Acupuncture School and Career Resource Center
Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine: A World of Possibilities
Interested in pursuing a career in acupuncture or oriental medicine? Select one of the topics below for more information.
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Are there Entry Requirements for Attending an Acupuncture School?
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What is the Cost of Tuition for an Acupuncture or Oriental Medicine Program?
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Is Financial Aid Available for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Programs?
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How Long Does it Take to Graduate from an Acupuncture or Oriental Medicine Program?
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What Acupuncture or Oriental Medicine Degree Will I Obtain When I Graduate?
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Is there a Doctorate Program for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine?
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Where can I find a school of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine?
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Once I have graduated from school, what do I have to do to get licensed?
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What is the Earning Potential for a Licensed Practitioner of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine?
What Training is Required to Become an Acupuncturist?
You must graduate from an approved and/or accredited school of acupuncture with a Masters Degree in Acupuncture or Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. Medical Doctors and other health care providers can sometimes practice acupuncture with less training. There are different licensing requirements depending on where you will be practicing. Learn more about acupuncture licensing and certification requirements in your area on Acufinder.com.
Are there Entry Requirements for Attending an Acupuncture School?
In general, 60 semester units or 90 quarter units of accredited college courses is required to matriculate into any acupuncture school. In some States a bachelors degree is required as well as a masters in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine in order to practice. Check individual state requirements.
What Should I Look for in an Acupuncture School?
Some of the factors you may want to consider are:
Is the acupuncture or oriental medicine program accredited?
Is the acupuncture school approved by the licensing board of the area I intend to practice in?
Does the acupuncture school offer financial aid?
Does the acupuncture school have a high board licensing pass rate?
Does the acupuncture school offer a comprehensive and rigorous program that is at least 3,000 hours or a minimum of 3 1/2 years?
Does the acupuncture school truly integrate body-mind-spirit approach to the medicine or does it merely say it does?
Finally, make sure to visit the acupuncture school’s website and if possible, the physical facilities to talk to students, faculty and alumni.
Accreditation is a rigorous voluntary process of self study and external peer review. The accreditation process is carried out by a private, non-governmental agency that grants public recognition to an institution or program that meets certain established and nationally accepted standards or requirements for quality education and training. These accreditation standards cover curriculum, faculty qualifications, admissions requirements, finances, administration, facilities, learning resources and a number of other important areas.
Nearly all U.S. states that license acupuncturists require graduation from a program that is accredited or that has candidacy status (some also recognize certain foreign programs or state-approved programs that are not accredited). Acupuncture schools are required to meet certain standards and undergo rigorous process of self-study and examination regularly to maintain accreditation. An acupuncture school that is accredited also means it can offer students financial aid from the federal government. For more information about accredidation in the United States visit the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACAOM) website at www.acaom.org
What is the Difference Between Accreditation and Candidacy?
Candidacy is a pre-accreditation status that the Commission grants to a program if the program can demonstrate that it has the likely ability to gain accreditation. Most states that license acupuncturists accept graduation from a candidate program as meeting the educational requirements for licensure. Currently, however, unless a program is also accredited by a regional accrediting agency, candidacy status does not enable a program to provide federally funded financial assistance.
Most U.S. states that license acupuncturists require graduation from a program that is accredited or that has candidacy status. In addition, virtually all states require passage of the national certification exam administered by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) to be eligible for state licensure. NCCAOM specifically requires graduation from an ACAOM accredited or candidate program to be eligible to sit for NCCAOM’s certification exam(s). If there are particular states that you would like to practice in, you should contact the applicable state licensure authorities to see if they license the practice of acupuncture and Oriental medicine and to find out the educational requirements for licensure.
Acupuncture and Oriental medicine programs share similar curricula, with one important difference: Oriental medicine programs include the study of Chinese herbal medicine while acupuncture programs do not. This means that acupuncture programs tend to be shorter in terms of credits and hours than Oriental medicine programs, since herbal medicine educational requirements are fairly substantial.
Since some state acupuncture licensing boards require training in Chinese herbal medicine, students who are planning to apply for licensure in these states are advised to enroll in an Oriental medicine program. Apart from this important pragmatic consideration, it is not possible to say whether one type of program is preferable to the other. Chinese herbal medicine is an effective and widely practiced Oriental medicine modality; however, some practitioners favor a practice based primarily or entirely on acupuncture. Finally, it should be noted that the educational standards that ACAOM has developed for doctoral level training do require substantial advanced training in Chinese herbal medicine.
What is the Cost of Tuition for an Acupuncture or Oriental Medicine Program?
Tuition costs for an acupuncture or oriental medicine program vary from school to school and from state to state. However, it generally ranges from $30,000 to $40,000 for the entire program of training.
Is Financial Aid Available for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Programs?
Accreditated acupuncture and oriental medicine schools can offer federal government-guaranteed student loans that cover the full tuition and money for living. There are also limited grants available. Check with the school’s financial aid office.
How Long Does it Take to Graduate from an Acupuncture or Oriental Medicine Program?
Programs vary from school to school but generally training programs range from 3-4 years, including internship.
What Acupuncture or Oriental Medicine Degree Will I Obtain When I Graduate?
Accredited acupuncture and oriental medicine schools offer Masters Degree as an entry level degree. Non-accredited acupuncture and oriental medicine schools may offer certificate or other degrees.
Is there a Doctorate Program for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine?
Yes, the accreditating body just released the requirements for a clinical doctoral degree (DOM) in Oriental Medicine and schools in the United States are just starting to offer such program, which is optional after you complete the Masters Degree programs. For licensure purpose, it is not required to obtain a doctoral degree at this time.
Where can I find a school of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine?
The best place to find a school of acupuncture or oriental medicine is on the internet. We have a comprehensive listing of acupuncture and oriental medicine schools around the world. Search Schools on AcupunctureColleges.com
Once I have graduated from school, what do I have to do to get licensed?
You must graduate from a school that is approved by the licensing board of the state you intend to practice. Once you fulfill the licensing requirements of the area you wish to practice in you can then apply and take the licensing exam. In the United States most states accept the national certifying exam administered by the NCCAOM. For more information about licensing requirements in the United States visit Acufinder.com
What is a Typical Day for an Acupuncturist?
A typical day for an acupuncturist would include interfacing and administering treatments to patients, counseling patients about emotional and life style issues, teaching patients about diet and nutrition, tai chi and qigong exercise, and stress release meditations, conferring with other medical professionals, reviewing and writing patient medical reports, and managing the practice.
How Much Does an Acupuncture Practitioner Make?
According to Payscale’s Real-Time Salary Survey, www.payscale.com, the median yearly salary for acupuncturists in years 1-4 is $45,000, with those employed by a hospital earning an average of $49,000. A licensed acupuncturist after one year out of school can expect to make $45,000 a year and up. After five years in practice, one’s income should approach $100,000.
What is the Earning Potential for a Licensed Practitioner of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine?
The earning potential for a licensed practitioner depends on his or her skill level, ability to communicate and business management and marketing skills. $200,000-300,000 a year is not unrealistic within 10 years in practice.