APTA hosts Sept 23 DPT event

The APTA Academy of Education has scheduled a virtual discussion on DPT student retention for Sept. 23, 2026, as physical therapist educators and applicants track admissions pressures and program support strategies. The 90-minute session is being organized with the American Council of Academic Physical Therapy’s Admissions and Retention Task Force, according to the academy’s event listing. The event is set for 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Eastern. Registration is being collected through a Boston University-hosted Qualtrics form. ### What exactly is happening on Sept. 23? Wednesday, Sept. 23, is the date listed by the APTA Academy of Education for an “Admissions Network combined event with the ACAPT Admissions and Retention Task Force.” The academy’s site lists the event time as 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. EDT and says attendees can RSVP below the event notice. (aptaeducation.org) The APTA Academy of Education is a component focused on physical therapy education, and ACAPT represents academic institutions involved in physical therapist education, according to the organizations’ websites. ACAPT says it supports academic institutions in developing future PT students and leaders in academic education. (aptaeducation.org) ### Why is retention the focus of this session? A June 10 event page from the APTA Academy of Education described that earlier session as “Part I” of a combined discussion with the ACAPT Admissions and Retention Task Force. That June program focused on admissions trends, current literature, survey data on admissions practices, and preliminary recommendations for more holistic admissions approaches. (aptaeducation.org) The page also said a “Part II” event later in the summer would discuss retention insights and practices. ACAPT’s task-force page shows that one of its Institute for Academic Advancement task forces is charged with “developing best practices in admissions & retention at DPT programs.” The same page lists a separate task force on preparing prospective students for the academic rigor of DPT school, indicating that retention and student readiness are active topics inside the organization’s academic agenda. (aptaeducation.org) ### Who is this event for? The APTA Academy of Education event listing places the Sept. 23 session inside its Admissions Network programming, pointing to an audience of faculty and others involved in DPT admissions discussions. The context of the June 10 event — which promised discussion and Q&A for participants and a recording for network members — suggests the combined series is designed for broad participation from academic stakeholders. (acapt.org) The user-facing RSVP link is a Boston University Qualtrics form, which is commonly used for event registration and survey collection. The event notice does not, in the accessible listing, spell out any attendance cap or fee. (aptaeducation.org) ### How does this fit into the broader PT education calendar? Sept. 23 appears on the APTA Academy of Education site alongside other fall programming, including webinars and the Education Leadership Conference in Washington in October. The academy’s events page lists the Sept. 23 combined event in its calendar, placing it within a broader run of professional-development programming for PT educators. (aptaeducation.org) ACAPT’s events pages also show a busy fall schedule, including leadership and networking programming in September and October. That places the retention discussion in the middle of a larger cycle of academic-physical-therapy events rather than as a one-off session. ### Where can people sign up, and what comes next? (aptaeducation.org) The Boston University Qualtrics form linked from the event notice is the registration point for the Sept. 23 session, according to the academy’s listing. The APTA Academy of Education has not, in the accessible event text, published additional speaker details or a separate agenda beyond the combined-event description. (acapt.org) Oct. 16-18 is the next major date on the academy’s public calendar, when the 2026 Education Leadership Conference is scheduled in Washington. Before that, the Sept. 23 session is the listed forum for the academy and ACAPT’s task force to continue the admissions-and-retention discussion begun on June 10. (aptaeducation.org 1) (aptaeducation.org 2)