Physical therapy internship vs therapist

The differences between physical therapy interns and therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a physical therapy internship has an average salary of $71,624, which is higher than the $55,943 average annual salary of a therapist.

The top three skills for a physical therapy internship include patients, physical therapy assistants and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a therapist are social work, patients, and group therapy sessions.

Physical therapy internship vs therapist overview

	Physical Therapy Internship	Therapist
Yearly salary	$71,624	$55,943
Hourly rate	$34.43	$26.90
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	127,064	159,770
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	-	-

What does a physical therapy internship do?

Physical therapist interns work with patients to determine and improve their function and movement. The interns assist in the rehabilitation process through body system development and storage. They promote the wellbeing and health of the patients through internship programs. Through the physical therapy internship, interns learn about nutrition, treatment, and the general rehabilitation procedure of patients. It also provides support not just for the patients but also with the staff.

What does a therapist do?

A therapist is responsible for improving the patients' health conditions by evaluating their needs and providing physical and mental support. Therapists are licensed, medical professionals who specialize in different areas to perform treatments and bring relief to patients. Some of their duties include diagnosing patient's problems, performing counseling services, monitoring medication progress, customizing therapy activities for pain management, and consulting other health professionals as needed. Therapists must have extensive knowledge with the medical industry to detect patients' conditions easily and provide effective medications.

Physical therapy internship vs therapist salary

Physical therapy interns and therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Physical Therapy Internship	Therapist
Average salary	$71,624	$55,943
Salary range	Between $52,000 And $96,000	Between $39,000 And $80,000
Highest paying City	Pasadena, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	Oracle	Childhelp
Best paying industry	Health Care	Government

Differences between physical therapy internship and therapist education

There are a few differences between a physical therapy internship and a therapist in terms of educational background:

	Physical Therapy Internship	Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 77%	Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common major	Kinesiology	Psychology
Most common college	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	California State University - Long Beach

Physical therapy internship vs therapist demographics

Here are the differences between physical therapy interns' and therapists' demographics:

	Physical Therapy Internship	Therapist
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 42.6% Female, 57.4%	Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 14.7% White, 69.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 4.0% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 11.3% White, 72.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between physical therapy internship and therapist duties and responsibilities

Physical therapy internship example responsibilities.

Achieve high level of patients satisfaction due to sound clinical management, quality of care and compassion.
Monitor vital signs of all patients and devise physical therapy sessions commensurate with patient stability.
Evaluate and treat CVA and TBI patients in the inpatient setting.
Observe and assist in measuring patients for range of motion limitations following a CVA.
Perform evaluations and co-treatments with OT's and delegate treatment plans to PTA's.
Assist in putting patients on and off of 2 war traction machines and the decompression machine.

Therapist example responsibilities.

Manage ventilator and BiPAP's and create or update care plans per patient needs.
Demonstrate working knowledge of community mental health services identify in the Medicaid guidelines and attain contractual outcomes within designate time frames.
Provide on-call crisis intervention as well as standard treatment, rehabilitation and support services with some interventions requiring specialize therapy services.
Develop and implement an effective curriculum of DBT inform group and art therapy classes specifically tailor for chemically dependent patients.
Provide trauma-inform individual psychotherapy, TREM group treatment protocol, and EMDR.
Utilize current brain base therapeutic techniques to teach clients adaptive skills to utilize in daily lives.

Physical therapy internship vs therapist skills

Common physical therapy internship skills

Patients, 40%
Physical Therapy Assistants, 12%
Rehabilitation, 7%
Ultrasound, 4%
Patient Care, 3%
Occupational Therapy, 2%

Common therapist skills

Social Work, 23%
Patients, 12%
Group Therapy Sessions, 8%
Crisis Intervention, 7%
Mental Health, 4%
Patient Care, 3%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Physical Therapy Internship
Physical Therapy Internship vs Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

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