of clinical practice and excellence skills, a key piece of this is professional development and mentorship. It is the commitment to lifelong learning, professional development, social responsibility that will sustain individuals who enter this profession! It is about relationships and connections, and with now four program locations, the Tufts network and footprint is growing and leading the way in these domains!"
 

Related Links:

Tufts DPT Overview
Applying to Tufts DPT-Atlanta
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