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2025 Best Physical Therapy/Therapist Schools in the Great Lakes Region

33 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
1,718 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded
Ranked #55 in popularity, physical therapy/therapist is one of the most sought-after degree programs in the nation. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 33 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for physical therapy/therapist students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,718 degrees in physical therapy/therapist annually.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Physical Therapy/Therapist School

Best Physical Therapy/Therapist Schools in the Great Lakes Region Your choice of physical therapy/therapist school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. For our Best Overall Physical Therapy/Therapist School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Physical Therapy/Therapist Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Physical Therapy
Doctor's Degrees in Physical Therapy

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Physical Therapy/Therapist Schools in the Great Lakes Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.

Best Schools for Physical Therapy/Therapist in the Great Lakes Region

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the physical therapy degree levels they offer.

10 Top Great Lakes Region Schools in Physical Therapy

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In IL
93 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded

Every student who is interested in physical therapy/therapist has to take a look at Northwestern University. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.

There were roughly 93 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from Northwestern University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In WI
39 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded

Any student pursuing a degree in physical therapy/therapist has to look into University of Wisconsin - Madison. Located in the city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #40 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UW - Madison is a great university overall.

There were roughly 39 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at UW - Madison in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from University of Wisconsin - Madison

3
Marquette crest
Marquette University
Milwaukee, WI
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In WI
61 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded

Any student pursuing a degree in physical therapy/therapist needs to check out Marquette University. Located in the city of Milwaukee, Marquette is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #114 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Marquette is a great university overall.

There were about 61 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at Marquette in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from Marquette University

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In IN
43 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded

Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in physical therapy/therapist. Located in the large city of Indianapolis, IUPUI is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #253 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means IUPUI is a great university overall.

There were about 43 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at IUPUI in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from Indiana University - Purdue University - Indianapolis

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In OH
46 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded

Ohio State is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Columbus. A Best Colleges rank of #70 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Ohio State is a great university overall.

There were roughly 46 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at Ohio State in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from Ohio State University - Main Campus

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type

Located in the small city of Kalamazoo, WMU is a public university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #322 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means WMU is a great university overall.More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from Western Michigan University

7
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In WI
8.0% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Mequon, Concordia University, Wisconsin is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 18th out of 46 schools for overall quality in the state of Wisconsin.

There were roughly 25 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at Concordia University, Wisconsin in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from Concordia University, Wisconsin

8
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In IL
53 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded

UIC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #254 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UIC is a great university overall.

There were roughly 53 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at UIC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from University of Illinois at Chicago

9
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In WI
45 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of La Crosse, UW - La Crosse is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 8th out of 46 schools for overall quality in the state of Wisconsin.

There were approximately 45 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at UW - La Crosse in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from University of Wisconsin - La Crosse

10
UIndy crest
University of Indianapolis
Indianapolis, IN
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In IN
51 Physical Therapy Degrees Awarded

UIndy is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Indianapolis. This university ranks 15th out of 41 colleges for overall quality in the state of Indiana.

There were approximately 51 physical therapy/therapist students who graduated with this degree at UIndy in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in physical therapy/therapist from University of Indianapolis

Best Physical Therapy/Therapist Colleges by State

Explore the best physical therapy/therapist colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Ohio 939 413
Michigan 915 331
Illinois 870 331
Indiana 737 194
Wisconsin 672 274

View All Rankings >

One of 16 majors within the Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions area of study, Physical Therapy/Therapist has other similar majors worth exploring.

Majors Similar to Physical Therapy

Related Major Annual Graduates
Occupational Therapy 1,601
Rehabilitation Science 374
Art Therapy 291
Therapeutic Recreation/Recreational Therapy 202
Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling 164
Music Therapy 146
Assistive/Augmentative Technology and Rehabilitation Engineering 132
Orthotist/Prosthetist 68
Other Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions 57
Animal-Assisted Therapy 34

View All Physical Therapy Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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