Physical Therapist Assistants

Pay and outlook

Median annual wage, May 2025

$68,380

Half earn more, half earn less

Middle half earn

$59,820 – $78,680

25th to 75th percentile

People employed, May 2025

112,430

Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)

Projected change, 2025–35

+23%

Growing at twice the all-jobs rate or more (7%+)

Openings a year (projected)

18,500

New jobs plus replacing people who leave

Typical education to enter

Associate's degree

BLS

• All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
• Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
• Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.

What the work involves

Assist physical therapists in providing physical therapy treatments and procedures. May, in accordance with state laws, assist in the development of treatment plans, carry out routine functions, document the progress of treatment, and modify specific treatments in accordance with patient status and within the scope of treatment plans established by a physical therapist. Generally requires formal training.

Main tasks

• Instruct, motivate, safeguard, and assist patients as they practice exercises or functional activities.
• Document patient information, such as notes on their progress.
• Observe patients during treatments to compile and evaluate data on their responses and progress and provide results to physical therapist in person or through progress notes.
• Instruct patients in proper body mechanics and in ways to improve functional mobility, such as aquatic exercise.
• Secure patients into or onto therapy equipment.
• Confer with physical therapy staff or others to discuss and evaluate patient information for planning, modifying, or coordinating treatment.
• Administer active or passive manual therapeutic exercises, therapeutic massage, aquatic physical therapy, or heat, light, sound, or electrical modality treatments, such as ultrasound.
• Transport patients to and from treatment areas, lifting and transferring them according to positioning requirements.

Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.

Getting in

Typical education to enter (BLS)

Associate's degree

O*NET Job Zone 3

Medium preparation

Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Fields of study that lead here

From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 1 programme to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.

Related careers

Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.

• Physical Therapist Aides

  $35,240 median · +4% projected

• Occupational Therapy Assistants

  $72,300 median · +21.5% projected

• Occupational Therapy Aides

  $39,160 median · +3.6% projected

• Psychiatric Technicians

  $45,130 median · +22.3% projected

• Respiratory Therapists

  $82,280 median · +8.5% projected

• Recreational Therapists

  $61,960 median · +4.8% projected