Fellowship applicants will be selected for the March 1, 2025 cohort based on information provided to AAMT via the AAMT Fellowship Application Form. Admission will be primarily based on relevant clinical experience and the completion of specialty training or certifications in the areas of orthopaedic physical therapy and/or manual therapy. The deadline for applications for the 2025 AAMT Fellowship cohort is December 18, 2024. However, we begin awarding placements in the AAMT Fellowship after July 1st, so earlier applications have a greater chance of acceptance due to “rolling” admissions.

AAMT may decide to contact you via email or phone during the application process on a case-by-case basis. If selected for the AAMT Fellowship program, you will receive an acceptance letter via email within 10 days of submitting your AAMT Fellowship Application Form.

Please note that completion of an orthopaedic residency or the OCS exam are NOT required for entrance to the AAMT Fellowship. However, all applicants must meet the following requirements prior to being admitted into the AAMT fellowship program:

1. Applicants must be a licensed physical therapist in the state that they plan to complete their clinical mentored training within.

2. Applicants must meet ONE of the following qualifications:

• ABPTS specialist certification in a related specialty area (e.g. OCS), or
• Graduate of an ABPTS credentialed residency program in a related specialty area, or
• Demonstrable specialty skills within a specialty area (e.g. Cert. SMT, Cert. DN)

The cost of the AAMT Fellowship in Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapy for the 2025 cohort is $12,500. Payments may be made in a lump sum or divided into quarterly payments. Please note that this does not include mentor fees.

During the 12-month AAMT Fellowship, you will earn the following credentials:

• Certification in Dry Needling (Cert. DN)
• Certification in Spinal Manipulative Therapy (Cert. SMT)
• Certified Vestibular Concussion Specialist (Cert. VCS)
• Diploma in Osteopractic
• Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapists (FAAOMPT)

Many prospective fellows-in-training have already taken classes with SMI and/or DNI. However, fellows-in-training may only request transfer credit for up to 10 hours for these courses, assuming that the courses were taken in the last 2 years. Fellows-in-training may earn credit for previously taken courses through Spinal Manipulation Institute and Dry Needling Institute by:

1. Retaking the class
2. Serving as a primary or assistant instructor for the class
3. Completing an independent study project (on the information covered in the previously taken class)

Fellows-in-training may work with a mentor, as long as they hold the FAAOMPT credential. Per AAOMPT guidelines, fellows-in-training must complete 300 hours (150 hours for fellows-in-training impacted by Covid-19) of mentor accessible time, whereby the fellow-in-training is seeing patients independently and the mentor is accessible by phone, text, Skype, email, etc. In addition, fellows-in-training must complete 150 hours of 1:1 time, whereby the fellow-in-training and mentor are treating patients together.

No, you can complete the AAMT Fellowship from your home clinic. In fact, almost all of the AAMT fellows-in-training continue with their full-time PT employment (at a private outpatient clinic, hospital outpatient clinic or professional sports team) while they complete the 12-month Fellowship.

Further inquiries about the 12-month, distance-based AAMT Fellowship program should be made directly to the Associate Director of the AAMT Fellowship, Dr. Paul Bliton, DPT, OCS, SCS, FAAOMPT at fellowship@spinalmanipulation.org.

In accordance with AAOMPT evaluative criteria, the AAMT Fellowship in Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapy is proud to report the following program outcomes. To date, 95.7% of fellows-in-training have successfully completed the 12-month AAMT Fellowship program, thereby earning Cert. SMT, Cert. DN, Dip. Osteopractic and FAAOMPT.  Moreover, >85% of graduates go on to hold leadership positions within the PT profession (e.g. private practice owners, clinic directors, university faculty members, etc.). In addition, in regard to scholarly achievement, 100% of AAMT fellows-in-training participate in publishable research projects prior to graduation.