Required Documentation

In most cases, an evaluation is required by the state board(s), even if an individual has been licensed in another state and practicing in the field for several years, as licensure requirements vary by state. Also, the state board(s) might have additional licensure requirements besides an evaluation. It is therefore recommended that you first contact the state board(s) to determine whether an evaluation is needed and whether there are additional licensure requirements besides an evaluation. If the board(s) direct(s) that an evaluation is required, note that you will not be able to pursue licensure in that state without first getting an evaluation done.

The purpose of the evaluation is to determine whether your studies meet the board’s minimum educational requirements in regard to credits and content. The requirements will vary depending on when you earned your qualification and which state board you apply to. It is possible that your studies will not meet the board’s educational requirements, and that you will need to fulfill deficiencies in your education, by taking additional classes.

IMPORTANT: Please note that, at this time, IERF is NOT able to accept applications for physical therapy licensure evaluations for credentials earned in Cuba.

The required documentation listed below has been established by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT) and the state boards. As such, IERF is not able to proceed with an evaluation until ALL required documents have been received. Furthermore, per FSBPT guidelines, only post-secondary studies will be included in the evaluation, and all studies (academic or professional) from institutions that are not recognized in the country of study will be excluded from the evaluation.

The applicant must arrange for the following to be submitted to IERF. The application fee only covers the completion of an evaluation. IERF will not be contacting the institution(s) of study on your behalf to obtain the required documentation.

For Studies Completed Outside the United States

Mailed DIRECTLY to IERF by the Institution(s) of Study

The state boards require that we base our evaluations on original academic documents mailed to our office directly by the institution(s) of study. As such, we are not able to accept the documentation from the applicant, even if they are original or sealed. Note that:

Official certified true copies (with an original ink stamp/seal and signature) are acceptable as originals only if they are issued by the institution(s) of study (e.g., certified copies issued by a notary, etc. are not acceptable).
The package containing your academic documents can only be put together, handled, and mailed to our office by your institution(s) of study (this means that your school cannot hand the package to you or to your representative (e.g., a family member, a friend, etc.) to mail to our office).

Please ask the institution(s) of study to include your IERF file number in the package that they mail to our office so that we can match it to your file. All records received from the institution(s) of study become the property of IERF and will not be forwarded to the applicant.

Transcript Request Form

Please forward the Transcript Request Form (TRF) to your educational institution(s), request that they fill out all the information on the form, and that they mail it directly to IERF, along with the documents outlined below.

Official Academic Records

These must be in the official language of issue:

Transcripts / Mark Sheets / Examination Results indicating courses/subjects, hours of study/units/credits, and grades/marks/examination results.
Diplomas / Graduation Certificates / Degree Certificates indicating that a degree/qualification has been earned or that a program of study has been completed, if applicable.

Breakdown of Hours for Each Course Form

Please forward the Breakdown of Hours for Each Course Form to your educational institution(s), request that they fill out all the information on the form, and that they mail it directly to IERF. Your school needs to provide the total number of:

theoretical (i.e., classroom/teaching) hours
laboratory (i.e., hands-on training in biological and physical sciences; simulated learning completed in a classroom/laboratory setting with models/students; community outreach programs) hours
internship (i.e., care of actual patients in a hospital and/or clinical setting, while being supervised and assessed (i.e., graded) by a licensed physical therapist) hours

Detailed Course Syllabi and Course Title Matching Form

Detailed course syllabi are required for ALL physical therapy courses.

A syllabus provides detailed information about the course objectives and content. Please click here for a sample syllabus that you may forward to your institution of study to demonstrate the amount of detail that is normally found in a syllabus. Your school should NOT duplicate the layout or content in the sample syllabus, but, rather, forward official syllabi as they are normally issued.

General course descriptions may be substituted for general education subjects ONLY.

Important Note:
In matching syllabi to transcripts/mark sheets/examination results (transcripts), IERF compares the title of the course on the transcripts to the title of the course on the syllabi. If we are not able to match the syllabi to the transcripts (i.e., if there are ANY discrepancies), the syllabi will not be accepted, unless your school assists us in matching the documentation.

Examples of discrepancies include:

when the course titles do not match (e.g., the course title on the transcript is “Introduction to Physical Therapy” but the course title on the syllabus is “Fundamentals of Physical Therapy”, etc.)
when the course codes, if applicable, do not match (e.g., the course code on the transcript is “PT 100” but the course code on the syllabus is “Physical Therapy 1”, etc.)
when the syllabi are not from your time of study (e.g., you finished your studies in 2000, but the syllabi are for courses in 2010, etc.)

Therefore, please also forward the Course Title Matching Form to your school(s), request that they fill out all the information on the form, and that they mail it directly to IERF with your syllabi. Note that:

a syllabus can only be matched to one course (i.e., a syllabus cannot be used for multiple courses)
a course can only be matched to one syllabus (i.e., multiple syllabi cannot be used for one course)

Internship Information

An internship refers to a physical therapy student’s formal training as he/she CARES FOR ACTUAL PATIENTS in a hospital and/or clinical setting, while being supervised and assessed (i.e., graded) by a licensed physical therapist.

The internship is PART OF the academic program and MUST be completed in order for the student to earn the degree.

Important Note:
The internship does NOT include:

any simulated learning completed in a classroom/laboratory setting (i.e., with models/students)
any social service
any community outreach programs

If your program included an internship component, the following internship information is required:

the total number of hours completed
the groups of patients that you worked with (e.g., orthopedic, pediatric, etc.)
the actual locations of the internship (e.g., the name of the hospital/clinic, types of departments/wards, etc.)

Additional Academic Records

If relevant to your education, please have the examining body mail the examination certificates for the following directly to IERF, as they might be useful in your evaluation.

- Abitur, Zeugnis der allgemeinen Hochschulreife
- Advanced-Level Examinations (A-Levels)
- Diploma di Esame di Stato
- International Baccalaureate
- Stúdentspróf
- Vitnemål for videregående opplæring

Also, if you completed post-secondary studies that are not related to physical therapy, please have the institution(s) of study mail the following directly to IERF, as they might be useful in your evaluation. Once received, the documentation will be reviewed to determine whether we need additional documentation.

Transcripts / Mark Sheets / Examination Results indicating courses/subjects, hours of study/units/credits, and grades/marks/examination results
Diplomas / Graduation Certificates / Degree Certificates indicating that a degree/qualification has been earned or that a program of study has been completed, if applicable

Mailed DIRECTLY to IERF by ETS (for California and Virginia only)

Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) Score Report

The Physical Therapy Board of California (PTBC) has TOEFL requirements for applicants seeking licensure as physical therapists (PT’s) only (not for those seeking licensure as physical therapist assistants (PTA’s)).

The Virginia Board of Physical Therapy has TOEFL requirements for applicants seeking licensure as physical therapist (PT’s) as well as physical therapist assistants (PTA’s).

The TOEFL is required for ALL applicants who have earned their PT/PTA qualification outside the following regions:

Australia
Canada (but not Quebec)
Ireland
New Zealand
United Kingdom
United States

The following minimum passing scores are required in both CA and VA (see above). They must be achieved in a single test (this means that if you have taken the TOEFL more than once, the minimum passing scores cannot be achieved by combining scores from different tests):

Reading: 22
Listening 21
Speaking: 24
Writing: 22
Overall: 89

You can refer to your state board website for more information regarding the TOEFL requirement.

Please contact the Educational Testing Service and have your official score report sent directly to our office. The institutional code for IERF is 7307. Note that TOEFL score reports are only valid for 2 years from the test date. Please ask ETS to include your IERF file number in the package that they mail to our office so that we can match it to your file. All records received from ETS become the property of IERF and will not be forwarded to the applicant.

Sent to IERF by the Applicant

Please submit clear and legible photocopies of the front and back of the following documents. Alternatively, once you have submitted your application and you have been assigned an IERF file number, you can e-mail scans of the documents below to alliedhealth@ierf.org. Be sure to include your IERF file number in the subject line so that we can match it to your file.

FSBPT Identification Number

When applicants pass their credentials evaluation, IERF is required to provide your name to the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT), along with the state(s) to which you are applying for licensure and your FSBPT Identification Number. Please provide us with your FSBPT ID by including it in the Comments Box that appears toward the end of our online application. You can also email it to us at alliedhealth@ierf.org, along with your IERF file number, if you have already submitted an application for an evaluation report. If you do not yet have an FSBPT ID, please click here for further instructions. Note that IERF is not able to proceed with your evaluation until we receive your FSBPT number.

Physical Therapy License / Professional Membership

If you have passed the physical therapy licensure examination, held a physical therapy license, or held a professional membership in your country of study, please submit copies of all related documents.

If you have also ever been licensed in the U.S., please submit a copy of your license for every state, even if your licensure has lapsed.

Basic Life Support (BLS) for Professionals and Healthcare Providers Card

If you completed a BLS course for Professionals and Healthcare Providers through the American Heart Association (AHA) or the American Red Cross (ARC), please submit a copy of your BLS e-card, as it might be useful in your evaluation. If the e-card is not available, please ask either the AHA, the ARC, or the the training center to mail a certified copy of the card directly to our office. Note that BLS e-cards are only valid for 2 years from the course date.

Professional Translations

Professional translations are required for all records not officially issued in English.

IERF considers a translation to be professional and if it is issued by an individual who is trained as a translator, who prepares translations as his/her profession (i.e., job), and who is formally paid for his/her translation services.

The translator must:

issue the translation on the official letterhead of the translation service
include a statement attesting that the translation is accurate to the best of his/her knowledge, with an official seal and signature
issue a word-for-word translation (not an interpretation)
follow the same format and page layout as the original-language documents (e.g., tables, columns, etc.)

IERF reserves the right not to accept a professional translation if it is determined to be inaccurate or interpretative when reviewed.

IERF has negotiated a special discount with University Language Services for our applicants who use their translation services. You can contact them directly through their website to learn more about the discount. Please note that some of our applicants have found that getting professional translations done in their country of study to be less expensive.

Important Note:
IERF does not recommend that you get your documents professionally translated until we have confirmed that we have received ALL the required documentation for your file.

All documents received from your institution(s) of study and the licensing authority(ies), as well as the copy of your license (that you will submit, if applicable), must first be reviewed by IERF to determine if they are acceptable.
Once we have determined that we have received all the required documentation in the official language of issue for your file, we will e-mail you to request the professional translations, and will attach a scan of all the documents that need to be translated.

Do not submit your original professional translations to our office. Keep those for your records. IERF only requires a photocopy of the translations, which will become the property of IERF. Note: if you choose to e-mail your translations to our office, a printing fee of $0.25/page will be assessed.

For Studies Completed Within the United States

Please ask the institution(s) of study and/or the College Board to include your IERF file number in the package that they mail to our office so that we can match it to your file. All records received from the institution(s) of study or the College Board become the property of IERF and will not be forwarded to the applicant.

Post-Secondary Studies

Please have the institution(s) of study send an official transcript directly to IERF. Once received, the documentation will be reviewed to determine whether we need additional documentation.

If you completed studies towards / earned a Transitional Doctor of Physical Therapy degree, please ask the institution(s) of study to also send syllabi for all the courses.

CLEP Examinations

If you have passed the CLEP Examinations, please request that the College Board send your test results directly to IERF. The institutional code for IERF is 2344.