Students may be assigned to hospitals or other institutions in Flint, other cities in Michigan, or other states. Students are responsible for arranging transportation and housing for these clinical education experiences. Projected costs for physical therapy students are available from the Physical Therapy Department. Research and other types of scholarly activity are important processes in physical therapy education for both student and faculty growth. The faculty believe that students must engage in a research project to become competent as users of research and to be prepared for assuming responsibility for supporting and engaging in clinical research in some capacity.
Students work together in groups of two to six to complete their research projects.
Students may chose to work on faculty sponsored research projects or develop their own research questions. Examples of recent student research topics include the effects of hippotherapy on cardiovascular function in disabled children, age related changes in proprioception, the effect of a community based exercise program on patients with AIDS, and the reliability of a five-minute walk test in patients with multiple sclerosis. The curriculum of the professional Master of Physical Therapy Program provides students with multiple opportunities to enhance their learning. The Physical Therapy Department at the University of Michigan-Flint maintains significant and continuing relationships with the Flint community. Of special importance to the department are the member institutions of the Greater Flint Area Hospital Assembly and the Mott Children's Health Center.