Physical Therapist resume example
Physical therapy resumes need to show setting, caseload and outcomes. Outpatient orthopaedic, inpatient rehabilitation and paediatric practice look similar on paper and are very different in practice, so naming your setting precisely is what gets you into the right pile.
The full example
Fictional example shown in the Classic template. Every design on this site is free to use.
Summary example
Licensed physical therapist with 6 years in outpatient orthopaedics, carrying a caseload of 12–14 patients daily. Achieved a 92% goal-attainment rate across post-surgical knee and shoulder cases, and cut average episode length from 14 visits to 11 by front-loading education.
Notice the shape: years of experience, then one specific result with a number in it, then what you are known for. Three sentences is enough.
Bullet points that work
Adapt these to work you have genuinely done — the numbers must be yours.
- Managed a daily caseload of 12–14 outpatient orthopaedic patients with a 92% goal-attainment rate.
- Reduced average episode of care from 14 visits to 11 by front-loading home programme education.
- Built the return-to-sport protocol now used across three clinic locations.
- Supervised 8 PT students on clinical rotation, all of whom passed their final competency.
- Cut documentation time per visit from 12 minutes to 6 by templating within the EMR.
- Maintained a patient cancellation rate of 4%, against a clinic average of 11%.
Tips specific to this role
- 1
Name your setting in the first line. Outpatient ortho and inpatient rehab are different jobs to a hiring manager.
- 2
Give daily caseload. It is how a clinic judges whether you can carry their schedule.
- 3
Use an outcome measure by name — goal attainment, functional score change — rather than saying patients improved.
Mistakes to avoid on a physical therapist resume
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No licence and state. As with all licensed clinical roles, this is a screening field rather than a detail.
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Omitting your caseload and setting. Outpatient orthopaedic, inpatient rehab, home health and skilled nursing are different jobs with different documentation burdens.
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Leaving out patient outcomes. Functional score improvements and discharge-to-community rates are measurable and rarely used.
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No documentation system named, when productivity expectations and EMR fluency are what employers actually worry about.
How the summary changes with experience
The same role, written two ways. Take whichever is closer to where you are now.
Entry level
Physical therapist, DPT, licensed in Colorado, with a year in outpatient orthopaedics carrying a caseload of 11–13 patients a day. Clinical rotations across acute care, neurological rehabilitation and paediatrics. Documents in WebPT.
Senior
Physical therapist with 12 years in outpatient orthopaedics, DPT and OCS certified. Clinic lead for a four-therapist site carrying 14 patients a day, and rebuilt the post-operative knee protocol that improved average functional scores at discharge by 11 points.
Certifications worth listing
Put these in their own section with the awarding body and, where one applies, the expiry date.
- State Physical Therapy Licence (name the state)
- Orthopaedic Clinical Specialist (OCS) – ABPTS
- Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS)
- Basic Life Support (BLS)
Questions
What should a physical therapist put on a resume?
Lead with a summary that names your years of experience and your single strongest result. Then work experience with one measurable achievement per bullet, followed by skills using the exact terms from the job advert. For this role, employers screen most often for: physical therapist, manual therapy, therapeutic exercise, plan of care, outcome measures.
What outcome data belongs on a physical therapist resume?
Functional measures you track and improve — FOTO, LEFS, DASH, gait speed, return-to-sport rates. Physical therapy is one of few clinical fields with routine outcome data, so omitting it means passing up your strongest evidence.
How do I present productivity expectations?
State visits per day and documentation turnaround plainly. Clinic directors balance clinical quality against throughput, and a candidate who acknowledges both reads as someone who understands the economics of the setting rather than only the clinical work.