Here at Travel Therapy Mentor, we often get questions from aspiring travel therapists about which settings are available for travel therapy jobs. Certain PT’s, OT’s, and SLP’s prefer to work with adults, while others prefer to work with pediatrics. Our fellow Travel PT Emily has worked in pediatrics for her entire career, and in this guest post she shares her insights about her experience as a pediatric travel physical therapist.
Background
Hey, I’m Emily, a pediatric travel physical therapist. I first started looking into travel therapy when I was still in grad school to become a Doctor of Physical Therapy. I knew that I wanted to work with the pediatric population for the duration of my career, so my first concern was how to become a Travel PT and still only work in pediatrics. I almost put the idea of travel on hold because it didn’t seem like there were enough short term travel contracts with peds to be able to get back to back placements. However, that’s when I began considering traveling as a school-based physical therapist.
I graduated from my physical therapy program in the spring of 2019. I began my first school-based Travel PT contract in the fall of 2019 after passing the NPTE. I had personally only known one other PT who worked in schools (also as a traveler), so I didn’t have many specific expectations going into my contract. I knew my estimated caseload numbers, how many schools I was expected to service, and that I would work closely with the other related services. Other than that, I was pretty much going in blind. Since taking that first contract in New York, I have worked exclusively in schools as a traveler for over four years now.
Setting Opportunities
I explored the idea of still working exclusively in pediatrics as a Travel PT, but in other non-school based settings. I found that there were short term Travel PT contracts available in other settings, such as pediatric hospitals. My issue with these other settings was that it seemed to me that there weren’t enough Travel PT job opportunities in these settings to be guaranteed to get back to back peds placements, year-round. I should be clear that nothing in the travel world is “guaranteed” anyway. However, there have been multiple school-based Travel PT needs throughout the time period I’ve been working, and the same cannot be said for other peds settings.
All in all, other peds settings are available for travelers, but flexibility would absolutely be key. You may have to consider having a partial peds caseload while also working with adults. Or, you may have to be very flexible on location in order to consistently find back to back peds contracts in other settings aside from schools.
Personally, I was not flexible as far as working with other patient populations. In regards to location, it’s difficult to go in with one very specific area in mind (which is true for Travel PT jobs across the board), but especially if you are very specific on a niche setting like pediatrics. There are certainly peds opportunities all across the country, but the majority of them in my experience are in the school setting. I, personally, have worked coast to coast and from the north to south in pediatric school contracts.
When exploring these opportunities in different settings as a pediatric Travel PT, I immediately found that there were quite a few pros and cons. As a list person, making a pros/cons list was exactly what I did.
| Pros of being a School-Based Pediatric PT | Cons of being a School-Based Pediatric PT |
| – It’s fun, but does that really count as a pro when I think most jobs working with kids are fun? Besides the fun part, you’re able to work with a team and really educate families and staff on providing the best supports for their child. | – Working in multiple different states can lead to confusion when it comes to how states handle our role differently– which is very common, especially regionally (i.e. my role as a school-based PT in New York was vastly different from my role in Oregon). |
| – More job stability, as school contracts are typically for the entire school year (9-10 months). | – Did I want to give up the idea of being able to move somewhere new every 3-6 months? |
| – School systems offer total schedule flexibility as there are multiple days off worked into the calendar, including 1.5-2 weeks off for Winter Break and 2-3 months for Summer Break. | – Having this many days off can lead to financial concern as these days are unpaid. |
| – Having the summers free offers the option to either take a short term contract somewhere else or to take that time off for personal travel. | – On the same note as the above con, school contracts typically pay less than some other settings such as SNF and home health. |
There are certainly more pros and cons to consider with school-based travel and pediatric travel physical therapy in general, but these were the top ones that I have found while working as a peds traveler myself.
Contract Environment and Length
I alluded to the vast differences in job environments on my pros/cons list. Each school system I’ve been in has been entirely different. Some have offered more extensive orientations, while others didn’t have any type of orientation. Caseload numbers have varied greatly, but were always manageable. Regardless of the differences, I have always felt supported while working as a school-based peds traveler. I work very closely with occupational therapists and teachers. I do feel that it’s a bit different from working as a perm therapist as you can sometimes be forgotten when it comes to team members. This can be especially true in environments where most of the other employees are long term workers.
I also referred to the difference of longer term travel contracts vs. short term contracts when it comes to peds placements. I have found that I enjoy staying in one place for the full school year. It really allows me the opportunity to integrate into the community and explore the entire region throughout the seasons. I’ve loved experiencing all of the seasons in each state where I’ve lived, as it gives me a better idea of the location overall. It helps me to see if it would be a place I could potentially settle down (if I ever end up settling down). I’m a person who would feel very pressured to see and do everything in the area in a short period of time, so the longer contracts really allow me time to find a good balance. Short term contracts certainly have their own appeal as well. Many travelers prefer the short term contracts, so really it’s personal preference!
Recommendations
When it comes to other peds-focused therapists who are considering travel therapy, I will always say to go for it. I’m a huge proponent of “do it afraid” and jumping outside your comfort zone. I’ve experienced immense growth, both personal and professional, through my traveling career. I could not be more grateful for the opportunities I’ve had, the people I’ve met, and the places I’ve explored. There will always be tough assignments and/or situations, but travel allows for a lot of flexibility overall, and there will always be people willing to help you through or out of these tough situations.
I think the most important piece is finding a good company/recruiter which is true of any travel therapy job. A good recruiter will stand behind you and support you if any problematic situations arise. They will also do their best to find the best travel therapy job assignment for you based on your experiences and wants.
When searching for pediatric travel therapy jobs, the main things to ask during job interviews will vary depending on if you’re pursuing a school-based contract, or a contract in another setting.
With that being said, I am always willing to have a conversation about any of these topics, peds therapy, and/or travel therapy in general. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions or would like any clarification on anything.
Ultimately, being a traveling school-based PT has offered me more stability, great hours, the opportunity to travel more on weekends and holidays, and far more knowledge about how individual regions of the country handle the role differently. There are still cons, of course, but I’ve learned more in my last four years as a traveling school-based PT than I could’ve ever dreamed of learning. I will always stand by my choice to travel, and I’m already excited to begin looking into the opportunities for the next school year!
For more information about school-based travel therapy jobs, including questions to ask and what to expect, check out this article: Working in Schools as a Travel Therapist
About Emily:
My name is Emily Cormier and I’m a travel physical therapist with a passion for pediatrics, so I mainly take school based contracts. I’m originally from a small town in Maine. I earned my Bachelor of Science degree from American International College in Springfield, MA, and three years later (in 2019), earned my Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from the same school as I was enrolled in an accelerated 3+3 program. Fun fact: I always thought I would return to my home state and never considered travel therapy until attending the National Student Conclave in Providence, RI. Once I began considering it, I was all in and never looked back. I’ve lived in seven different states and funny enough, the one I would like to return to the least is my home state! I love adventuring to new areas, hiking, visiting breweries and wineries, going to the beach, and enjoying the sun! The best way to contact me is through social media (Facebook or Instagram: @ecormier07).
