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The route into physiotherapist

Assembled backwards from the job: the degrees that lead there, the subjects those degrees require, the exams and when they are sat, and what the whole thing costs in years. Print it.

1. Subjects, chosen at fifteen or sixteen

Aggregated across every degree that leads here. Anything marked required closes the door if you skip it.

Saudi curriculum track

مسار الصحة والحياة— Health and Life Sciences

A-Level

  • Biologyrequiredfor Biology and Biomedical Science, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
  • Chemistryhelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
  • Psychologyhelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
  • Mathematicshelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science
  • Physical Educationhelpsfor Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences

IB Diploma

  • Biology HLrequiredfor Biology and Biomedical Science, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
  • Chemistry HLhelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science
  • Mathematics SL or abovehelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science
  • Sports, Exercise and Health Sciencehelpsfor Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
  • Psychologyhelpsfor Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences

Advanced Placement

  • AP Biologyhelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
  • AP Statisticshelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
  • AP Psychologyhelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
  • AP Chemistryhelpsfor Biology and Biomedical Science
  • AP Physics 1helpsfor Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences

2. The degree

More than one route usually exists. They are not equivalent.

  • Biology and Biomedical Science

    Not directly, and one of several clinical routes reachable with a further professional degree.

    Three to four years, with a laboratory or research year common and worth taking.

  • Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences

    The direct destination — musculoskeletal, neurological, cardiorespiratory or sports practice.

    Four to five years plus an internship year in the Saudi system; three to four years in the UK. Some countries, notably the US, now require a doctoral-level qualification.

3. Exams, and when to sit them

Registration deadlines fall weeks or months before the exam. That is what people miss, not the exam.

  • ESATOctober

    Cambridge natural sciences; most universities require no test for biology.

    • July to SeptemberUCAT testing window, sat at a test centre.
    • September to JanuaryLNAT testing window for most law courses.
    • OctoberMost Oxford and Cambridge subject tests — TMUA, ESAT, PAT, TSA.
    • JuneSTEP, sat alongside A-Levels as a condition of a Cambridge or Warwick offer rather than for shortlisting.
  • Qudurat and TahsiliGrade 11 and 12

    The Saudi admission composite for science and health colleges.

    • Several periods across the yearQudurat (General Aptitude Test), open from Grade 11. Computer-based and paper sittings both run.
    • Final months of the school yearTahsili (Scholastic Achievement Test), sat near the end of Grade 12 once the syllabus is covered.
    • Spring and summer of Grade 12University applications through the unified admission portals and each university's own portal.
  • SCFHS classificationAfter the internship year

    Required to practise; the classification level follows the qualification and determines scope and pay.

  • Physical capabilityThroughout

    Not a formal test at most programmes, and a genuine requirement of the work — this is a physically demanding profession and the placement year makes that clear quickly.

4. After the degree

Training, licensing and the years between graduating and practising independently.

United States

  1. schoolHigh school with strong sciences4 yr
  2. undergraduateBachelor's degree with physiotherapy prerequisites4 yr
  3. postgraduateDoctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)3 yr
  4. licensingNational licensure examination and state licence0–1 yrs
  5. practiceLicensed physical therapist0 yr

LicensingState licensure following a national examination. Residency is available for specialisation but is not required to practise.

United Kingdom

  1. schoolA-levels including Biology2 yr
  2. undergraduateBSc Physiotherapy3 yr
  3. licensingRegistration with the health professions regulator0–1 yrs
  4. practiceRegistered physiotherapist0 yr

LicensingStatutory registration with the health professions regulator. A two-year pre-registration master's exists for graduates of other subjects.

Saudi Arabia

  1. schoolSecondary school, science track3 yr
  2. undergraduateBachelor of Physical Therapy including internship5–6 yrs
  3. licensingProfessional classification and registration0–1 yrs
  4. practiceRegistered physical therapist0 yr

LicensingSaudi Commission for Health Specialties classification and registration.

5. What the route costs

Not tuition — time. The years spent training are years not spent earning, and that is the largest cost of a long route by a wide margin.

United States

School-leaving to independent practice: 7–8 years.

The shortest route needing no degree written up on this site is aircraft maintenance engineer at 4 years. Someone taking that route has been earning for 4 years by the time this one starts. At their entry pay of $48,780–62,630, that is roughly $195,120–250,520 of earnings deferred.

United Kingdom

School-leaving to independent practice: 3 years.

Saudi Arabia

School-leaving to independent practice: 5–6 years.

The shortest route needing no degree written up on this site is air traffic controller at 4 years. Someone taking that route has been earning for 2 years by the time this one starts. At their entry pay of SAR 140,000–220,000, that is roughly SAR 280,000–440,000 of earnings deferred.

How that figure was reached, and what it leaves out

It is arithmetic on the sourced figures elsewhere on this site — training years multiplied by the shortest route’s entry pay — not a measurement of anything. It ignores what trainees earn while training, which in medicine and several other routes is a real salary. It ignores the pay you reach afterwards, which for long routes is usually higher and can overtake the gap entirely. And it excludes tuition, deliberately: Saudi public universities charge nationals no tuition, and fees abroad vary so widely by country and university that any single figure would be misleading. Treat it as a sense of scale for the years, not as a calculation of whether a career is worth it.

Everything on this page is assembled from the career page, the majors that lead to it and the exams those majors require, so it cannot say something they do not. Entry requirements change every year — confirm on the course page for the year you apply.