Alternative Path To Becoming A Physio

O.P.H

I'm in 3rd year science at the moment in NUIG and saw this sign for an upcoming seminar on how to become a qualified Physiotherapist after completion of my degree.

Apparently when I have my B.Sc I can do a 2 year "accelerated" course that will make me a fully qualified phsyio.

It said the courses are in Ireland and the UK.

I have some questions about this -
- is this a course only run in NI and the UK or are there any courses in the Republic
- what are the entry requirements (i.e - exams, interview etc)
- is the course any good, as in, will you be fully recognised by the Irish Chartered Physios etc and how will you fair to 4 year degree counterparts
- I have a strong interest in sports physio, would this be a good way of getting into that
- would it be a full time course
- what kind of cost would ya be lookin at

Any info at all people can give me on this would be great, cheers.

locum-motion

O.P.H wrote: »

I'm in 3rd year science at the moment in NUIG and saw this sign for an upcoming seminar on how to become a qualified Physiotherapist after completion of my degree.

Apparently when I have my B.Sc I can do a 2 year "accelerated" course that will make me a fully qualified phsyio.

It said the courses are in Ireland and the UK.

I have some questions about this -
- is this a course only run in NI and the UK or are there any courses in the Republic
- what are the entry requirements (i.e - exams, interview etc)
- is the course any good, as in, will you be fully recognised by the Irish Chartered Physios etc and how will you fair to 4 year degree counterparts
- I have a strong interest in sports physio, would this be a good way of getting into that
- would it be a full time course
- what kind of cost would ya be lookin at

Any info at all people can give me on this would be great, cheers.

I reckon the seminar is the place to get most of that info!

O.P.H

locum-motion wrote: »

I reckon the seminar is the place to get most of that info!

It isnt for a few days yet and would like some info in the meantime, cheers.

Larianne

Hiya,

I don't know anything about this 2 year course but I'm guessing it will be pretty tough. I'm in 1st year Physio and there is a lot of stuff to be covered. Do you know what subjects you'll cover on the course?

I would say it's a full time course as you'll have to do theory, practicals and then all the clinical placements. How you can do that in 2 years I don't know. There are two guys at my college who have gone into 2nd year from doing a course in Physiology and another in Physiology and Health Science but they still have to do Anatomy and Clinical Anatomy with us 1st years as well as the 2nd year stuff.

I'd go to the seminar and see what it's about. Speak to any students who've done it if they are there and then contact ISCP and see what they say. There is another guy who has gone directly into 2nd year after doing a Bsc in Sport Science (or something similar) which he did in London but can't practise here so you do need to check it all out.

Do you which uni you gain the degree from? Also, I know with my course there isn't a lot of Sports Physio in it. You have to do a post-grad to cover it extensively.

SomeDose

I know quite a few people who did a 2yr accelerated Masters in Physio (in the UK). In terms of level of qualification and professional standing (registration, chartered status etc), the 2yr postgrad qualification is no different to a standard 4yr undergrad degree. However, and this would probably depend on where you study, bear in mind that:
a) The course fees are seriously expensive
b) They're quite intense and offer very little holidays / time off (presume this applies no matter what uni offers the course).
c) Certain aspects of physio may not be covered in as much detail as the 4yr degree e.g. some of my friends say that the musculo-skeletal component was not adequately covered as part of their course, which means they often feel out of their depth and lack confidence in some areas of outpatient practice (quite a disadvantage I would think).

Larianne

SomeDose wrote: »

c) Certain aspects of physio may not be covered in as much detail as the 4yr degree e.g. some of my friends say that the musculo-skeletal component was not adequately covered as part of their course, which means they often feel out of their depth and lack confidence in some areas of outpatient practice (quite a disadvantage I would think).

Ooh, that's a biggy!

I know from my mother who is in healthcare that she notices a difference in the people who've done 4 yr degrees or the masters in her profession, the latter just not as well informed about certain things.

But if it's what you want to do, just work your butt off!

O.P.H

Thanks for advice.

The RCSI offers a 3 year course for graduate applicants. I reckon missing that first year wouldnt leave you at much of a disadvantge as I would assume that just covers basics. However fees are close to €9000 a year, ouch!