Alternative Medicine Schools
Medicine and health care are no longer the strict domains of doctors and nurses. Now, people who study at alternative medicine schools may help clients reach their health potential in a different way.
An Alternative to Traditional Health Care: Alternative Medicine Schools
Choosing to study in one of the many alternative medicine schools across the country may open a wide door to the career of your choice, helping people get healthy and stay healthy.
Choosing Among the Alternative Medicine Schools
Since alternative medicine is such a broad field, there are many types of alternative medicine schools. To decide which of the alternative medicine schools you would like to attend, you need to narrow down your choices, which include (but aren't limited to):- Massage therapy
- Acupuncture
- Chiropractics
- Homeopathy
- Prosthetics
- Naturotherapy
The type of alternative medicine school you would attend depends not only on your career choice, but your state's requirements. For example, massage therapists usually follow a post-high school program of about 500 hours of study and practice, but chiropractors need to have an undergraduate degree before going to a four-year chiropractic college.
Acupuncturists, as with chiropractics, must go to college and the programs, which grant a master's degree in acupuncture and/or oriental medicine, are about four years long.
What Alternative Medicine Practitioners Do
If you have trained at an alternative medicine school, you are taught to provide clients with non-traditional aspects of health care. Many people are welcoming these new-to-them treatments and there is growing demand for practitioners who can provide this service.
Licensing
Every state has different rules governing graduates of alternative medicine schools. While some fields, such as acupuncture, may require specific state licensing exams, other fields may not. In massage therapy, for example, some states require nationally recognized tests rather than state ones.
If you plan on moving to another state, do not assume that your licensing is transferable. It is always best to contact the licensing board to see what their requirements are for graduates of alternative medicine schools to avoid disappointment and frustration. |
