Free Physical Therapist Job Description Templates
Free physical therapist job description templates: outpatient, PTA, pediatric, sports, and home health. Download as DOCX and customize for your clinic.
Physical Therapist Job Description Templates
5 free templates by setting. Download as DOCX or copy-paste.
A physical therapist evaluates patients, builds treatment plans, and delivers the hands-on care that restores movement and reduces pain. For a private practice, an outpatient clinic, or a home health agency, it is the central clinical hire, and a tough one to fill in a market where qualified PTs are in short supply. The job description you write sets the scope, screens for the right credentials, and doubles as a recruiting pitch in a competitive field.
At FirstHR, we build for small clinics and practices where the owner or clinical director handles hiring and onboarding directly. The five templates below cover the most common versions of the role by setting: outpatient, physical therapist assistant, pediatric, sports and orthopedic, and home health. Each is ready to use. Fill in the bracketed fields, adjust to match your clinic, and post. For the fundamentals behind any posting, the guide to writing a job description covers the basics.
Which Template Should You Use?
Pick the template that matches your setting and the role you are filling. The core structure is the same across all five, but each one emphasizes the clinical scope, credentials, and language that fit a specific kind of physical therapy role. Use this guide to choose.
5 Free Physical Therapist Job Description Templates
Download all five as a single Word document or copy individual templates. Each one follows the same structure: clinic overview, job summary, key responsibilities, qualifications and licensing, compensation, and how to apply. Fill in the brackets before you post.
Template 1: Outpatient Physical Therapist
The standard, all-purpose version for any private or outpatient clinic. Evaluates patients, develops treatment plans, and delivers hands-on care, with full licensing requirements. Start here if the role fits a general clinic setting.
Template 2: Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA)
For hiring a licensed assistant who delivers treatment under a supervising PT. Associate degree, PTA license, and an explicit supervision relationship. Use this when you need clinical support beneath your physical therapists.
Template 3: Pediatric Physical Therapist
For clinics treating infants, children, and adolescents. Adds developmental assessment, IEP collaboration, family-centered care, and play-based techniques. Use this for a pediatric or developmental practice.
Template 4: Sports / Orthopedic Physical Therapist
For sports and orthopedic clinics. Adds musculoskeletal focus, return-to-play protocols, manual therapy, biomechanical analysis, and OCS or SCS certification as a plus. Use this for an athletics-focused practice.
Template 5: Home Health Physical Therapist
For home health agencies. Adds in-home visits, a driver's license and transportation, geriatric focus, assistive devices, and plan-of-care compliance. Use this for a role delivering care in patients' homes.
What Is a Physical Therapist?
A physical therapist (PT) is a licensed clinician who helps patients restore movement, manage pain, and recover function after injury, surgery, or illness. The role centers on evaluating patients, diagnosing movement problems, designing individualized treatment plans, and delivering hands-on care. The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that all states require physical therapists to be licensed, and that entering the field requires a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree.
The work varies widely by setting. An outpatient PT treats a broad mix of orthopedic and post-surgical patients, a pediatric PT focuses on developmental care, a sports PT on return-to-play, and a home health PT delivers care in patients' homes. That is why the job description should describe the role for your specific setting rather than copy a generic one. For related clinical hiring, the medical assistant job description templates follow a similar structure.
Physical Therapist Duties and Responsibilities
Physical therapist duties fall into four broad areas. A strong job description selects the specific responsibilities from each area that apply to your setting rather than listing every possible task. These are the responsibilities most often expected of the role.
For a specialized role, the duties shift toward the relevant focus, such as developmental care for pediatrics or in-home plans of care for home health. For help scoping the role before you write the posting, the guide to defining job responsibilities walks through a simple process.
What to Include in a Physical Therapist Job Description
Every strong physical therapist job description includes the same core sections, with concrete duties rather than generic ones. The templates above are built around them, but it helps to see the difference between vague and specific wording.
| Weak bullet | Strong bullet |
|---|---|
| Treat patients | Evaluate patients and develop individualized treatment plans |
| Provide therapy | Deliver therapeutic exercises, manual therapy, and modalities |
| Keep records | Document patient progress and outcomes in the EMR |
| Work with patients | Educate patients and families on home exercise programs |
| Must be qualified | DPT degree, current state license, and passing NPTE score |
Specific, clinically accurate duties attract qualified candidates and signal a serious employer. Keep the language neutral and inclusive too, since the EEOC prohibits job advertisements that show a preference based on protected characteristics.
Requirements and Licensing
Physical therapy is a licensed profession, so the requirements section is not optional boilerplate. It is the core filter for your applicants. Every PT must hold a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree, pass the National Physical Therapy Examination, and be licensed in your state.
Beyond the core license, many clinics require current CPR or BLS certification and value board certifications by specialty, such as OCS for orthopedics, SCS for sports, and PCS for pediatrics. Most full-time clinical PT roles are salaried and exempt, so review the Department of Labor FLSA classification rules when you set pay, especially for per-visit home health arrangements.
Physical Therapist vs Physical Therapist Assistant
These two roles are often confused, but they have distinct scopes, credentials, and pay. Knowing the difference helps you hire at the right level and write a compliant job description, since supervision requirements are set by state law.
| Physical Therapist (PT) | PT Assistant (PTA) | |
|---|---|---|
| Education | Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) | Associate degree (accredited) |
| Scope | Evaluates and creates treatment plans | Delivers treatment under PT supervision |
| License | State PT license + NPTE | State PTA license + NPTE for PTAs |
| Median pay (BLS, May 2024) | $101,020 | $65,510 |
A PTA extends a PT's capacity by carrying out treatment plans, but only a PT can evaluate patients and design those plans. When you hire a PTA, make the supervision relationship explicit so the scope is clear and compliant from day one.
Physical Therapist Salary
Physical therapists are among the higher-paid clinical roles in a small practice. Set your range using government data as a baseline, then adjust for setting, specialty, location, and experience.
Always publish a salary range. Physical therapists are in short supply, so a competitive range plus benefits that matter to clinicians, like continuing education support and a manageable caseload, help your posting compete. Pay ranges are also required in a growing number of states. For per-visit home health roles, state the per-visit rate and mileage clearly.
How to Write a Physical Therapist Job Description
A strong physical therapist job description takes about 20 minutes to write if you follow a clear structure. Here is the process the templates are built around. If this is a key clinical hire, the small business hiring guide covers the steps around the posting itself.
Hiring a Physical Therapist for a Small Clinic
A large hospital system has recruiters, credentialing staff, and clinical educators. A small private practice or outpatient clinic does not. The owner or clinical director writes the posting, verifies licenses, and onboards the new clinician directly, often while still treating their own patients. As your clinic grows, other clinical hires follow the same pattern, which is why bringing on a nurse shares the same credentialing challenge. Here is how to write the posting for that reality.
From Hiring to Onboarding
The job description is step one. Once a candidate accepts, the same document becomes the basis for the offer and onboarding. Clinical onboarding has extra steps that a general role does not, since a PT cannot see patients until credentials are verified and compliance training is complete.
A structured onboarding gets a new clinician seeing patients safely and confidently, which matters in a small clinic where every hire counts and credentialing cannot be skipped. Once your offer is ready, the offer letter template handles the next step, and an onboarding template gives the new PT a structured start. FirstHR connects the offer, document collection, e-signatures, and onboarding workflow in one place so a small clinic can manage the full process from one system.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a physical therapist do?
A physical therapist evaluates patients, diagnoses movement problems, and develops and delivers treatment plans to restore function, improve mobility, and reduce pain. Day to day, that means assessing each patient's condition, building an individualized plan, delivering therapeutic exercises, manual therapy, and modalities, tracking progress in the medical record, and educating patients and families on home programs. PTs work with people recovering from injury, surgery, or chronic conditions across settings like outpatient clinics, pediatrics, sports and orthopedics, and home health. In a small clinic, the PT also collaborates with physicians and may supervise physical therapist assistants.
What are the duties and responsibilities of a physical therapist?
A physical therapist's duties fall into four areas. Evaluation and planning: assessing patients and creating individualized treatment plans with measurable goals. Treatment and care: delivering exercises, manual therapy, and modalities, and adjusting plans based on progress. Documentation and compliance: recording progress in the EMR and meeting clinical and billing requirements. Collaboration: coordinating with physicians and care teams, communicating with patients and families, and supervising PTAs where applicable. The specific mix shifts by setting. A pediatric PT focuses on developmental care and families, a sports PT on return-to-play, and a home health PT on in-home plans of care.
What qualifications does a physical therapist need?
Every physical therapist must hold a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree from a CAPTE-accredited program, pass the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE), and be licensed in the state where they practice. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, all states require physical therapists to be licensed. Most clinics also require current CPR or BLS certification. For specialized roles, additional board certifications add value: PCS for pediatrics, OCS for orthopedics, and SCS for sports. State your degree, license, and exam requirements clearly in the posting, since they are mandatory and screen out unqualified applicants immediately.
What is the difference between a physical therapist and a physical therapist assistant?
A physical therapist (PT) evaluates patients, diagnoses movement problems, and creates treatment plans. A physical therapist assistant (PTA) delivers treatment under the direction and supervision of a PT but does not evaluate patients or design plans independently. The credentials differ too: a PT holds a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree, while a PTA holds an associate degree from an accredited program. Both must be licensed and pass the relevant NPTE. When you hire a PTA, make the supervision relationship explicit in the job description, since the scope of practice and supervision requirements are set by state law. Use the dedicated PT or PTA template accordingly.
How much does a physical therapist make?
Physical therapists are well-paid clinical professionals. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $101,020 for physical therapists in May 2024, with the lowest 10 percent earning under $74,420 and the highest 10 percent over $132,500. Physical therapist assistants earned a median of $65,510. Actual pay depends on setting, location, experience, and specialty. Demand is strong: BLS projects physical therapist employment to grow 11 percent from 2024 to 2034, much faster than average, with about 13,200 openings each year. Because PTs are in short supply, a competitive salary range and benefits like CEU support help your posting stand out.
Do I need a license to hire a physical therapist?
The clinician needs the license, not you as the employer, but verifying it is your responsibility. Every physical therapist must hold a current license in the state where they practice, which requires a DPT degree, a passing NPTE score, and meeting state requirements. As the employer, you must confirm the license is active and in good standing before the PT treats patients, and keep documentation on file. The same applies to PTAs, who hold their own license. Make a current state license a stated requirement in the job description, and verify credentials during onboarding before the first patient visit.
What happens after I hire a physical therapist?
Once a PT accepts, the job description becomes the basis for the offer and onboarding. Clinical onboarding has extra steps: verify and document the state license, NPTE, and CPR/BLS certification, complete HIPAA and compliance training, set up EMR access, and review your documentation and billing standards before the first patient. Collect signed paperwork and have the PT acknowledge clinic policies. A structured onboarding gets a new clinician seeing patients safely and confidently, which matters in a small clinic where every hire counts. FirstHR handles the offer, document collection, e-signatures, and onboarding workflow in one place.