Sports physical therapist vs student physical therapist

The differences between sports physical therapists and student physical therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a student physical therapist has an average salary of $73,003, which is higher than the $67,105 average annual salary of a sports physical therapist.

The top three skills for a sports physical therapist include physical therapy, patient care and rehabilitation. The most important skills for a student physical therapist are patients, occupational therapy, and rehabilitation.

Sports physical therapist vs student physical therapist overview

	Sports Physical Therapist	Student Physical Therapist
Yearly salary	$67,105	$73,003
Hourly rate	$32.26	$35.10
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	70,367	92,101
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 76%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	-	-

Sports physical therapist vs student physical therapist salary

Sports physical therapists and student physical therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Sports Physical Therapist	Student Physical Therapist
Average salary	$67,105	$73,003
Salary range	Between $41,000 And $107,000	Between $54,000 And $97,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between sports physical therapist and student physical therapist education

There are a few differences between a sports physical therapist and a student physical therapist in terms of educational background:

	Sports Physical Therapist	Student Physical Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 76%
Most common major	Physical Therapy	Kinesiology
Most common college	Northwestern University	Duke University

Sports physical therapist vs student physical therapist demographics

Here are the differences between sports physical therapists' and student physical therapists' demographics:

	Sports Physical Therapist	Student Physical Therapist
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 42.5% Female, 57.5%	Male, 37.4% Female, 62.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 7.4% Asian, 12.4% White, 72.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 72.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between sports physical therapist and student physical therapist duties and responsibilities

Sports physical therapist example responsibilities.

Demonstrate working knowledge of community mental health services identify in the Medicaid guidelines and attain contractual outcomes within designate time frames.
Administer therapeutic hot packs, cold packs and personally handle various electrical stimulation treatments; ultrasound, electrical stimulation.
Employ at an out-patient orthopedic clinic with primary goal for patient return to work, ADL, or sports/recreation activities.

Student physical therapist example responsibilities.

Achieve high level of patients satisfaction due to sound clinical management, quality of care and compassion.
Evaluate and treat patients with total hip/total knee surgeries, status post CVA and spinal cord injuries.
Evaluate and treat patients with orthopedic conditions such as low back pain, cervical pain, post operative conditions.
Perform evaluations, provide patient treatment, supervise COTA
Develop ability to perform ICU mobility treatments with acutely ill patients.
Evaluate and treat patients in ICU implicating early mobilization to prevent further decline in cardiopulmonary compromise patients.

Sports physical therapist vs student physical therapist skills

Common sports physical therapist skills

Physical Therapy, 43%
Patient Care, 27%
Rehabilitation, 26%
Injury Prevention, 1%
PTA, 1%
Primary Care, 1%

Common student physical therapist skills

Patients, 31%
Occupational Therapy, 13%
Rehabilitation, 8%
Patient Care, 6%
Physical Therapy Assistants, 6%
Adaptive, 4%

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Sports Physical Therapist
Sports Physical Therapist vs Student Physical Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

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