Comparing Physical and Occupational Therapy Careers
Professional therapy roles required higher-level awards and paid more, while assistant roles had faster projected growth.
Compare physical therapy, physical therapist assisting, occupational therapy, and occupational therapy assisting. Combine IPEDS awards by level, College Scorecard earnings, CIP–SOC, BLS employment, wages and projections, Occupational Requirements Survey measures, and state license records. Separate professional and assistant roles. Create one chart showing the clearest differences and cite every release.
Professional roles require higher-level awards and pay more
Physical therapy reported 12,223 professional-practice doctorates for 2024–25. Occupational therapy reported 4,927 master’s degrees and 3,529 professional-practice doctorates.
Both assistant fields centered on associate’s degrees. Physical therapist assisting reported 5,137 awards, while occupational therapy assisting reported 3,092.
Median annual wages in May 2025 were $102,760 for physical therapists and $100,330 for occupational therapists.
Assistant wages were $72,300 for occupational therapy assistants and $68,380 for physical therapist assistants.
Assistant roles have faster projected growth
Projected national employment growth for 2024–34 is 22.0% for physical therapist assistants. It is 19.2% for occupational therapy assistants.
The comparable projections are 13.8% for occupational therapists and 10.9% for physical therapists.
These projections do not establish shortages or graduate placement.
Earnings benchmarks cover broader fields
The professional-field benchmark was $72,338 one year after completion for doctoral credentials.
The assistant-field benchmark was $36,019 one year after completion for associate’s credentials.
These are weighted benchmarks from broader four-digit fields. They are not direct outcomes for each exact program.
The serving records do not provide the exact College Scorecard release date or earnings-cohort period.
Work requirements and licensing remain role-specific
The preliminary 2025 work survey reported that 41.3% of physical therapists were not required to supervise.
The comparable occupational therapist figure was 29.4%. The selected assistant estimates were not collected.
The October 2024 license data contained 81 physical therapist records and 75 occupational therapist records.
It contained 75 physical therapist assistant records and 68 occupational therapy assistant records.
These are published requirements, not proof that a program or individual satisfies licensing rules.
Releases used
- IPEDS: 2025–26 provisional release, published July 21, 2026. Awards cover July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025.
- College Scorecard: Broader-field benchmark. The exact release and cohort period are not exposed.
- Field-to-career mapping: NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. It describes preparation, not placement.
- BLS wages and employment: May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
- BLS projections: 2024–34 Employment Projections.
- BLS work requirements: Preliminary 2025 Occupational Requirements Survey.
- Licensing: CareerOneStop records updated October 14, 2024, linked using O*NET 31.0 occupations.
Professional therapy roles had higher median wages than assistant roles in May 2025
Faceted bar chart with one Professional role panel and one Assistant role panel. The professional panel shows Physical Therapists at $102,760 and Occupational Therapists at $100,330. The assistant panel shows Occupational Therapy Assistants at $72,300 and Physical Therapist Assistants at $68,380. Each chart-data row contains Career, Role group, and May 2025 median annual wage.
| Role group | Career | May 2025 median annual wage | Soc6 | Source Name | Source Url | Wage Period |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Professional role | Physical Therapists | $102,760 | 29-1123 | BLS OEWS | https://www.bls.gov/oes/ | May 2025 |
| Professional role | Occupational Therapists | $100,330 | 29-1122 | BLS OEWS | https://www.bls.gov/oes/ | May 2025 |
| Assistant role | Occupational Therapy Assistants | $72,300 | 31-2011 | BLS OEWS | https://www.bls.gov/oes/ | May 2025 |
| Assistant role | Physical Therapist Assistants | $68,380 | 31-2021 | BLS OEWS | https://www.bls.gov/oes/ | May 2025 |