| About Chiropractic
What Is Chiropractic? Is Chiropractic Right for Me? How Do I Choose? | Glossary
Treatment Applications Types of Chiropractic Credentials |
Professional Credentials for Chiropractors
Although most students enter chiropractic programs with a Bachelor's degree, the minimum requirement set forth by the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE) for such a program is 90 semester hours. These hours generally include class requirements in life sciences and humanities.
To receive the title of Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.), a chiropractic program requires a minimum of 4,200 hours of combined laboratory, classroom and clinical experience. To graduate from a chiropractic program, students must have completed five years of schooling and passed four national board exams. Many colleges also offer the option to continue by obtaining postdoctoral training, which, after passage of the appropriate exam, means specialty in a given area, including orthopedics, neurology and radiology.
To maintain licensure, almost all states require completion each year of a specified number of hours of continuing-education classes, which are offered by accredited chiropractic programs and institutions.
CCSP
A certified chiropractic sports practitioner focuses on sports injuries. Many programs offer a comprehensive curriculum of rigorous classroom and clinical experience. Many are also accredited by the American Chiropractic Board of Sports Physicians.
DC
The doctor of chiropractic must complete four academic years at a school accredited by the Council on Chiropractic Education, as well as a one-year internship at an outpatient clinic owned and run by a chiropractic college. They are tested and certified by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners, and licensed by the state in which they practice. To maintain licensure in most states, practitioners must complete a certain number of continuing education hours annually.
