What qualifications do you need to become a chiropractor?

Answer 1

1) Before you are eligible to attend chiropractic college you must complete at least 3 years of an undergraduate degree (eg: bachelor of science), but most states require completion of the 4 year undergraduate degree in order to get a license to practice.

2) After an undergraduate degree you must complete a 4 year doctorate degree in chiropractic

3) After chiropractic college you must pass national board exams to get a license to practice.

Below is a far more detailed answer:

_____________

Before becoming a chiropractor, a person must attend a chiropractic college. There is no state owned university in the United States with a chiropractic program. All chiropractic colleges are private institutions. Admission standards are for the most part similar to that of medical or osteopathic medical schools, they include 1 year of general chemistry, 1 year of organic chemistry, 1 year of general Biology, 1 semester of trigonometry, 1 year of college physics (trig based), & 1 semester of psychology. Most schools require at least 90 semester hours from an undergraduate institution, but most chiropractors graduate with a bachelors degree (either before entering chiropractic school or after).

Chiropractic education consists of 5 academic years that is usually compressed into 3 and 1/3 to 4 years. This education involves much of the same basic sciences experienced by medical doctors that includes anatomy, physiology, pathology, biochemistry, public health, etc. A chiropractor's clinical education also includes pharmacology, physical exam and diagnosis, & pharmacology much like a medical student. The major difference is that a chiropractor undergoes a greater focus on neuromusculoskeletal abnormalities than most medical schools, and has less emphasis on pharmacology than a medical education. The chiropractor also has much more radiology and nutrition that the average medical student. This is because a doctor of chiropractic comes out of school trained to take x-rays and interpret them. Another difference from point to note is that chiropractors obtain some philosophy in addition to their sciences. Also a chiropractor undergoes only 1 & 1/3 year of internship with no residency (a few exceptions apply, such as the chiropractic radiologist that underwent 3 years of residency). This is similar to the dentist's education with 1 to 2 years in clinic.

In order to protect the public and maintain high standards of education, the chiropractic profession has a national board (NBCE) that evaluates the standards by means of 5 boards: Part I (basic sciences), Part II (Clinical Sciences), Part III (Clinical Sciences with Case Interpretation), Part IV (Oral Practicum & demonstration), & a Physiotherapy board. I believe all states require at least a minimum of these board examinations, completion of the doctor of chiropractic degree, and passing the state jurisprudence examination in order to license one as a chiropractor. The only exception may be Florida, who I believe requires a separate examination of their giving instead of Part IV.

In addition many doctors of chiropractic go on to further their education with specialization and post-doctoral certifications. Examples include chiropractic neurology, electrodiagnosis, orthopedics, chiropractic radiology, clinical nutrition, acupuncture, & sports medicine just to list a few examples. Each of these programs has a separate training program that is usually around 2 years, followed by a separate board examination.

Some have had bad experiences with chiropractic, or have been mislead by others such as the original author to this response. The best advice I can give is to carefully interview the doctor of chiropractic (DC) you are considering seeing. A good DC knows where he/she can excel, but also his/her limitations. A good DC would never be able to claim to cure most disorders other than musculoskeletal syndromes that are not cancerous, infectious, or involve dislocations or fractures. Although they may help in managing these cases. Never trust a DC that indicates he/she can cure cancer, although one might be able to help alleviate symptoms with clinical nutrition. Also ask what kind of a relationship that DC has with medical doctors. A chiropractor is a health care provider, & as such should not work in isolation. It is important to have good working relationships with medical professionals. In chiropractic school one of the important lesions taught in every class is when & who to refer to. Keep in mind that although you may hear about some bad experiences, there are many good ones. I myself have seen many people show remarkable progress with the care of a good chiropractor.

I hope this is an honest assessment for you. I am a chiropractor, but my wife is a medical doctor as is my father. In addition I primarily work with medical doctors. It is for that reason that I think I have a good perspective of what a DC is & what they have to do to get there.

Answer 2

In the U.S. they need to have either a D.C. (Doctor of Chiropractic), B.Chiro, or M.Chiro.

The academic curriculum is divided into "straight" or "progressive" chiropractic depending upon the philosophy of the institution, generally requiring 4 academic years of full-time study after 2-4 years or more of study at the associate or bachelor's degree level. (Like a residency an MD would have)