Physical Therapy Aides Schools, Salaries, and Job Data

Job Numbers and Growth

Government estimates of jobs for physical therapy aides total about 46,000. This career is ranked very low for jobless rates in comparison to other careers. The unemployment rate for employees was about 2% in 2008.

Area Job Conditions

Relative to population, you will find the most employees in Provo (Utah), Lawton (Oklahoma), and Pascagoula (Mississippi), and the least in Rochester (New York), Atlanta (Georgia), and Charlotte (North Carolina).

Statistics show that you can earn the most in this career in Colorado Springs (Colorado), Salinas (California), and Denver (Colorado), and will have the lowest earnings in Laredo (Texas), Parkersburg (West Virginia), and Provo (Utah).

Training and Education

People often have short-term on-the-job training before landing a job in this field. Four year degrees are held by 23% of employees. About 65% of physical therapy aides started college but did not get a 4 year degree. A high school education is the highest level achieved by 12% of workers. Recommended schools are shown in the column to the right; request information from them to help you decide which if any could help you with this career.

Part-Time Work and Self-Employment

Part-time workers represent 27% of all physical therapy aides.

Physical Therapy Aides: An Introductory Video

Physical Therapy Aides Around the Country

In the list below, each metro area is rated for the relative popularity of physical therapy aides compared to other locations (that is, jobs per population). Single or double up or down arrows indicate the relative popularity in that location. Within each state listing, metro areas are sorted by the actual number of jobs for physical therapy aides.

Alabama

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Birmingham	$22,000	180
Montgomery	$19,000	70
Mobile	$21,000	60

Arizona

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Phoenix	$25,000	570
Tucson	$26,000	200

Arkansas

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Little Rock	$19,000	180
Fayetteville	$23,000	70

California

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Santa Ana	$26,000	590
Riverside	$26,000	510
San Diego	$23,000	390
Sacramento	$25,000	240
Oakland	$32,000	230
San Jose	$32,000	230
Oxnard	$27,000	230
San Francisco	$29,000	180
Bakersfield	$25,000	140
Fresno	$28,000	130
Chico	$24,000	80
San Luis Obispo	$23,000	80
Salinas	$34,000	70
Redding	$25,000	70
Modesto	$27,000	60
Stockton	$23,000	60
Santa Barbara	$25,000	50
Visalia	$23,000	40
Merced	$22,000	40
Santa Rosa	$31,000	40
Vallejo	$31,000	30

Colorado

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Denver	$33,000	160
Colorado Springs	$35,000	60
Fort Collins	$26,000	40

Connecticut

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Bridgeport	$32,000	200
Hartford	$31,000	130
New Haven	$26,000	100
Waterbury	$27,000	30

Delaware

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Wilmington	$28,000	140

District of Columbia

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Washington	$29,000	340

Florida

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Miami	$23,000	1,190
Tampa	$25,000	240
Fort Lauderdale	$25,000	190
Orlando	$23,000	160
West Palm Beach	$26,000	150
Jacksonville	$28,000	130
Ocala	$22,000	50
Cape Coral	$26,000	50
Tallahassee	$25,000	40
Sebastian	$24,000	30
Port St Lucie	$25,000	30

Georgia

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Atlanta	$26,000	270
Augusta	$25,000	80
Gainesville	$27,000	40
Columbus	$22,000	40
Albany	$22,000	30

Hawaii

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Honolulu	$31,000	70

Idaho

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Boise	$25,000	220
Coeur Dalene	$22,000	70

Illinois

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Chicago	$27,000	1,480
Rockford	$30,000	50

Indiana

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Indianapolis	$21,000	280
Gary	$25,000	100
South Bend	$28,000	50
Lafayette	$22,000	40
Fort Wayne	$22,000	40

Iowa

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Des Moines	$28,000	60

Kansas

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Wichita	$22,000	110
Topeka	$22,000	40

Kentucky

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Lexington	$22,000	80

Louisiana

Location	Median Pay	Workers
New Orleans	$24,000	240
Baton Rouge	$20,000	140
Lafayette	$19,000	120
Shreveport	$27,000	80
Monroe	$20,000	50
Alexandria	$22,000	40
Houma	$21,000	30

Maryland

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Baltimore	$30,000	680
Bethesda	$27,000	310
Salisbury	$22,000	40

Massachusetts

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Boston	$31,000	360
Worcester	$35,000	80
Lowell	$26,000	60
Springfield	$26,000	50
Framingham	$31,000	50
Haverhill	$31,000	40
Brockton	$30,000	30
Barnstable Town	$30,000	30

Michigan

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Warren	$25,000	380
Detroit	$25,000	220
Ann Arbor	$28,000	40

Minnesota

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Minneapolis	$24,000	240

Mississippi

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Jackson	$22,000	80
Pascagoula	$22,000	60

Missouri

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
St Louis	$22,000	350
Kansas City	$26,000	140

Nebraska

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Lincoln	$19,000	120
Omaha	$28,000	120

Nevada

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Las Vegas	$26,000	160
Reno	$26,000	130

New Jersey

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Edison	$23,000	580
Newark	$26,000	530
Trenton	$23,000	70
Atlantic City	$25,000	70

New Mexico

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Albuquerque	$28,000	160

New York

Location	Median Pay	Workers
New York	$26,000	1,740
Nassau	$29,000	610
Buffalo	$26,000	160
Syracuse	$25,000	130
Albany	$29,000	90
Utica	$24,000	80
Poughkeepsie	$25,000	70
Rochester	$25,000	60

North Carolina

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Greensboro	$26,000	110
Charlotte	$24,000	100
Winston Salem	$27,000	70
Asheville	$24,000	60
Durham	$26,000	60
Fayetteville	$22,000	30

Ohio

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Cincinnati	$24,000	260
Cleveland	$26,000	260
Toledo	$26,000	110
Youngstown	$26,000	100
Dayton	$23,000	70
Akron	$25,000	50
Canton	$25,000	50

Oklahoma

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Oklahoma City	$19,000	240
Tulsa	$25,000	160
Lawton	$20,000	50

Oregon

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Portland	$26,000	310
Bend	$24,000	50
Eugene	$22,000	40

Pennsylvania

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Philadelphia	$25,000	680
Pittsburgh	$25,000	460
Allentown	$25,000	110
Scranton	$22,000	80
Erie	$25,000	80
Harrisburg	$26,000	60
Lancaster	$32,000	50
Reading	$26,000	50

Rhode Island

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Providence	$24,000	90

South Carolina

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Charleston	$26,000	110
Greenville	$29,000	60

Tennessee

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Memphis	$23,000	210
Knoxville	$21,000	150
Nashville	$28,000	130
Jackson	$21,000	60
Johnson City	$18,000	40

Texas

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Dallas	$22,000	660
Houston	$26,000	410
San Antonio	$21,000	390
Fort Worth	$20,000	390
Austin	$22,000	230
Mcallen	$21,000	180
Brownsville	$22,000	150
Lubbock	$21,000	130
El Paso	$22,000	120
Corpus Christi	$20,000	100
Wichita Falls	$20,000	60
Beaumont	$21,000	60
Amarillo	$22,000	50
Laredo	$18,000	50
College Station	$19,000	50
Abilene	$23,000	40
Odessa	$20,000	30

Utah

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Salt Lake City	$19,000	330
Provo	$18,000	260
Ogden	$20,000	130
St George	$20,000	50

Virginia

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Richmond	$27,000	200
Virginia Beach	$23,000	130

Washington

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Seattle	$27,000	360
Spokane	$24,000	160
Tacoma	$22,000	60
Yakima	$23,000	50
Kennewick	$24,000	50
Bremerton	$26,000	40
Olympia	$29,000	30

West Virginia

Location	Median Pay	Workers	Popularity
Parkersburg	$20,000	40
Wheeling	$23,000	30

Wisconsin

Location	Median Pay	Workers
Milwaukee	$25,000	430
Eau Claire	$26,000	60
Racine	$21,000	50
Green Bay	$26,000	30

Our physical therapy aides career and school information is provided by CTI Career Search.