Nicole Bettin

Nicole Bettin, PT, DPT is an Assistant Professor and the Director of Clinical Education in the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at North Central College. Nicole completed her Doctor of Physical Therapy degree at Northwestern University. She practiced full-time in outpatient orthopedics and wound care for five years before transitioning to academia. Nicole has worked as a Director of Clinical Education since 2017 and teaches coursework in areas of acute care, transfers, integumentary, and assistive devices. She continues to practice in acute care and is passionate about preparing students to practice in this rewarding setting. Research interests focus on clinical education physical therapy education and student mental health.

Outside the classroom, Nicole loves to travel, experiment in the kitchen, read, and snuggle her pets. She lives in the western suburbs with her husband and kids.

“I am excited to facilitate diverse learning opportunities through the development of meaningful clinical partnerships. The future of physical therapy relies on the ability of practitioners to practice in a variety of settings and treat diverse individuals with integrity and excellence. I look forward to guiding students on their path to becoming excellent scholars, leaders, and practitioners!”

Selected Scholarship

Smith MP, Cammarata M, Bettin N, Scholtes S. Innovative Use of a Simulated Electronic Health Record Software to Enhance Content Integration and Clinical Reasoning. Education Session, Educational Leadership Conference of the American Physical Therapy Association. Milwaukee, WI, October 2022.

Scholtes S, Smith MP, Bettin N, Cammarata M. Balancing Learning with Mental Health in an Innovative Curricular Approach. Education Session, Educational Leadership Conference of the American Physical Therapy Association. Milwaukee, WI, October 2022.

Smith MP, Scholtes SA, Bettin NM, Shah MM, Cammarata M. Curricular innovation: balancing learning with stress and mental health. Platform Presentation, Associated Colleges of the Chicago Area 2021 Scholarship of Pedagogy Symposium, Naperville, IL, November 2021.

Bettin NM, Brown DS, Castillo MM, Robackouski JF. Mentoring Through Teaching and Leading: DPT Students as Clinical Instructors. Platform Presentation, Educational Leadership Conference of the American Physical Therapy Association, Atlanta, GA, October 2021.

Scholtes SA, Bettin NM. A Competency-Based Curriculum Integrating Movement Science with the Liberal Arts. Accepted to: Innovation Summit for Health Professions Education 2021. Virtual, June 2021. 

Courses Taught

DPTD 791 Clinical Experience I

DPTD 892 Clinical Experience II

DPTD 893 Clinical Experience III

DPTD 894 Clinical Experience IV

DPTD 871 Multi-System Practice Management I

DPTD 873 Multi-System Practice Management II