New Student Onboarding

To accept your admission offer and confirm your spot in the Class of 2027 you must complete the following steps:

1. Please e-mail the signed Letter of Intent to dpt-admissions@northwestern.edu
2. Wait 3-5 business days for our registrar Kisha Nelson, to email you instructions regarding the signup for our online portal
3. Submit your $1,000 tuition deposit to the online portal

If you are an Early Decision applicant who would like to accept your admission offer, the letter of intent and tuition deposit must be submitted by Oct. 1. 

Northwestern's DPT program will host an In-Person Open House on Saturday, January 6, 2024. The event will start with registration at 7:45am and conclude with a lunch reception. Open House will be held on Northwestern University's Downtown Chicago campus in our main facility at 645 N. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611. Click here for more details regarding open house.

If you are interested in coming to Open House, please register here. Due to space limitations, we do limit Open House to admitted applicants and 1 personal guest. Please register by December 9th, so that we have an accurate count for lunch. We hope you are able to attend!

Please contact dpt-admissions@northwestern.edu with any questions.

In addition to loans, there are several scholarships available to qualified enrolling students who meet specific criteria. 

The scholarship application is due by Dec. 7.

Admission offers will be made October through December, and scholarship winners will be notified in December, so you may or may not know your final admission status before applying for scholarships.

Scholarship applications are separate from the PTCAS application for admission. Applicants may apply for multiple scholarships but may only receive one award. Scholarships are one-time awards, and funds may only be applied to Northwestern University DPT tuition and fees. 

If you intend to apply for the DPT/MPH program, a separate application to The Graduate School is required.

• DPT/MPH (Master of Public Health): Candidates can submit an application after being accepted into the DPT program, and applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the Class is filled. An interview will be scheduled following submission of a completed application, with the ultimate deadline for applications being May 1

If you intend to apply for the DPT/PhD (Eng) program, a separate application to The Graduate School is required. 

• DPT/PhD students must register for TGS 514, Continuous Registration Exemption, each fall, winter and spring quarter (not needed for summer) while in the DPT program. To register, send an email to gradservices@northwestern.edu, and indicate that you are a DPT/PhD student who needs TGS 514 enrollment while you are in the DPT portion of the program. This must be done before the change of registration period ends. These dates are listed on the Northwestern Academic calendar as last day for students in TGS to change registration. Students continue enrollment in the University Student Health Insurance Plan (NU-SHIP) during the DPT.
• DPT/PhD in Biomedical Engineering: Candidates will be notified between February and March of their application status for the PhD and eligibility for the dual-degree track.
• For other engineering programs, please check specific application deadlines.

International students only: Please refer to the detailed instructions provided by the International Office. The forms will be available starting in March.

As an enrolling student, you will receive a seven-digit student ID number and a NetID, your login for campus systems and your Northwestern email. You will receive an email from the department with your ID details and NetID activation instructions in the spring. Once activated, be sure to check your Northwestern email regularly.

To help you connect with each other, we will create a private Class of 2026 Facebook group. This will be space to start meeting your classmates, discuss housing arrangements and ask questions of our second-year, admissions student representatives. You will also be paired with a student “buddy” from the Class of 2026, in the spring.  

If you will be applying for aid, please review the Office of Financial Aid’s instructions and submit the FAFSA and University Aid Application. Application materials will be available in January on their website. The Office of Financial Aid will send instructions for accepting your aid offer to your Northwestern email address once they have received the tuition rates. The final tuition rates will be posted by late spring. Applications are processed in the order of receipt, and financial aid offers are sent on a rolling basis. For more detailed information regarding financial aid, please watch this video provided by the Chicago Financial Aid office or contact Emily Osborn with any questions.

The first tuition bill for fall will be due Sept. 1. Deferral paperwork/enrollment verification for existing student loans can be forwarded to Kisha Nelson

All FULL-TIME students at Northwestern University (NU) are required to meet immunization requirements.

DPT students will need to complete requirements through NU Health Information Management Services (HIMS)

• Writing out your vaccination dates will not be accepted for items requiring a blood titer. Hard copy blood titer lab reports must include the student name and the date that the lab test was completed.
• Schedule your physician or other designated healthcare provider appointment to have your blood drawn for necessary titers. Students will need to ask their healthcare provider to complete and sign the Student Immunization Form for Physical Therapy students.
• If you have questions concerning the Student Immunization Form, immunization requirements, or related issues, please review the Immunization Requirements Frequently Asked Questions, or call Health Information Management Services of the Evanston Campus Health Service at 847.491.2203, or send an email message to hims@northwestern.edu.
• Don’t forget to have electronic copies of all your health record documents before sending your originals to NU HIMS, and save them electronically for future reference.
• E-mail, fax, or mail paper copies of all required paperwork to HIMS as instructed on page 1 of the Student Immunization Form for Physical Therapy Students by July 1.
• HIMS will send you a confirmation email when they have processed your health records. You must read your HIMS email carefully because they may require you to submit additional health information documents before approval. HIMS completes this process for all NU students so it will take time for them to get back to you.

All DPT students are required to complete and maintain a valid American Heart Association (AHA) Basic Life Support (BLS) for Healthcare Professionals CPR certification for the duration of the PT program. BLS CPR certification completed directly by an AHA provider is accepted by the PT program. Courses offered by non-AHA providers (e.g., Red Cross, “AHA compliant” provider, etc.) will not be accepted. Students who submit non-AHA provider CPR certification will be required to take an AHA BLS CPR course to meet PT program requirements.

The PT Department will subsidize the required AHA BLS CPR certification course, Heartcode BLS Online. The course includes both an online course portion and a hands-on session; the cognitive portion is administered online and costs $34. The hands-on session will be administered in-person and paid for by the PT program. 

It is advantageous to take the PT program course if you need to complete an AHA provider BLS CPR certification course or if your current AHA BLS CPR certification expires before August 2024. To register for the PT program AHA BLS CPR certification course, complete and submit your knowledge component certificate of completion to dpt-admissions@northwestern.edu no later than August 1, 2024. Register for Heartcode BLS Online by July 27. to ensure you have the access code to complete the online course before August 1.

You must upload both the front and the back of your AHA BLS CPR card to Exxat by Sept. 1.

All students are issued a Wildcard (the Northwestern University ID) and a Northwestern Medicine ID. You may submit a photo online for your ID cards. Getting this done ahead of your arrival will ensure your cards are ready for you to pick up the week of orientation. We recommend submitting your photo by Aug. 1. Please be sure to follow the guidelines listed for acceptable photos.

All students receive a U-Pass (included in the required student activity fee), which provides unlimited rides on the CTA while school is in session. A photo is needed for us to order your U-Pass. Please email your photo (using the same photo guidelines as the Northwestern ID cards) to dpt-admissions@northwestern.edu by Aug. 1. Pending CTA processing, U-Passes will be ready for pick-up at orientation and active for use by the first day of class. Your ID photo will also be used for internal department needs, including the security system for our building and the class roster, which is shared with faculty.

All DPT students receive an iPad package; the price is included in the required iPad/Technology Fee charged to your first tuition bill.

The iPad package typically includes a recent model iPad, a case with a keyboard, an Apple pencil, an extended warranty package, and software licenses for required apps.

Packages will be ordered by the department and distributed the week of new student orientation.

Orientation will take place on the Chicago campus the week before classes begin. These sessions are mandatory for all new students. A detailed schedule of events will be provided in mid-August. Please plan for full days of activities, tentatively 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

Required course supplies — including the APTA kit, gait belt and goniometer — will be available for purchase the week of orientation.

As the majority of clinical education sites require a background check on file, all DPT students are required to complete a check before enrollment. The department facilitates the completion of your background check through Certiphi Screening Incorporated. During the first week of class, you will receive an email to your Northwestern email account from Certiphi prompting you to enter your personal information into their system and authorize a criminal background check (CBC) investigation. Please complete the authorization process upon receipt of the email. Certiphi will send you a CBC report; please check the report and communicate with Certiphi if there are any errors or problems of misidentification. When final, upload a copy of the report to your Exxat profile.

If any prerequisite courses and/or your bachelor’s degree are still outstanding after your final PTCAS update, then you must submit an official, final transcript to the department to confirm these requirements were met. Please be sure to order transcripts after all final grades and degree information have been added to your record.

If all prerequisites and your bachelor’s degree have been confirmed, no action is necessary. 

Official electronic transcripts are preferred and can be sent to dpt-admissions@northwestern.edu. If your institution is unable to send an electronic copy of your transcripts, they can be mailed to:

All DPT students must pass a proficiency exam in medical terminology. The online exam will be made available in late July.

Important student resources are available throughout our site's DPT section.

The detailed class schedule will be finalized and distributed in mid-August. You can expect to be scheduled Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. or sometimes 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Many courses do require textbooks. A list will be provided in mid-August.

No action is required on your part for course registration; the department processes registration for all DPT students.

All full-time students must maintain adequate health insurance either through the Northwestern University Student Health Insurance Plan (NU-SHIP) or an outside plan that meets university standards. An enrollment/waiver process for NU-SHIP is required to confirm your elections with the Student Health Insurance Office. The open enrollment period will be July 1 to Oct. 1, with coverage beginning Sept. 1. Check for instructions on the enrollment/waiver process. 

A copy of your health insurance card is one of the required uploads in your Exxat profile (due Sept. 1); if you are enrolling in the Northwestern Plan and waiting to receive your ID card, you may upload a copy of your enrollment form or confirmation letter from NU-SHIP until the ID card is available.