(a) An applicant for licensure as a physical therapist shall have the following qualifications:

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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 63-13-307

  • Board: means :
    (A) As used in part 2 of this chapter, the board of occupational therapy. See Tennessee Code 63-13-103
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Physical therapist assistant: means a person who meets the requirements of this chapter for licensure as a physical therapist assistant and who performs physical therapy procedures and related tasks that have been selected and delegated only by the supervising physical therapist. See Tennessee Code 63-13-103
  • Physical therapy: means the care and services provided by or under the direction and supervision of a physical therapist who is licensed pursuant to this chapter. See Tennessee Code 63-13-103
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • United States: includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(1) Be of good moral character;
(2) Have completed the application process;
(3) Be a graduate of a professional physical therapy program accredited by a national accreditation agency recognized by the United States department of education and by the board of physical therapy; and
(4) Have successfully passed an examination approved by the board.
(b) An applicant for license as a physical therapist assistant shall meet the following requirements:

(1) Be of good moral character;
(2) Have completed the application process;
(3) Be a graduate of a physical therapist assistant education program accredited by an accreditation agency approved by the board; and
(4) Have successfully passed an examination approved by the board.
(c)

(1) The board shall issue a license to a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant who has a valid unrestricted license from another United States jurisdiction in which such person, when granted such license, previously met all requirements as specified in subsections (a) and (b) and as further established by rules promulgated by the board.
(2)

(A) When the board receives a completed application for licensure from an applicant who is licensed in another state or territory of the United States or in the District of Columbia, then the board shall, within sixty (60) days from the date the board receives the completed application:

(i) Render a decision on the application; or
(ii) Inform the applicant of the need to appear before the board.
(B) As used in this subdivision (c)(2), “completed application” means an application that satisfies all statutory and board rule requirements.
(d) An applicant for licensure as a physical therapist who has been educated outside the United States, foreign-educated, or internationally trained shall meet the following qualifications:

(1) Be of good moral character;
(2) Have completed the application process;
(3) Provide satisfactory evidence that the applicant’s education is substantially equivalent to the requirements of physical therapists educated in accredited educational programs as determined by the board. If the board determines that a foreign-educated applicant’s education is not substantially equivalent, it may require completion of additional course work before proceeding with the application process;
(4) Provide written proof that the school of physical therapy education is recognized by its own ministry of education;
(5) Provide written proof of authorization to practice as a physical therapist without limitations in the country where the professional education occurred;
(6) Provide proof of legal authorization to reside and seek employment in the United States or its territories;
(7) Have the applicant’s educational credentials evaluated by a board-approved credential evaluation agency;
(8) Have passed the board approved English proficiency examinations, if the applicant’s native language is not English;
(9) Have participated in and completed an interim supervised clinical practice period prior to licensure; and
(10) Have successfully passed the examination approved by the board.
(e) Notwithstanding this section, if the foreign-educated physical therapist applicant is a graduate of a professional physical therapy education program accredited by an agency approved by the board, the requirements in subdivisions (d)(3), (4), (7) and (9) may be waived.
(f) In determining the qualifications of an applicant for licensure as a physical therapist or as a physical therapist assistant, only a majority vote of the board of physical therapy shall be required.
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