Physical Therapist Resume Examples by Setting for 2026

Q: Should I list my state PT license number on my resume?

Including your license number is optional but beneficial. Many hospital systems and therapy groups verify licensure during application screening. Including it removes a manual lookup step and signals transparency. Omitting it is not a disqualifier. If you include it, format it as: '[State] PT License #[Number]' in your header or contact section.

Q: How do I write a physical therapist resume as a new DPT graduate?

Treat each clinical internship as a distinct work experience entry. Include the setting name, patient population, caseload (even partial), procedures performed, and your Clinical Performance Instrument (CPI) outcome if it was above entry-level. List your NPTE examination date if scheduled. If you have a specialty interest (ortho, neuro, pediatrics), signal it in your summary and mention relevant coursework or elective rotations.

Q: What software do physical therapists list on their resume?

List the EMR or documentation platform you have used by name. WebPT is the dominant outpatient PT EMR. Raintree is common in large multi-site therapy groups. Epic and Cerner are the hospital-based platforms. TheraOffice and Therabill appear in smaller independent practices. If you are new and have not used a specific platform professionally, list any system you trained on during clinical rotations.

Q: How long should a physical therapist resume be?

One page for PTs with under 5 years of experience, including new DPT graduates. Two pages are appropriate for PTs with 5 or more years, ABPTS specialty certifications, clinical residency completion, publications, or clinical education responsibilities (CI or CCCE roles). Travel PTs should highlight their setting diversity and the number of states they hold licensure in.

The median physical therapist salary is $101,020 per year, and the field is growing at 11% through 2034, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Board-certified PTs earn $4,540 more annually than non-certified counterparts. That $4,540 premium is also a resume signal: ABPTS board certifications tell a hiring manager, within three seconds of scanning your header, that you have invested in advanced clinical competency beyond the DPT baseline. This guide shows how to build that signal across three practice settings.

What Physical Therapist Resumes Must Include

PT resumes have four required elements that ATS systems at health systems and therapy groups consistently parse for.

Element	Where to Place It	Format
DPT Degree	After your name, in header	"Alex Kim, PT, DPT"
State License	Header or contact section	"CA PT License #XXXXX" (number optional)
ABPTS Specialty Cert	After DPT in header if held	"PT, DPT, OCS" (OCS = Orthopaedic Certified Specialist)
NPI Number	Optional; include for hospital/clinical	List in contact section if applicable

ABPTS offers 10 specialty certifications. The most common in job postings are OCS (Orthopaedic), NCS (Neurologic), GCS (Geriatric), SCS (Sports), and PCS (Pediatric). If you are pursuing a specialty, note "OCS Candidate" in your certifications section with an expected examination date.

License number decision: Many PT applicants omit their license number for privacy reasons. Including it removes friction in systems that verify licensure during application screening. If you omit it, ensure your LinkedIn or portfolio makes verification easy.

Physical Therapist Resume Example: Outpatient Orthopedics

Outpatient PT Resume Sample

Jamie Soto, PT, DPT, OCS

Denver, CO • jamie.soto@email.com • CO PT License #XXXXX | ABPTS OCS

Physical Therapist | Outpatient Ortho | OCS Board Certified | WebPT

ABPTS board-certified physical therapist (OCS) with 7 years of outpatient orthopedic practice. Manages 14-18 patients daily. Patient satisfaction scores consistently 4.8/5.0+. 94% of patients achieve or exceed functional discharge goals. Expert in manual therapy, dry needling, and sports rehabilitation.

Work Experience

Physical Therapist — Athletico Physical Therapy, Denver, CO (2019–Present)

Evaluate, treat, and discharge 14-18 patients daily with orthopedic, post-surgical, and sports injury diagnoses; 94% achieve or exceed functional discharge goals per outcome tracking in WebPT
Implemented individualized home exercise program (HEP) adherence protocol using Therabody app; increased patient-reported HEP compliance from 61% to 84% over 6 months
Maintain patient satisfaction average of 4.85/5.0 across 340+ surveys in 2025; top 10% of clinic network performance
Mentored 3 PTA students and 2 PT clinical fellows through their clinical rotations; all received competency sign-offs within scheduled timeframes

Before / After Bullet Rewrites

Weak Version	Strong Version
Treated orthopedic patients	Evaluate and treat 14-18 orthopedic patients daily; 94% achieve/exceed functional discharge goals (WebPT)
Educated patients on home exercises	HEP adherence protocol increased patient compliance from 61% to 84% over 6 months
Good patient feedback	Patient satisfaction average 4.85/5.0 across 340+ surveys; top 10% of clinic network

Physical Therapist Resume Example: Acute Care and Hospital

Acute Care PT Resume Sample

Morgan Chen, PT, DPT, NCS

Boston, MA • morgan.chen@email.com • MA PT License #XXXXX | ABPTS NCS

Physical Therapist | Acute Care | NCS Board Certified | ICU Mobility | Cerner

ABPTS Neurologic Certified Specialist (NCS) with 5 years in acute care at a Level 1 trauma center. Provides ICU early mobility and neurologic rehabilitation for 10-14 patients daily. FIM score improvements averaged 22 points per patient discharge across 2025 caseload.

Work Experience

Physical Therapist — Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA (2021–Present)

Evaluate and treat 10-14 acute care patients daily across medical/surgical, ICU, and stepdown units; FIM score improvements averaged 22 points per patient at discharge vs. 17-point hospital benchmark
Lead early mobility program in 18-bed medical ICU; mobilized 85% of appropriate patients within 48 hours of admission vs. 62% pre-program baseline
Complete all clinical documentation in Cerner; zero late documentation incidents over 5 years; peer-selected as department Cerner super-user
Collaborated with interdisciplinary team (physicians, nursing, OT, SLP, case management) on 30+ weekly complex discharge planning cases

Key ATS terms for acute care PT: FIM score, ICU early mobility, Cerner, Epic, PICS (post-ICU syndrome), ACLS, dysphagia screening, neurologic rehabilitation, fall prevention, interdisciplinary team, discharge planning.

Physical Therapist Resume Example: New DPT Graduate

New DPT Graduate Resume Sample

Taylor Brooks, PT, DPT (Candidate)

Seattle, WA • taylor.brooks@email.com • WA PT License Pending | OCS Candidate

Physical Therapist | DPT Candidate May 2026 | Clinical Rotations: Outpatient Ortho & Acute Care

DPT candidate graduating May 2026 from the University of Washington. Completed 4 clinical internships across outpatient orthopedics, acute care, pediatrics, and neurorehabilitation. Specialty interest: orthopedic manual therapy. FPTA student member. NPTE scheduled June 2026.

Clinical Education

Terminal Clinical Internship: Outpatient Orthopedics — Virginia Mason, Seattle, WA (Jan–Apr 2026)

Carried caseload of 8-10 patients daily under CI supervision; progressed to semi-independent caseload management by week 6 of 12-week rotation
Performed initial evaluations, treatment planning, and discharge assessments for 35 patients across post-surgical, spine, and sports injury diagnoses
Received CI rating of "entry-level competency exceeded" in all 9 Clinical Performance Instrument (CPI) competency areas

Skills Section: ATS Keywords for Physical Therapists

ABPTS Specialty Certs

OCS (Orthopaedic)
NCS (Neurologic)
SCS (Sports)
GCS (Geriatric)
PCS (Pediatric)
WCS (Women's Health)

Software/EMR

WebPT
Therabill
Epic
Cerner
TheraOffice
Raintree

Clinical Modalities

Manual therapy
Dry needling
Therapeutic exercise
Neuromuscular re-ed
Ultrasound / e-stim
Gait training

Outcome Measures

FIM score
LEFS / QuickDASH
VAS / NRS pain scale
Barthel Index
6MWT / TUG
PSFS

How to Quantify Physical Therapy Experience

Activity	Quantified Version
Patient caseload	Evaluate and treat 14-18 outpatient patients daily across orthopedic and post-surgical diagnoses
Functional outcomes	FIM score improvements averaged 22 points at discharge vs. 17-point hospital benchmark
Discharge success	94% of patients achieve or exceed functional discharge goals (WebPT outcome tracking)
Patient satisfaction	4.85/5.0 patient satisfaction across 340+ surveys; top 10% of clinic network
Program development	ICU early mobility program: 85% of eligible patients mobilized within 48 hours vs. 62% baseline

$101K

Median PT salary (BLS 2024)

$4,540

Annual premium for ABPTS board cert

11%

Employment growth 2024-2034 (BLS)

13K

Annual PT openings projected (BLS)