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Kinesiotherapist education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a kinesiotherapist. Kinesiotherapists usually study kinesiology, rehabilitation science, or health education. 88% of kinesiotherapists hold a bachelor's degree, and 6% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 40 real kinesiotherapist resumes to see exactly what kinesiotherapist education sections show.

The most common colleges for kinesiotherapists are the Norfolk State University and the Norfolk State University.

There are also many online kinesiotherapist courses to help get the education required to be a kinesiotherapist.

What education do you need to become a kinesiotherapist?

What degree do you need to be a kinesiotherapist?

The most common degree for kinesiotherapists is bachelor's degree, with 88% of kinesiotherapists earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 6% and master's degree degree at 6%.
  • Bachelor's, 88%
  • Master's, 6%
  • Associate, 6%

What should I major in to become a kinesiotherapist?

You should major in kinesiology to become a kinesiotherapist. 39% of kinesiotherapists major in kinesiology. Other common majors for a kinesiotherapist include rehabilitation science and health education.

Most common colleges for kinesiotherapists

Kinesiotherapists often get their degrees at Norfolk State University, University of Southern Mississippi, and Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. Here are the most common colleges for kinesiotherapists in the US based on their resumes.
Kinesiotherapist common collegePercentages
Norfolk State University14.81%
University of Southern Mississippi11.11%
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania7.41%
San Francisco State University7.41%
Michigan State University7.41%

Best majors for kinesiotherapists

Best colleges for kinesiotherapists

The best colleges for kinesiotherapists are Northwestern University, Columbia University in the City of New York, and University of Pennsylvania.

A kinesiotherapist with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for kinesiotherapists. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become kinesiotherapists.

1. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$8,987

Enrollment

18,946

2. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

3. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$59,430

Enrollment

8,216

4. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

5. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Champaign, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$15,094

Enrollment

32,974

6. SUNY at Buffalo

Buffalo, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$10,099

Enrollment

21,404

7. San Diego State University

San Diego, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,488

Enrollment

30,018

8. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

9. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

10. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

20 best online courses for kinesiotherapists

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1. Addiction Treatment: Clinical Skills for Healthcare Providers

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This course is designed with a singular goal: to improve the care you provide to your patients with substance use disorders. By delving into a model case performed by actors, seven Yale instructors from various fields provide techniques to screen your patients for substance use disorder risk, diagnose patients to gauge the severity of their use, directly manage treatment plans, refer out to treatment services, and navigate the various conditions that may limit your patient’s access to treatment...

2. Prehospital care of acute stroke and patient selection for endovascular treatment using the RACE scale

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Acute stroke is a time-dependent medical emergency. In acute ischemic stroke, the first objective is to restore brain flow using sistemic thrombolytic treatment and, in patients with large vessel occlusion, by endovascular treatment. In hemorrhagic stroke there are also specific treatments that can improve the clinical outcome. The sooner the initiation of all these therapies the higher the clinical benefit. Thus, the organization of Stroke Code systems coordinated between emergency medical...

3. Crisis Intervention Seminar

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4.4
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The emphasis is on the development of fundamental clinical skills in the area of crisis intervention...

4. Occupational Therapy Introduction - ACCREDITED CERTIFICATE

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4.4
(568)

How to become occupational therapist, basic Psychology, Physiology & Anatomy, working with disabilities, children adults...

5. Health After Cancer: Cancer Survivorship for Primary Care

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This course presents basic principles of cancer survivorship to primary-care physicians. Developed by a team of experts in caring for cancer survivors, and narrated by a primary-care physician, this course provides practical tips and tools that can be easily integrated into medical practice. You will learn about the complex physical and psychosocial needs and concerns of the growing number of cancer survivors, along with the key role that primary care physicians have in guiding these patients...

6. Emergency Care: Pregnancy, Infants, and Children

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Welcome to the final course of lectures in your quest to master EMT basics. In this course, we will cover some of the highest-stress patient populations: pregnant patients and kids, also known as pediatrics. To wrap up your EMT knowledge we will end this course with information about hazmat situations, extricating patients from tight spots and finally how you write a note about your patient care. You will learn to ensure it communicates what your assessment of the patient was, what...

7. Coping Skills and Self-Care for Mental Health

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4.5
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Essential skills to manage intense emotions and develop a self-care practice to promote mental health...

8. Providing Trauma-Informed Care

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Exploring psychological trauma and how to provide care and compassion to trauma survivors...

9. Traditional herbal medicine in supportive cancer care: From alternative to integrative

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Please join us for an exciting and innovative journey, examining one of the most important and often overlooked aspects of the oncology setting: Traditional Herbal Medicine in Supportive Cancer Care. This course is presented with short lectures offering a wide range of issues related to the principles and practice of herbal medicine in cancer care. The course includes interviews with leading world experts from the field of Integrative Oncology, from the U.S. and Canada, as well as Europe, the...

10. Health for All Through Primary Health Care

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This course explores why primary health care is central for achieving Health for All. It provides examples of how primary health care has been instrumental in approaching this goal in selected populations and how the principles of primary health care can guide future policies and actions. Two of the most inspiring, least understood, and most often derided terms in global health discourse are “Health for All” and “Primary Health Care.” In this course, we will explore these terms in the context...

11. Customer Service Mastery: Delight Every Customer

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Master Customer Service using this practical customer care course...

12. The Key to Happiness: Self Care

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Discover Self Care as a tool for creating positive change in your mental health, behaviours, and well-being...

13. Clinical Kidney, Pancreas and Islet Transplantation

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Kidney transplantation is a major advance of modern medicine which provides high-quality of life for patients with end-stage renal disease. What used to be an experimental, risky, and very limited treatment option more than 50 years ago is now routinely performed in many countries worldwide. The number of renal transplants is expected to rise sharply in the next decade since the proportion of patients with end stage renal disease is increasing. Are you interested in clinical kidney, pancreas...

14. The Business of Health Care

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This Specialization was designed to help you keep pace with the rapidly changing world of health and health care. Through partnership with Wharton and Penn Medicine, you’ll learn from experts in business acumen, health care management, and health care policy to develop the skills you’ll need to successfully navigate the quickly evolving landscape of this fast-growing field.* By the end of this specialization, you will have a strong foundational understanding of the American health care system,...

15. Value-Based Care: Managing Processes to Improve Outcomes

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COURSE 3 of 7. This course is designed to introduce you to critical office-based processes that a value-based practice must manage in the drive towards improved patient outcomes. In Module 2, we’ll focus on office-based and clinical patient-based supporting functions. At every level in healthcare, guidelines, processes, and functions exist to improve outcomes, and following a consistent process will return the best effect. Refine your understanding of value and learn strategies to provide real...

16. Operations and Patient Safety for Healthcare IT Staff

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Now that you've been introduced to the world of Health IT and the important role played by electronic health records (EHRs), we'll focus on other technologies that play a role in maintaining ongoing operations in healthcare. Telemedicine, patient portals, barcode scanners, printers, and medical devices are just some of the technologies that impact providers and patients. As an IT support specialist, you’ll be asked to troubleshoot issues with a wide variety of tools. You'll see a scenario with...

17. Case Studies in Personalized Medicine

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Learn how advances in biomedicine hold the potential to revolutionize drug development, drug treatments, and disease prevention: where are we now, and what does the future hold? This course will present short primers in genetics and mechanisms underlying variability in drug responses. A series of case studies will be used to illustrate principles of how genetics are being brought to bear on refining diagnoses and on personalizing treatment in rare and common diseases. The ethical and...

18. Health Care Delivery in Healthcare Organizations

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Have you ever needed health care and thought that there must be better ways to get or deliver health care? For example, have you found yourself thinking that there should be a way to get a diagnostic test or treatment at home? Or do you work in a healthcare organization and find yourself thinking that there must be better ways to deliver health care? If you have, this course is for you. Course content includes an overview of health care delivery including healthcare consumerism, the patient's...

19. Pain Management: Easing Pain in Palliative Care

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In this course, you will be able to develop a systems view for assessing and managing pain in the palliative care setting. By the end of the course, you will be able to: 1) Describe the pain problem in the palliative care setting; 2) Assess a person’s pain, 3) Explain the benefits of integrative therapies and pharmacologic strategies to manage pain...

20. Palliative Care Always Capstone Course

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The Palliative Care Always Capstone course is designed to let you test your knowledge about palliative and help others understand the value of palliative care, while showing your creative side. In this course, you will impact community awareness about palliative care, promote self-care and wellness, show-off your communication skills in a virtual environment, and finish the course off by proving your thoughts on ways to offer psychosocial support to a patient and family...

Top 10 most affordable universities for kinesiotherapists

The most affordable schools for kinesiotherapists are California State University - Long Beach, university of florida, and california state university - bakersfield.

If the best universities for kinesiotherapists are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for kinesiotherapists.

1. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

2. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

3. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

4. Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$5,656

Cost of attendance

21,623

5. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

6. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Cost of attendance

14,823

7. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

8. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

9. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,410

Cost of attendance

20,456

10. Lehman College of the City University of New York

Bronx, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,210

Cost of attendance

14,359

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for kinesiotherapists

The hardest universities for kinesiotherapists to get into are Northwestern University, Columbia University in the City of New York, and University of Pennsylvania.

Some great schools for kinesiotherapists are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for kinesiotherapists based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

2. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

3. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

4. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

5. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

4%

SAT average

1,497

6. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

7. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

8. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

9. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

Admissions rate

5%

SAT average

1,520

10. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC • Private

Admissions rate

23%

SAT average

1,398

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for kinesiotherapists

The easiest schools for kinesiotherapists to get into are Barry University, notre dame de namur university, and mount saint mary's university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a kinesiotherapist without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for kinesiotherapists.

1. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

2. Notre Dame de Namur University

Belmont, CA • Private

Admissions rate

82%

SAT average

983

3. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

4. University of the Incarnate Word

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,044

5. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

6. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

7. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

8. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

9. Ottawa University

Ottawa, KS • Private

Admissions rate

78%

SAT average

1,024

10. Fresno Pacific University

Fresno, CA • Private

Admissions rate

85%

SAT average

1,053

Average kinesiotherapist salary by education level

Kinesiotherapists with a Doctorate degree earn more than those without, at $54,825 annually. With a Master's degree, kinesiotherapists earn a median annual income of $51,431 compared to $46,131 for kinesiotherapists with an Bachelor's degree.
Kinesiotherapist education levelKinesiotherapist salary
Master's Degree$51,431
Bachelor's Degree$46,131
Doctorate Degree$54,825

Kinesiotherapist education FAQs

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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