Program Director, DPT
A Program Director, DPT provides strategic leadership and oversight for a Doctor of Physical Therapy program, guiding its vision, ensuring academic quality and accreditation, and managing faculty and operations. This is a sample job description from Excelon Associates that you can adapt as a template for your own hire.
What does a Program Director, DPT do?
A Program Director, DPT provides strategic leadership and oversight for the physical therapy program. Working closely with university leadership and faculty, the director guides the program’s vision, ensures academic quality and integrity, manages operations, and fosters an innovative culture aligned with the institution’s mission and values.
The role spans strategy, accreditation, faculty development, and day-to-day operations, making it the central leadership position for a Doctor of Physical Therapy program. It is a senior academic role within the healthcare education space.
A DPT (Doctor of Physical Therapy) is the professional doctoral degree required to practice as a physical therapist in the United States. CAPTE (Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education) is the body that accredits PT education programs, and the director leads the program through its accreditation standards.
What does the Program Director oversee?
Key responsibilities of a Program Director, DPT
- Develop and execute the program’s strategic plan, analyzing metrics and implementing improvements.
- Oversee day-to-day operations, including curriculum, learning outcomes, faculty supervision, admissions, accreditation, budgets, and policies.
- Perform administrative duties such as approving transfers and substitutions, attending meetings, and serving on committees.
- Recruit, manage, mentor, and evaluate program faculty and staff.
- Cultivate strong teams, leadership skills, and professional development across the program.
- Contribute to scholarly activities and service as outlined in a professional development plan.
- Lead accreditation processes, ensure regulatory compliance, and uphold quality standards.
- Stay current on developments in physical therapy education and healthcare through conferences, research, and professional organizations.
- Collaborate across university departments to coordinate activities, and foster relationships with students, faculty, staff, and external partners.
What qualifications does the role require?
- Doctorate in physical therapy or a related field.
- Licensed or license-eligible as a Physical Therapist in relevant states.
- Experience teaching physical therapy curriculum.
- Leadership experience directing an accredited DPT program (preferred), with willingness to travel periodically to campuses and conferences.
- Strategic thinking, collaboration and relationship-building, and strong communication and interpersonal skills.
- Resilience and adaptability, trustworthiness and integrity, and a results-driven mindset.
Why is the Program Director, DPT role important?
The program director sets the academic and operational direction of a Doctor of Physical Therapy program. Their leadership over curriculum, faculty, and accreditation directly shapes whether graduates are well prepared for licensure and practice, and whether the program keeps its CAPTE standing.
Because the role blends clinical credibility, academic leadership, and administrative discipline, the strongest directors are licensed physical therapists who can also build faculty teams and steward a program through accreditation. That combination is what keeps a DPT program both rigorous and well run.
A hiring note from Excelon
DPT program director searches sit in a narrow candidate pool: a licensed physical therapist with a doctorate, teaching experience, and the leadership to carry CAPTE accreditation. Through our healthcare practice, we prioritize candidates who have actually directed or helped lead an accredited program, since accreditation stewardship is the part of this role that is hardest to learn on the job.
The role blends clinical credibility, academic leadership, and accreditation stewardship, and the best directors carry all three at once.
Related sample job descriptions
Program Director, DPT: frequently asked questions
What does a Program Director, DPT do?
A Program Director, DPT provides strategic leadership and oversight for a Doctor of Physical Therapy program. The role guides the program’s vision, ensures academic quality and accreditation, manages operations and budgets, and recruits, mentors, and evaluates faculty and staff.
What qualifications does the role require?
This sample role requires a doctorate in physical therapy or a related field, experience teaching physical therapy curriculum, and licensure or license eligibility as a Physical Therapist in relevant states. Leadership experience directing an accredited DPT program is preferred.
What is a DPT program?
A DPT, or Doctor of Physical Therapy, is the professional doctoral degree required to practice as a physical therapist in the United States. A DPT program educates and clinically prepares students for licensure and practice.
What is CAPTE accreditation?
CAPTE, the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education, is the body that accredits physical therapy education programs in the United States. A Program Director leads the accreditation process and ensures the program meets CAPTE standards.
Why is this role important?
The program director sets the academic and operational direction of a DPT program. Their leadership over curriculum, faculty, and accreditation directly shapes whether graduates are well prepared for licensure and practice and whether the program keeps its standing.
Hiring a Program Director, DPT?
Excelon Associates places physical therapy program directors, department chairs, and health-professions academic leaders at universities and post-graduate institutions across the United States through our healthcare recruitment practice. Retained executive search since 2007, headquartered in Asheville, NC, with offices in Boca Raton and Delray Beach, FL.
More Sample Job Descriptions
Templates you can adapt for your own roles.