Faculty Racial/Ethnic Make-up Among America's Top 40 DPT Program Website is Absent or Unclear: An Orthopedic Physical Therapy Perspective
Abstract
Background and Purpose: Approximately 35% of the U.S. population is a minority. This article aims to identify the percentage of DPT (Doctor of Physical Therapy) core faculty and program director/chairs who identify as minorities. Methods: An email including 2 survey questions inquiring about the faculty ethnic make-up was sent to the program directors/chairs of the top 40 physical therapy programs as identified by 2019 U.S. News and World Report. Findings: Seventeen of 44 programs responded (39% response rate). Approximately 14.7% (46/313) of the core faculty identify as minority and 1 out of the 17 programs (5.9%) has a minority program director/chair. Discussion and Relevance: The percentage of minority core faculty and program director/chair was below the percentage of minorities in the United States. Conclusion: An immediate change to consider is for the program director/chair to provide how many core faculty and leaders identify as minorities on their program website.
