DA Physiotherapy

This is the profession specific page for apprentices joining the Degree Apprenticeship BSc (Hons) Physiotherapy course. This page will give you more information about preparing for Physiotherapy specifically. 

Course calendar

March 2026 starters

This is the course calendar for the first year of your course and placement pattern

Induction information with times and rooms will be sent nearer the date

Learning and teaching

The Physiotherapy apprenticeship is a blended learning course which means that you receive a mixture of online live (taught) sessions, online activities (non-taught) and face-to-face on campus taught sessions. These can be a mixture of lectures, seminars and practicals.

For practical sessions there will be a need to undress for particular aspects of learning (where appropriate). Therefore, appropriate underwear should be worn with sports bra/vests, shorts and suitable shoes such as trainers. we have screens and ensure dignity is maintained at all times. You can wear any clothing for online sessions, but professional 'netiquette' is expected. This requires that cameras are switched on during sessions (where appropriate) to encourage active participation and engagement.

Placements

You will have 5 blocks of placement learning throughout your course, one in your first year (level 4), two in your second year (level 5) and two in your third year (level 6). Your employer is responsible for sourcing all of your placements and ensuring that you have completed all of the mandatory immunisations and training including online and practical. The SHU placement team will complete quality assurance checks to ensure all placements are safe and quality learning opportunities. You must not source placements yourself, they have to be sourced and allocated through your employer (this may be a central placement learning lead/facilitator within your organisation). We encourage you such achieve a broad range of experiences such as clinical, leadership, education and research placements. All placements will be assessed as pass or fail. 

Please see a link to the Degree Apprenticeship Placement website for more specific information

Professional body

This link takes you to the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy who are our professional body. You may already be a member and familiar with this, but please take the time to look at the expectations and support for students and apprentice learners.

Useful activities to complete/observe before starting the course:

• Observe people walking and think about what does normal walking look like

• Observe a new patient assessment

• Observe an individual or group exercise class

• Find out about/shadow the role of other professions who may be in  your workplace e.g OT, SALT, dietician, nurse

• Find out about some information about the role of a physio working within musculoskeletal physiotherapy. What common pathologies may they come across? 

• Find out about some information about the role of a physio working within neurological physiotherapy . What common pathologies may they come across?

• Find out about some information about the role of a physio working within cardio-respiratory physiotherapy . What common pathologies may they come across?

• Find out about how a physio may help patients before and after any type of surgery

• Find out about what other clinical settings a physio can work in and what might be there role e.g paediatrics, learning disabilities, women's health, mental health

Learn/revise some basic terminology:

• Anterior        front

• Posterior       back

• Superior        upper

• Inferior          lower

• Medial            midline

• Lateral           side

• Caudad          towards the tail

• Cephalad        towards the head

• Proximal       towards trunk

• Distal           away from trunk

• Superficial    towards the surface

• Deep            towards the centre

• Dorsal          towards the back

• Ventral         towards the front

Find out what these movements and how they might look throughout the body:

• Flexion and extension

• Abduction and adduction

• Lateral and medial rotation

• Pronation and supination

• Dorsiflexion and plantarflexion

• Elevation and depression

• Protraction and retraction

• Inversion and eversion

Learn/revise some basic anatomy

• How does a muscle contract?

• What is the role of a tendon and a ligament?

• What types of joints are there in the body?

• How many bones are in the human body? Can you name and locate any of them on a skeleton?

You can find some useful resources here on the NHS learning hub about how to prepare for your future as a physiotherapist