2025 Best Physical Therapy/Therapist Doctor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region

Ranked #4 in popularity, physical therapy/therapist is one of the most sought-after doctor's degree programs in the nation. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 18 schools in the Far Western US Region to determine which ones were the best for doctor's degree seekers in the field of physical therapy/therapist. Combined, these schools handed out 1,976 doctor's degrees in physical therapy/therapist to qualified students.

What's on this page: * Our Methodology

• Best Doctor’s Degree Schools List

Choosing a Great Physical Therapy/Therapist School for Your Doctor's Degree

The physical therapy doctor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality physical therapy program can vary widely even among the top schools. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:

Overall Quality Is a Must

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To take this into account we consider a school's overall Best Colleges for a Doctor's Degree ranking which itself looks at a host of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.

Other Factors We Consider

The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.

• Major Focus - How much a school focuses on physical therapy/therapist students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - How many other physical therapy/therapist students want to attend this school to pursue a doctor's degree.
• Educational Resources - How many resources are allocated to students. These resources may include educational expenditures per student, number of students per instructor, and graduation rate among other things.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized physical therapy/therapist related body.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for physical therapy/therapist students working on their doctor's degree.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Physical Therapy/Therapist Doctor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region list, to help you choose the best school for you.

Best Schools for Doctorate Students to Study Physical Therapy/Therapist in the Far Western US Region

Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a doctor's degree in physical therapy/therapist.

10 Top Far Western US Region Schools for a Doctorate in Physical Therapy

1

University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

141 Annual Graduates

Every student pursuing a degree in a doctor's degree in physical therapy/therapist needs to take a look at University of Southern California. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from University of Southern California

2

Samuel Merritt University
Oakland, CA

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

48 Annual Graduates

It's hard to beat Samuel Merritt University if you want to pursue a doctor's degree in physical therapy/therapist. Samuel Merritt University is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Oakland.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from Samuel Merritt University

3

University of Washington - Seattle Campus
Seattle, WA

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

48 Annual Graduates

University of Washington - Seattle Campus is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a doctor's degree in physical therapy/therapist. UW Seattle is a fairly large public university located in the city of Seattle.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from University of Washington - Seattle Campus

4

Loma Linda University
Loma Linda, CA

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

113 Annual Graduates

Every student who is interested in a doctor's degree in physical therapy/therapist needs to look into Loma Linda University. Loma Linda University is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Loma Linda.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from Loma Linda University

5

Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

33 Annual Graduates

MSMU is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Los Angeles.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from Mount Saint Mary’s University

6

Pacific University
Forest Grove, OR

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

54 Annual Graduates

Pacific is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Forest Grove.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from Pacific University

7

California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

31 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from California State University - Long Beach

8

Azusa Pacific University
Azusa, CA

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

69 Annual Graduates

Located in the suburb of Azusa, Azusa Pacific is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from Azusa Pacific University

9

University of the Pacific
Stockton, CA

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

33 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Stockton, Pacific is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from University of the Pacific

10

Touro University Nevada
Henderson, NV

Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

39 Annual Graduates

Located in the large city of Henderson, Touro University Nevada is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.More information about a doctorate in physical therapy/therapist from Touro University Nevada

Best Physical Therapy/Therapist Colleges by State

Explore the best physical therapy/therapist schools for a specific state in the Far Western US Region .

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
California	381	1,758
Washington	216	131
Oregon	145	94
Nevada	111	83

View All Rankings >

Physical Therapy/Therapist Related Rankings by Major

One of 16 majors within the Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions area of study, Physical Therapy/Therapist has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Physical Therapy

Related Major	Annual Graduates
Occupational Therapy	576
Rehabilitation Science	4
Art Therapy	2

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to Barbara E. Carver. More about our data sources and methodologies.