The Average Salary of a Sports Therapist
Sports therapists are physical therapists who specialize in working with athletes. They typically help people through exercise routines that will help them recover from or prevent sports injuries. They also may give massages to relax athletes and speed healing. These professionals shouldn't be confused with sports medical doctors, who are more concerned with immediate treatment of sports injuries; sports therapists focus on rehabilitation and preventative care.
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Average Salary
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The Simply Hired website indicates that sports therapists make $45,000 annually as of 2010. The Salary Expert website shows salaries between $45,827 and $59,668. The Indeed website shows a much higher average at $82,000. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not give data specific for sports therapists, but does provide information about physical therapists in general. They indicate that, as of 2009, physical therapists had an average salary of $76,220.
Hourly Rate
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According to the Payscale website, hourly wages for sports massage therapists range anywhere from $14.87 to $65.00 as of 2010. The BLS shows that the average hourly wage for a physical therapist was $36.64 in 2009.
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Range
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Physical therapists in the lowest 10th percentile made $52,170 as of 2009, according to the BLS. Those in the 90th percentile earned $105,900. The six-figure salaries so often coveted by sports therapists are not typical and apply primarily to sports therapists working for professional teams.
Geography
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You may find sports therapist jobs that approach the average physical therapist salary throughout the United States, because both amateur and professional teams are located in every state. However, the BLS indicates that Alaska, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey and California provide the highest wages as of 2009.
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References
- Photo Credit massage therapist at work image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com
