Craig Cooper | Florida National University

My success story starts about 7 years ago when I began working as a rehabilitation aide at a hospital in Texas, where I am from. I had no experience working in the medical field and was very hesitant about venturing into this field. However, I soon fell in love with the physical therapy profession for many reasons. I enjoyed being able to help people get back to their normal life after such life altering events, such as illness or accidents. I enjoyed being able to make a difference in someone’s life and health, and found myself coming home every day proud of what I do and looking forward to going to work the next morning. Throughout my time as a rehabilitation aide, I was fortunate enough to gain experience in different settings. I worked at inpatient hospitals and long term acute care hospitals, and I quickly realized this is the career I wanted to pursue.

Going to school for such a vigorous program as the PTA program is a big commitment. I knew I would not be able to work and that I would need to be financially prepared before making this commitment. I dreamed of going to school to be a PTA for years, but due mainly to financial and personal issues, I was unable to attend school to pursue my career. However, that changed once I moved to Miami in 2014. I heard about FNU from a coworker who was a PTA, and was extremely intrigued.

I worked extremely hard, not only in my courses but in my clinical rotations as well. I went to my clinical rotations each day as if I was employed, and took each day seriously, because I wanted to learn as much as I could. Even after completing the program, I continued to study day and night in preparation for the board exam. After passing the board exam, I was offered a position at the clinic where I had my last clinical rotation. I am now working as a full time PTA, and am living my dream.