MAC Performance Sports Residency Program is a fully accredited 13 month program offering physical therapists the opportunity to gain a variety of experiences in clinical and sport settings, guided by highly experienced board certified sports and orthopedic physical therapy specialists. Residency graduates will be qualified to sit for the SCS board examination upon completion of the program.

Graduation pass rate: 5/5= 100%

SCS Board Exam pass rate: 3/3= 100%

Admission Requirements

The program requires the participant to be a graduate of an APTA-accredited program in physical therapy and a licensed physical therapist in California as well as CPR certified.

In residency candidates, we are looking for:

- highly motivated physical therapists who want to enhance their clinical reasons/skills

- strong passion for sports physical therapy and patient care

- show leadership potential

- strong communication skills, initiative and drive to enhance the profession

Program Costs

There are no direct costs for entering the program. The resident will be compensated at a 20-30 hr/week clinical workload (roughly 60% full time salary).

Hours outside of clinical workload are therefore not compensated for (orthopedic surgeon office rounds, on-field training room experiences, didactic experiences, article review/quizzes and mentor guided training) but are included in the 40-50 hr/week commitment.

Application Deadline: February 1

Applications can be found through the Residency and Fellowship Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service (RF-PTCAS) website.

For additional questions, please feel free to contact Program Director Dan MacLean, PT, MPT, SCS, CSCS, USAW at [email protected] 

The program allows opportunities for the participant to gain experience with diverse patient populations through a multi-site experience

1. MAC Performance PT

- treating different athletic injuries from the pediatric, high school aged, collegiate athlete, professional athlete and active adult (greater than 70% of caseload)

- resident performs clinical hours at MAC PT Monday-Friday approx 20-30 hrs/week

2. Mentoring

- 1-on-1 mentoring is utilized where the resident is the primary treating therapist 2-4 hrs per week to ensure focused practice and instantaneous feedback

- The mentoring hours are designed to assess how the resident performs evaluation, assessment, manual skills, therapeutic exercise, and overall thought process behind initiating treatment modalities.

3. Athletic Venue Coverage

- Sacramento State University

- Sacramento Republic FC

- Sacramento Rivercats

- Sac Metro Fire Department

4. Didactic curriculum

- The program utilizes research and scientific inquiry through monthly participant article reviews (3-5 articles per month), staff article reviews & practical skills lab, and monthly quizzes based on SCS topics

- In addition, residents integrate didactic instruction through Sutter Family Medicine didactic journal reviews, CSCS prep course via CSU, Sacramento, and UC Davis sports medicine residency lectures.

- Research related participation (Rafael Escamilla, Ph.D, PT, CSCS, FACSM)

- Certified Strength & Conditioning prep course (16 weeks)

5. MD observation

- Resident will shadow orthopedic surgeon and DO weekly

-pre/post op clinics with leading orthopedic surgeons

- MD injection clinic participation

Sports Residency Program Requirements

To successfully complete this residency, the resident must achieve/ complete the following:

1. Participate in the following clinical education, a minimum of:

     a. 1500 outpatient sports clinical hours

     b. 300 didactic hours

     c. 200 athletic venue coverage hours (50+ training room hours)

     d. 150 hours of 1:1 mentoring/supervision (100 where resident is the primary PT)

2. Maintain the “Primary Health Conditions Log” & “Mentoring and Direct Patient Care Hours Log” needed for our Annual Report to the APTA Residency Credentialing Committee.

3. Effective participation (10+ hours) in the design, literature review, proposal submission, data collection, or manuscript preparation of a research study in Sports Physical Therapy.

4. Demonstrate satisfactory performance on all monthly quizzes (score >80%)

5. Complete 3 powerpoint presentations/article reviews to peers

     a. Mac Performance PT Staff members

     b. Athletic Training Staff

     c. Sutter Family Residency/UC Davis Sports Residency Programs

     d. MAC Continuing Education Course

6. Attend 3 Continuing Education Courses

     a. CSM

     b. MAC Spring Con Ed course

     c. MAC Fall Con Ed course

7. Completion of 3 “Live Patient Examinations”

8. Completion of “Mentor Prep Forms” (100% completion rate)

9. Completion of AOC Communication training course “Bought In” (PASS score on quiz) as well as (3) 1:1 “coaching calls”.

10. Completion of all evaluation feedback forms

     a. Mentor Evaluation Forms

     b. Program Coordinator/Director Evaluation Forms

     c. Core Competencies of a Physical Therapy Resident Form

     d. Presenter Feedback Forms

A Typical Week During MAC Sports Residency 

Clinical practice: 20-30 hrs per week in clinic (days and hours may vary)

Mentoring: 2-4 hrs per week
This includes 1-on-1 mentoring where the resident is the primary treating therapist, discussion with program mentor, as well as monthly quiz, practical and case study discussion 1x/month based on monthly topic covered.

Shadow orthopedic surgeon or DO: 3-4 hours per week 

Athletic Venue Coverage: 4-6 hours per week
Residents may gain experience in pre training treatment, on field game and practice coverage and post training treatment in a variety of sports.

Other activities (vary by week): UC Davis Sports Med resident lectures, Sutter Family Medicine resident lectures, staff monthly skills lab, weekend con-ed courses, CSM, Communication training course via "Art of Coaching" and Emergency Response for the Athlete course (ERA) will be required throughout the residency (some costs covered via the residency).