Free CE for Physical Therapists / Michigan
Michigan physical therapists must earn 36 professional development (PDR) credits every 3 years and physical therapist assistants 24, on a cycle that runs from each licensee's own issue-date anniversary rather than a statewide date.
✓ Verified against the Michigan Board of Physical Therapy (LARA, Bureau of Professional Licensing) on August 4, 2026
| Topic | Hours | How often |
|---|---|---|
| Pain and symptom management | 1 | every renewal; counts within the total |
| Implicit bias training | 3 | 1 hour per year of the 3-year cycle; counts within the total; no carryover |
| Human trafficking identification | — | one-time |
Mich. Admin. Code R 338.7161 and R 338.7163, as amended by rule set 2023-53 LR, FILED AND EFFECTIVE MARCH 5, 2026 — any Michigan PT CE guidance dated before then is stale, including the old 2-year/24-credit structure. One contact hour equals 1 PDR credit. R 338.7002(3) puts physical therapy on a triennial cycle keyed to the licensee's issue date, so Michigan has no statewide renewal season and demand is continuous; renewals open 90 days before expiration. TWO LIMITS MATTER COMMERCIALLY. First, R 338.7163(1)(a) allows no more than 12 PDR credits from online programs completed in any one 24-hour period — an anti-cramming pace limit, not a ceiling, but a bundle over 12 credits must not be completable in one sitting. Second, and more important, purchased CE courses are capped: R 338.7163(4)(a) allows a maximum of 30 credits for PTs and (5)(a) a maximum of 20 for PTAs, so courses alone can never satisfy the full 36 or 24. The remaining 6 (PT) or 4 (PTA) must come from other enumerated activities such as reading journal articles (max 9) or viewing professional education media (max 9), both of which are self-directed. Do not market a Michigan bundle as covering an entire renewal. Michigan requires no jurisprudence exam. Self-attestation at renewal through MiPLUS; LARA partners with CE Broker for tracking, which is a convenience rather than an approval gate. Retain records 4 years, but 6 years for implicit bias documentation under R 338.7004 — advise licensees to keep everything 6. No audit percentage is published. Two open items a human should still confirm: whether the one-time human trafficking training applies to PTAs (LARA's shared guidance lists PTs while LARA's own PTA licensing guide tells PTAs they need it), and the explicit first-cycle exemption sentence in the March 2026 text.
Yes — Michigan recognizes continuing education approved by another state's physical therapy board or APTA chapter, so our courses (approved through the Texas Physical Therapy Association) can count toward your renewal. Read the caveat below before you rely on it.
One caveat: Michigan accepts our Texas approval outright, with no Michigan filing, fee, or approval number. R 338.7163(4)(a) and (5)(a) approve a program "regardless of the format that it is offered" if it is approved or offered for CE credit by, among others, "another state board of physical therapy" or "the APTA or its components," and the rule then defines components to include "the APTA Michigan and other APTA chapters" — TPTA is squarely inside that. One build requirement: the rule's documentation column requires the certificate to show the licensee's name, credits earned, completion date, and the name of the organization that approved the program. A Michigan certificate that omits "Texas Physical Therapy Association" fails an audit even though the course itself qualifies.
Michigan Board of Physical Therapy (LARA, Bureau of Professional Licensing)
https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/bpl/health/hp-lic-health-prof/pt
Requirements change. Confirm all figures on the board site above before relying on them.
Pulse offers free CE for PTs and PTAs. Local healthcare organizations cover the cost — you pay nothing, and the hours apply toward your Michigan requirement (subject to the board rules above).