San Francisco State University and the University of California, San Francisco have teamed up to offer a joint doctorate in physical therapy science - a first for public institutions in California. The program will train physical therapists to become clinical researchers, patient care specialists or educators.

The doctoral program, which begins in April with four students, is an outgrowth of the highly successful master's program that SFSU and UCSF developed in 1990. The joint master's degree, the first such partnership between the CSU and UC system, is consistently ranked in the top 15 in the country by U.S. News and World Report.

The two partners in the program complement each other's research and teaching strengths. SFSU will train the students in physical therapy for gross motor movements such as stair climbing, sitting balance and walking while UCSF will focus its efforts on upper extremity movements such as writing and computer keyboarding. Both universities will house faculty, research facilities and classrooms. The program will take 27 to 36 months to complete depending on the applicant's education.

For more, see the press release .