New Alumnus in Physical Therapy Notches Perfect Test Score
JONESBORO – In the medical community, PT stands for physical therapy, but for Duston Jones, PT can stand for “perfect test.”
A May graduate at Arkansas State University, Jones received notice recently that his score on the National Physical Therapy Exam was a perfect 800. Those completing the physical therapy degree must take the test, which is administered by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy.
“I’m kind of modest when it comes to talking about the test,” he told an interviewer, then he added, “ . . . it feels great to finally get out and do what I set out to do.”
From his youth at Brookland, Jones’s interest in sports drew him to exercise science and study of the human body. He used his full scholarship to A‑State to earn his doctor of physical therapy degree.
Prompted by his wife to take the national exam in April instead of waiting until after graduation, he started studying intensely in January. With the terrific score and his diploma now in hand, he is excited about his new career.
“I have the opportunity every day to love others, to serve others, and to help people get their lives back, to make them functional again,” he continued.
His career choice also was influenced by his sister, an accident victim who is a paraplegic, and his brother-in-law, a physical therapist assistant who helped him get a job as a therapy tech at St. Bernards Medical Center while he was working on his DPT degree.
At A-State, he added, his success was influenced by the faculty and staff in the Department of Physical Therapy who “ . . .really care about the students and they want us to do well, and it shows.”
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