NUPOC Admissions Protocol Information: Improving Chances for Admission
Please review the detailed information below, including all of the FAQs. Contact NUPOC if you have any questions that are not answered here.
The NUPOC Master of Prosthetics and Orthotics (MPO) program is very competitive, with many more applicants than available seats. Unfortunately, this means that it may not be possible to admit every qualified person.
Applications are ranked based on multiple weighted criteria, with the most important factors listed below. Please note that each criterion helps determine the applicant’s likelihood of admission, so a weakness in any area will reduce the chances for admission.
1. Highest academic degree earned at an accredited institution
2. Overall academic Grade Point Average (GPA) in most recent degree program (Bachelor’s or higher)
3. Duration of relevant clinical experience or exposure to P&O practice
4. Strength of letters of recommendation; letters from credentialed P&O clinicians are recommended
5. Quality of personal essay
To enter the MPO, a bachelor's degree and completion of prerequisite course work with at least a "C" (2.0 on a 4.0 scale) are required. Please note that competitive applicants rarely attain a grade below a “B” (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) in any of the prerequisite coursework. The average GPA of past MPO cohorts has consistently been 3.4 or above, and a GPA of below 3.0 is not likely to be competitive. Any bachelor's degree from an accredited academic institution in any field is acceptable, provided that all pre-requisite coursework is completed. Degrees in the health sciences and biomedical engineering are most common among our applicants.
Admissions
Learn more about application requirements and fees via our
Admissions page. Know the
Technical Standards necessary to achieve competencies and graduate with a MPO.
All applicants must complete the NUPOC application. If applying only to NUPOC, no OPCAS application is required.
Applicants who use the Orthotics and Prosthetics Centralized Application Service (OPCAS) must also complete and mail the NUPOC MPO Application Form. Other than OPCAS, NUPOC does not accept submissions from any online service. However, NUPOC cannot select students solely through OPCAS; therefore, in addition to submitting your recommendations, essay/personal statement, and transcripts to OPCAS, NUPOC also requires you to complete the entire NUPOC MPO Application form and submit the $95 (USD) application fee.
Due to the comprehensive structure of our MPO curriculum, which requires supervised work with model demonstrators who have a variety of physical disabilities, and the intensive integration of online, onsite, and clinical learning experiences, we are unable to accept transfer credits.
Scores on the GRE are not considered by the Admissions team.
We do not conduct interviews or require a campus visit as part of the admissions process. If you would like to visit our campus, please email nupoc@northwestern.edu. Campus visits are intended to give prospective students an opportunity to observe class sessions and interact with current students. Faculty time is focused on student instruction; therefore, your visit should not be perceived as a time to discuss the particulars of your application or status as an applicant.
Yes, but these courses are not offered as part of the MPO program. For information about admission to Northwestern University undergraduate programs, please visit: http://admissions.northwestern.edu/
Official transcripts that show proof of completion of all coursework (including prerequisites) and conferral of undergraduate degree must be received by June 15th in order to be eligible to begin our program in July.
Confer with your university advisor about the equivalency of your coursework. Courses that qualify for pre-Physician Assistant or pre-Physical Therapy coursework will prepare you best for our program. After NUPOC receives your complete application, our Admissions team will review all transcripts, coursework, and other documentation.
We accept coursework completed at any accredited junior or community college. We also accept online coursework completed at an accredited institution. We give preference to applicants who have completed the majority of their prerequisites at a 4-year college or university. All applicants must have completed a 4-year degree prior to beginning the MPO program.
NUPOC continually reviews new applications as they arrive. The highest-ranking applicants are offered a place for Early Admissions and, after the first of the year, for Regular Admissions. This process continues with new invitations each month until the upcoming class is full. After all seats are filled, the remaining applicants are notified no later than August 1 each year.
Acceptance letters are sent to applicants via email. Be sure to check your email regularly and respond to NUPOC by the stated deadlines.
Deferral is rarely granted. A deferral may be granted due to extraordinary and demonstrated extenuating circumstances, and then only at the discretion of the NUPOC MPO Program Director.
NUPOC accepts 48 MPO students annually.
We recommend that you submit an application during the final year of your undergraduate program and/or prerequisite coursework. Official transcripts that show proof of completion of all coursework and conferral of undergraduate degree must be received by June 15th, just prior to the start of the program for which you are accepted.
Exposure to prosthetics and orthotics practice plays a factor in the selection process. Direct exposure to patient care, fabrication, and practice management in a P&O clinical facility are all beneficial to the applicant. Most of our applicants have 200-300 hours of shadowing/exposure.
Applicants can obtain experience by working or volunteering at any P&O facility. The Facility Directory on the ABC website can help you locate an accredited facility: https://www.abcop.org/Pages/Facility-Search.aspx Working with a board certified prosthetist and/or orthotist will help prepare you for some of the technical and clinical activities that you will encounter in school. More importantly, it will provide you with a general understanding of the P&O field.
Orientation for NUPOC’s 21-month MPO program is held in Chicago in June, and online classes begin in July.
Curriculum / Student Life
Yes, the NUPOC MPO program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health education Programs (
CAAHEP). See the in-force
CAAHEP accreditation letter for NUPOC. CAAHEP accreditation is based on a comprehensive evaluation of the NUPOC MPO program and recognizes NUPOC compliance with national quality standards established by
CAAHEP, the National Commission on Orthotic and Prosthetic Education (
NCOPE), the American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists (
AAOP), and American Board for Certification in Orthotics, Prosthetics and Pedorthics (
ABC). NCOPE regularly monitors NUPOC program compliance until the next accreditation review scheduled for 2019.
The NUPOC MPO Program is taught using a blended learning format, which is a combination of distance and onsite learning. Students can complete Sessions 1 and 2 (July – December) and Session 7 (January – March) at any location with reliable internet access. The onsite portion of the program (Sessions 3-6) must be completed at NUPOC. Find a full description of the program on the NUPOC Curriculum page.
Students must be physically in Chicago to participate in the initial Orientation and throughout the 12-month onsite practicum (January – December).
The MPO curriculum is designed to train students concurrently in both prosthetics and orthotics. Concepts such as biomechanics, alignment considerations, motor control, and pathophysiology are woven throughout the curriculum and enable students to reinforce clinical concepts for the management of both prosthetics and orthotics patients.
A strong working knowledge of these areas is essential to being a skilled and competent practitioner. Throughout the program, NUPOC teaches these concepts in specific online and onsite courses, such as Anatomy and Biomechanics, as well as in the context of practicum courses. Gross Anatomy is taught during the onsite portion.
We admit each program as a cohort and you will participate in coursework with the same group of peers throughout the course of the MPO. We utilize group and individual teaching methods throughout the distance and onsite portions of the program. To be an effective learner, you must maintain discipline to stay on task, but your peers and faculty will be readily available to collaborate with you. Most assignments will be assessed on an individual basis, and a number of projects are completed with a group of other students in your cohort. You will be required to demonstrate competence for all components of the program, including quizzes, papers, case studies, model interactions, fabrication, and all skills necessary to practice safely and effectively.
The pace of the MPO program is quite intense, but the blended learning format gives students the opportunity to continue working while attending school. Each student is unique, and the time commitment for the program varies. To succeed in the NUPOC MPO, students dedicate an average of 20-40 hours per week to coursework during the distance learning portion. Students spend 40 hours per week in class during most Sessions of the onsite portion, with additional coursework assigned to be completed at other times. We strongly discourage students from working during the onsite portion of the MPO program.
Yes, the NUPOC MPO program is considered a full-time, professional degree program.
Over the course of the MPO program, classes are held during every quarter, including the summer. The Northwestern University Spring quarter is from January to May with a holiday on Good Friday. The Northwestern University Fall quarter is from August to December with holidays on Labor Day and Thanksgiving. For complete holiday information, see Northwestern University Calendars.
Instructional Methods for Distant Learning
At the beginning of the program, you will attend a mandatory onsite Orientation at NUPOC where you will meet your instructors and fellow classmates. During Orientation, you will learn the technical skills necessary to engage effectively during the distance portion of the NUPOC MPO program.
Distance Learning (DL) courses can be taken from anywhere with fast, reliable internet access. Students have successfully completed the program from various remote locations and foreign countries.
No, lecture content during the distant learning portion of the program is accessed online via a web-based software system. You will interact with your peers and faculty utilizing a variety of technologies, including live video conferences, web-based discussion boards and virtual classrooms, online case studies, and the course management system. Our extensive use of technology allows you to be fully engaged with the learning process without having to be on campus.
Course instructors are available by email or phone. Students also can arrange to meet faculty by appointment.
Students must be physically in Chicago to participate in the initial Orientation and during the 12-month Practicum, from January through December, of the second year of the MPO program.
Yes, the NUPOC faculty believe that some Distant Learning (DL) activities should be conducted synchronously (live) to ensure that all students have the best learning experience possible. Most DL activities are asynchronous, while other DL activities are synchronous. Students have several days to complete scheduled activities at their convenience, including quizzes, provided work is submitted by the deadline indicated in the course materials.
Online synchronous activities occur at local Chicago time. Students who live in other time zones must adjust their schedules to participate at the designated Chicago time. For example, when a MPO activity begins at 5:00 p.m. (CST), East Coast students must begin at 6:00 p.m. (EST); Mountain State students must begin at 4:00 p.m. (MST); and West Coast students must begin at 3:00 p.m. (PST).
To facilitate reliable access to the NUPOC online curriculum, each incoming student will receive a new tablet that is preconfigured with all required software. Many students find it helpful to use their own computer to complete some assignments.
Bandwidth requirements (for videoconferencing) are as follows:
- Downstream: 768 Kbps
- Upstream: 512 Kbps
Notes:
- Most cable and DSL connections are sufficient.
- Private Wi-Fi networks (home or office) are generally okay.
- Public Wi-Fi (hotels, airports, apartment complexes, etc.) may not have sufficient bandwidth and may be incompatible, independent of bandwidth limitations.
- Satellite connections are usually insufficient. Latency is also an issue.
- Wireless G3 cards are known to be incompatible. In addition to insufficient bandwidth, other issues also exist.
- Wireless G4 cards should have sufficient bandwidth, but we do not yet know whether they will have the same issues that G3 cards appear to have, which are independent of available bandwidth.
Test your broadband speed:
Students are expected to follow safe computing practices while enrolled in NUPOC programs. Safe computing practices include:
- Keep the operating system, installed software, and antivirus definitions up to date
- Perform periodic virus scans
- Install software only from sources that are know to be safe
- Avoid high-risk websites
Yes, Northwestern University Information Technology (NUIT) provides technical support for software that NUPOC requires MPO students to use. Technological redundancy is built into the NUPOC distance learning system to resolve possible lock-outs, dropped testing, or connection issues during online learning.
Tuition and Financial Aid
The Application Fee is $95. Tuition for the MPO 2019-2020 is $35,087 per year; the annual laboratory fee is $3,695. (Tuition and fees are subject to change.) A pre-configured tablet, required textbooks, all necessary software, and training in online educational resources will be provided. Room and board are not included. New students are required to attend the scheduled Orientation prior to starting the program.
Financial Aid is available to students enrolled in the NUPOC MPO. Students interested in the MPO program should read about the financial aid process at the Chicago Financial Aid Office’s website. A number of scholarships are offered by outside organizations throughout the MPO program, and students are notified when these are available. NUPOC does not offer employment to students during the program.
Housing
Students are required to be in residence at NUPOC during their on-site courses and practicum. Students are responsible to secure their own housing, and may choose to live in downtown Chicago or in nearby suburbs, including Evanston. Students who reside in Evanston may use their Northwestern University WildCard to board the NU Intercampus Shuttle, which runs Monday through Friday from approximately 7 a.m. until 10 p.m.
Check out the many external resources on the Student Housing section of the Augusta Webster, MD, Office of Medical Education website.
The Off-Campus Life housing section of the Northwestern University Division of Student Affairs has additional resources to assist you with your housing search.
Additionally, during Orientation the NUPOC Student Society will provide information related to housing options.
Certification and Residency
To become a board certified practitioner in orthotics and prosthetics, you must successfully complete all of the requirements of the MPO program, complete a National Commission on Orthotic and Prosthetic Education (NCOPE) accredited residency, and successfully pass a multi-part national Board examination.
Residency sites post openings and schedule interviews directly with our students while they are still enrolled in the MPO program. Residency sites must be accredited by NCOPE (National Commission on Orthotic and Prosthetic Education). NCOPE maintains a list of residency locations on their website: http://resident.ncope.org/proresidents/residency/
Residencies adhere to strict guidelines that ensure that the resident receives the training necessary to demonstrate clinical competency in all aspects of P&O. A P&O residency is a paid, clinical position. We recommend that students consider residency as an extension of their education, but it does not involve a tuition obligation.
Residency sites may offer the following types of residencies:
- A 12-month Prosthetics residency
- A 12-month Orthotics residency
- The option to complete individual residencies in both Prosthetics and Orthotics (for a total of 24 months)
- A combined Prosthetics/Orthotics residency lasting 18 months
Graduating students are encouraged to select a residency that most closely matches their needs and career goals.
Extended exposure at a residency site provides the best foundation for your P&O career. Throughout the USA are many locations where graduates can obtain that important extended technical and clinical experience. NUPOC does not limit the residency options of any graduates.
NUPOC’s extensive network of alumni often contact our faculty with information regarding residency opportunities. Additionally, NUPOC faculty and staff support student efforts to find an appropriate residency in multiple ways:
- Résumé writing sessions during the onsite portion of the program
- Mock interviews with local clinicians who provide immediate feedback
- A Career Day, when students can schedule in-person or remote interviews with prospective residency sites