Hey everyone! Welcome to the new series on the blog: “Life as a PT”! In this series I will be interviewing practicing PTs to give pre-PTs (and even current PT students!) the chance to hear the stories of their future colleagues, and learn more about the profession. Every PT’s career has its own nuances, and things like geographical location, patient population, setting, and specialty will probably differ between therapists. Hopefully these interviews will give you a little insight into the life of a PT, while also opening the door to new connections within the field!

Today we have the pleasure of hearing from Dr. Jasmine Marcus, PT, DPT!

Jasmine Marcus is a physical therapist and writer. Her writing has been featured on several physical therapy websites and she has been quoted as a physical therapist in numerous national publications. She also edits physical therapy application essays and other important documents for physical therapists.

How did you decide that you wanted to pursue a career in physical therapy?

I actually wanted to be a writer and journalist for most of my life. During my undergrad days, I was an editor of The Cornell Daily Sun and had several journalism internships. After graduating, I hosted a sports radio show in Israel. During this time, I decided I wanted a career that was more stable and more rewarding. My dad sent me many articles about “The Top 10 Growing Professions” and physical therapy was always listed. I had had a lot of physical therapy in high school for various cross-country injuries and I had always been interested in the field. Seeing the profession appear on all those lists resonated with me, and inspired me to look into the field and eventually go back to school. I worked as a physical therapy aide and took pre-requisites for a year before attending Columbia University’s physical therapy program. I have now been a physical therapist for over two years.

What was your favorite part of PT school?

My favorite part of physical therapy school was all the relationships I made. I had some really inspiring professors and made some great friends. I also really enjoyed all four of my clinical internships. Although I was a good student, I don’t miss sitting in class all day. I loved being able to get out of the classroom to learn and practice being a physical therapist. In fact, I currently work at the site of my third internship.

What type of setting do you work in/What does a typical day look like?

I work in an outpatient orthopedics private physical therapy clinic in Upstate New York. I work four 10-hour days – a schedule that I love – rotating between two of the company’s three clinics. I treat patients for 30 minute sessions, doing a mix of follow-ups and initial evaluations each day. You can see exactly what I do on a daily basis here.

What is your favorite thing about the PT profession/your job?

My favorite aspect of being a physical therapist is similar to my favorite part of school: the relationships I form with my patients. I love getting to meet a wide variety of people and help them reach their goals. I work with people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds, and it is rewarding to help them return to everything from playing high school basketball to reaching the jar of peanut butter on the top shelf of their cupboard.

I am lucky to work for a company that values mentorship. My coworkers are always around to answer questions and I learn new things from watching them treat each day. Since our clinics are in a relatively rural setting, we treat almost everything, including pediatric and neurological conditions in our outpatient setting.

What advice do you have for pre-PT or current DPT students?

Remember that physical therapy school is the means to the end, but not the end itself. Try to learn as much as you can, and meet as many people (both in real life and online) as possible.

I’d like to give a HUGE thank you to Jasmine for sharing, and being the first guest of this series! You can connect with her through her website, on Twitter @JMarcusDPT, and on Instagram @JMarcusDPT.

If you are a practicing PT and would like to be featured in my next post (or if you know any PTs that would be interested), feel free to email me at thecurlyclinician@gmail.com!

Stay tuned to see the next PT that will be featured!