Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, San Diego

New York Campus

915 Broadway, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10010

Chicago Campus

3646 N. Broadway, 2nd Floor
Chicago, IL 60613

The College

Pacific College, one of the largest acupuncture schools in the U.S., was founded in 1986 with the mission of training primary health-care providers in the field of oriental medicine. Pacific provides technical medical training while encouraging compassion for and understanding of patients' deepest needs. All executive board members of the College's Board of Directors are acupuncturists who lend direct, professional experience to the governance and direction of the College.

Programs of Study

Pacific College of Oriental Medicine offers the following programs:

San Diego:

• Doctorate of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine
• Master of Science of Traditional Oriental Medicine
• Bachelor of Health Science
• Associate of Applied Science

New York:

• Dual degree programs of Bachelor of Professional Studies/Master of Science (Traditional Oriental Medicine)
• Bachelor of Professional Studies/Master of Science (Acupuncture)
• Bachelor of Professional Studies
• Associate of Occupational Science

Chicago:

• Master of Science of Traditional Oriental Medicine

Graduates are eligible for state licensure and national certification as acupuncturists. The MSTOM program consists of a total of 3,349 hours with 1,032 of those hours in clinical internship.

Curriculum

The fundamentals of all aspects of traditional oriental medicine are introduced in the first academic year of the master's degree program and prepare the student for the clinical assistantship experience. Acupuncture, herbal medicine, anatomy, body therapy, biosciences and Tai Chi form a curriculum allowing students to learn to view health and disease from both Western and traditional Asian holistic perspectives.

The second-year classroom experience leads to more in-depth understanding of the practice of acupuncture and oriental medicine, including advanced needling techniques and advanced herbal prescriptions. As a clinical assistant, the student works as part of a team of assistants, interns and licensed acupuncturists in the College's busy community clinic, preparing them for the responsibility of accepting their own patients as interns in the third year.

The third and fourth year interns have the opportunity to practice in hospitals, hospices and other multidisciplinary facilities in the surrounding community. Much classroom time is spent discussing clinical cases. Medical understanding deepens, and the student embodies and assimilates the fine points of their art. Students directly experience the result of their studies when their patients' conditions improve.

Pacific College's doctoral program consists of a five semester, 13,956 hour, 70.5 credit program of study. It is composed of a series of courses in five tracks in which each doctoral student completes 41 didactic and clinical courses. The five tracks include: Integrative Medicine, Application of Chinese Classics, Chinese Medical Chinese Language, Evidence-Based Medicine, and Clinical Studies. Within these tracks, students may choose Neuromuscular Medicine, Geriatrics or Mental Health as a specialty.

Pacific's doctoral clinical training utilizes a team approach consisting of a team of two expert licensed acupuncturists and a biomedical health care provider. This approach allows for collaborative interaction with multiple medical providers and access to experts in the specialty under study by the student. In addition to its own clinical facilities, Pacific has agreements with the following organizations to provide facilities for observation and collaboration: San Diego Hospice, University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Free Clinic, Senior's Clinic, UCSD Sports Medicine Clinic, and UCSD Division of Urology. Pacific's clinical component also allows students to receive credit for treating patients in their own practices as well as complete a Clinical Capstone Project that will contribute to the knowledge base of the profession.

While Pacific's doctoral program is currently designed for resident, full-time students, it will also be highly managable for practitioners maintaining a full-time private practice or having other significant commitments. Attending full-time, the doctoral program will require 1.7 years to complete, or 3 years if attending part-time.

Student Outcomes

All master's-level programs lead to primary health-care competence in the field of oriental medicine. Pacific's record of students passing state and national examinations is among the best in the nation. Graduates typically build a private practice as associates in established clinics. Others are hired by multidisciplinary clinics and work alongside medical doctors, chiropractors and others.

Graduates of Pacific's doctoral program will become some of first in the field to achieve such a degree, and therefore designate them as leaders of the profession. Graduates will be able to foster self-directed learning and critical thinking within the framework of traditional Chinese medicine until it becomes an unshakeable habit and a defining characteristic of their professionalism.

Faculty

From acupuncturists to medical doctors to Taoist priests, Pacific College's well-known faculty is one of the most respected in this country and abroad. A diverse and experienced group, they have the ability to teach in a manner familiar to Western students.

Applying

Candidates for the master's programs are accepted for entry each tri-semester, which begin January, April and September of each year. Applicants must have satisfactorily completed an associate's degree or its equivalent, which is defined as at least 60 semester credits or 90 quarter credits of substantial academic content.

Candidates for the doctoral program should be able to demonstrate evidence of satisfactory completion of a master's degree or a master's level program in oriental medicine from an ACAOM-accredited or candidate institution or international equivalent. A grade point average of 3.0 or better in previous graduate level work is required. Preference will be given to applicants who demonstrate strong clinical reasoning skills and motivation to advance their career and the profession of oriental medicine through specialization, classical studies, translation and research.

Due to the emerging nature of the D.A.O.M. degree program, ACAOM standards allow a special admissions policy for experienced practitioners that have been actively engaged in the profession for at least five years, but have not attained the master's degree or its equivalent. For more information on admission to Pacific's D.A.O.M. program, please contact an Admissions Counselor.

Financial Aid

Financial aid for Pacific's master's degree programs is available at each of Pacific's campuses. Pell and FSEOG Grants, Federal Work-Study and Stafford Loans are available to eligible students. Payment plans and private scholarships are also available.

Accreditation

Pacific College is approved by the California Bureau for Private Post-secondary and Vocational Education to award a Master of Science in Traditional Oriental Medicine. The Master's program is also accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine.

Location & Facilities

The San Diego campus is located conveniently in the heart of San Diego in Mission Valley. The school is minutes from shopping, beaches, mountains and Mexico, and has abundant parking and easy freeway access.

The New York campus is located in Manhattan's historic Flatiron District. The college is surrounded by fine restaurants, convenient markets, trendy boutiques and local theaters and has convenient subway and train access and parking nearby.

The Chicago campus is located in one of the most central and accessible cities in the country, allowing students to live almost anywhere in the area and commute easily to school. Forty landmark districts lie within the city limits, providing sights from skyscrapers and Frank Lloyd-Wright architecture to jazz clubs and Wrigley Field. Pacific College campuses are spacious, newly equipped and have a clinic, reference center, student computers with internet access, bookstore, student lounge and administrative offices.

Contact Us Today!

If you are interested in any of our programs and would like to find out more, please Request Information.