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Guide to College Majors in Alternative Medicine

What is Alternative Medicine?

The world of alternative medicine is vast, ranging from Chinese medicine to massage therapy. Unlike most western medicine practices, alternative medicine seeks to treat the true cause of illness, instead of simply addressing the symptoms. Alternative medicine practitioners do not prescribe drugs or perform surgery, instead relying on herbal and holistic remedies as well as acupuncture and massage.

The basic foundation of alternative medicine is simple: bring harmony to the body, mind, and spirit in order to promote health. This idea of balance is as old as the healing arts themselves. The practice of balancing the body's natural energies can be found in the healing traditions of the Chinese, Indian, and Native American cultures.

Those practicing alternative medicine have a strong belief in nature and the body's ability to heal itself. Doctors in the field of alternative medicine concentrate on illness prevention as much as they treat specific illnesses. They council their patients on what sort of lifestyle changes they need to make in order to decrease the risk of illness.

The biggest difference between western medicine and alternative medicine is in the way each discipline views the body. While western medical doctors and surgeons treat the body as a conglomeration of organs and systems, alternative medicine doctors look at the body as a whole. Western medicine focuses on the belief that bacteria and viruses cause disease, while alternative medicine doctors focus on the patient's entire internal condition, including state of mind and emotional balance.

The basic tenets of alternative medicine include:

• A belief in the harmony of mind, body, and spirit to promote good health and wellness and to prevent illness.
• Treating the symptoms of a disease does not cure the disease. The root of the illness must be addressed in order to create an effective treatment.
• Imbalances in the body as a whole are the true cause of illness.
• Each individual patient has different strengths and weaknesses and an individualized plan must be developed for each patient in order for them to achieve optimal health.
• The doctor is an educator who teaches patients how to lead a healthy lifestyle and take care of themselves, identifying and helping to remove obstacles that must be overcome in order for good health to be achieved.

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Alternative medicine is also about empowering the patient to prevent disease, instead of having to rely on a medical professional exclusively. Alternative medicine practitioners believe self-healing to be a natural process of the body. Once the patient begins to identify the environmental, emotional, and physical problems that exist within and without, and how these things relate to one another, they can begin to live a life that is conducive to optimal health.

There are many fields of alternative medicine available to study in traditional college or institute settings, as well as in online degree and distance learning programs. These include:

• Chinese Medicine
• Acupuncture
• Massage Therapy
• Herbal Medicine
• Naturopathic Medicine
• Indian Ayurvedic Medicine
• Homeopathic Medicine
• Yoga

Is a Degree in Alternative Medicine Right for You?

Before entering an alternative medicine college degree program, it is important to take a close look at oneself and at the demands of the program to see if this path is the right one to choose. There are certain traits one must possess in order to succeed in the field of alternative medicine.

An effective practitioner of alternative medicine has the innate ability to view the body holistically, maintaining an open mind about the possible sources of an illness or condition. This is not a realm for the stubborn or inflexible. Being able to treat patients as individuals with unique physical, mental, and spiritual needs instead of as a generic assemblage of organs is necessary when entering the field of alternative medicine.

Alternative medicine practitioners must be able to talk candidly and openly with their patients about very personal information. Therefore, these doctors must be extraordinarily sensitive and compassionate in an attempt to make the patient feel as comfortable as possible. Getting a patient to open up and give personal details like this can also be a long process, so patience also plays a very important role.

As with all medical professions, the field of alternative medicine involves a rigorous and demanding course of study. The amount of information to be absorbed can be, at times, overwhelming. Before entering a degree program in alternative medicine, students should examine how committed they are to the pursuit of this goal. Only the most committed of students go on to become successful practitioners of alternative medicine.

If you would like to study alternative medicine, but believe you are unable to because of a current career or family, then perhaps an e-learning or distance education degree from an accredited online university is right for you. The class schedules are often very flexible and require little to no travel. And, if you are unsure of where you would like to focus your studies, online courses offer different levels of intensity in order to fit a course of study with your current commitment level.

Preparing to Enter an Alternative Medicine Degree Program

There are many ways a person can prepare for a career in alternative medicine prior to enrollment in a degree program. This preparation can involve an academic or extracurricular setting.

As far as academics go, taking as many science courses as possible can be very helpful. Biology and chemistry would be the most relevant, so the student should focus their studies there. Traditional western medicine and alternative medicine do overlap a great deal, in areas such as herbal medicine and biochemistry. Students in both disciplines need to have an excellent general science background, as well as strong mathematics and measuring skills.

Outside of school, or through an after school program, students can get involved in volunteer work at a local hospital or clinic. Studying traditional wellness practices such as yoga can also help lend the student a familiarity for the traditions of alternative medicine.

Many schools, including accredited online universities, will accept Advanced Placement Test scores of 3 or better as college credit toward general education requirements. Taking these classes in high school and performing well on the exams can really help to reduce your course load during undergraduate school. Even if the college the student is applying to does not accept the AP tests for credit, it looks very good on the application to have taken and done well on the tests.

Career Education in Alternative Medicine

Undergraduate and Graduate degree and certificate programs

There are a myriad of different majors, certificates, and degrees available to those who wish to practice alternative medicine. Each program is unique in its focus and the level of commitment required. While doctoral-track B.S. and M.S. programs are as rigorous as traditional medical school, some of the certificate courses can be taken online part-time while the student works a full-time job or takes care of a family.

Certificate Programs
Many certificate programs are available for those wishing to begin study or further their knowledge of alternative medicine. While many of these programs are simply introductory courses, many others are designed for already certified acupuncturists or practitioners of Oriental medicine who wish to specialize in an area of study.

Available certificate programs include:

• Massage Therapy
• Holistic Health
• Herbal Medicine
• Oriental Body Therapy
• Yoga Instruction

Certificate programs are commonly taken through accredited online universities and distance learning centers. These institutions allow for maximum flexibility while the student continues his or her full-time job or takes care of a family. This allows for the learning process to continue without putting one's life or career on hold for months or even years.

Bachelor of Science Degree Programs
Alternative medicine undergraduate degree programs include courses of study in acupuncture, Chinese medicine, physiology, and various body therapy disciplines. These programs can range from two to four years. Some of the two-year programs require a minimum number of transfer credits covering general education requirements from another college. Other programs offer courses of study resulting in a combined Bachelor's and Master's degree in complimentary and alternative medicine.

Most Bachelor's programs have a strong focus on basic science and rudimentary herbal science skills. Many students of alternative medicine who choose not to continue their schooling past this level go on to become herbalists, or find work in herbal retail sales. Still others become teachers or consultants in the field of herbal science.

There are specific alternative medicine programs available for students wishing to make the herbal sciences their focus. The B.S. of Herbal Sciences prepares the student for a variety of careers, while also preparing them to study at the graduate level should they so choose.

Bachelor's degrees in the field of alternative medicine are diverse and numerous. Students should study each discipline's principles and decide which is most in accordance with their own philosophies on health and wellness before making a decision. Programs exist for Chinese medicine, acupuncture and Oriental medicine, general complimentary and alternative medicine, Ayurvedic physiology and health, herbal science, and so on.

Since many of these programs do require transfer credit for general education requirements from another college or university, students can take the opportunity to study the different disciplines and find the one that most suits them.

Master of Science Degree Programs
Pursuing a Master of Science degree in an alternative medicine related field is the most common way to begin a career as an alternative medicine practitioner. Most M.S. degree programs require a Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university for admittance, but not necessarily in a field related to complimentary or alternative medicine. Basic biology, chemistry, physics, and math courses must have been taken at some point in the undergraduate's academic career.

More than academic credentials, schools with M.S. programs in the field of alternative medicine are looking for high levels of interest and commitment. Even if a student is academically talented, it does not guarantee that they will be accepted. Students that are accepted to Master's degree programs in alternative medicine are enthusiastic about their chosen profession and very likely to see their education through.

Master's degree programs in fields like acupuncture and Oriental medicine typically require three years to complete. These programs blend the teachings of traditional western medicine with the teachings of eastern holistic medicine. Students graduate from these programs as versatile healers, capable of excelling in a variety of settings.

Students in an M.S. program in alternative medicine will need to learn Chinese medical language and symbols, as well as study traditional herbal remedies. Acupuncture is another focus of most M.S. programs, as well as certain forms of massage and body therapy.

The first year of most M.S. degree programs in alternative medicine focuses on the basic information the student will need in order to function in a clinical environment. This training includes:

• How to interview patients
• How to diagnose conditions accurately
• How to prescribe treatments accordingly
• Basic herbal remedy knowledge
• Basic acupuncture techniques such as moxibustion and cupping
• Chinese physical therapy (Tui Na)
• Chinese medical terminology and symbols

Master's degree program students in the field of alternative medicine are also obligated to fulfill either a clinical assistantship or an internship requirement. This means that, often by the second year of schooling, students will be working hands-on in a clinic with professional acupuncturists, herbalists, and Chinese medicine doctors.

Most internships and assistantships include two stages, comprised of an average of 400 hours of training. The first, often referred to as the junior internship, involves closely supervised work with professional practitioners, including traditional doctors and nurses, physical therapists, acupuncturists, massage therapists, and herbalists.

Students perform or aid in the performance of a variety of treatments, including moxibustion, massage, cupping, prescribing herbal remedies, and some needling work. This work prepares the student to take on their own patients when they become a senior intern.

During this time, students are still taking classes, though they are more advanced in nature. Most commonly used are case studies, where students examine the details of actual cases and discuss how specific patients were diagnosed and why the treatment did or did not work.

Most alternative medicine programs encourage students to form habits of self-directed learning in order to continue, after the program is over, to become better practitioners of the medical arts. These skills will be necessary should the student decide to develop a private practice or obtain a doctoral research degree.

Doctoral Degree Programs
If a student is motivated to continue their education in alternative medicine beyond the Master's degree level, they may apply for admission to a Doctoral program in alternative medicine, usually in acupuncture and Oriental medicine or alternative medicine research. This degree allows the student to teach at the graduate level or expand their skills in order to improve their private practice.

Doctoral level education is not necessary in order to achieve certification to practice alternative medicine in most states. Therefore, most doctoral candidates are involved in the program specifically for their own edification or for the furthering of the validity and effectiveness of alternative medicine as a profession. Those who receive doctoral level degrees in alternative medicine often emerge as leading practitioners and advocates of the field.

In order to be accepted to a doctoral program, the student must:

• Earn 3.0 grade point average or better in previous studies
• have a valid acupuncture license from one state
• have a set minimum amount of clinical experience
• Masters degree in alternative medicine from an accredited college or university

Other requirements may need to be met depending on the institution. Most schools also demand that the student prove that he or she is capable of learning independently. Knowledge of Chinese medical terminology is also a common requirement, as are computer literacy, written and oral communication skills, and critical thinking skills.

Universities offering alternative medicine degree programs:

Everglades University - Online Bachelor of Science Degree in Alternative Medicine

What can you do with a College Degree in Alternative Medicine?

Career specializations for aspiring alternative medicine practitioners

As more and more people begin to realize its effectiveness and utilize its treatments, alternative medicine is quickly becoming a booming industry. Aside from making a good living, practitioners of alternative medicine enjoy satisfying and rewarding careers that affect people's lives deeply.

Depending on the student's level of education, there are a variety of careers in alternative medicine to choose from. Those with a business mind can be involved in selling herbal remedies and holistic health supplements, even owning their own business. Those with agriculture backgrounds can cultivate and sell herbs. Private massage therapy practices are sprouting up everywhere, as are spas and gyms that employ massage therapists. Acupuncture clinics and Chinese medicine clinics are gaining more visibility, employing more licensed practitioners than ever before.

Here are some examples of careers in alternative medicine:

• Massage Therapist: Whether practicing privately or working for a spa, gym, or physical therapy clinic, massage therapists administer massages on an individual basis. They base their choices of massage techniques on interviews with the client, using their complaints to guide their treatments.
  
  
• Acupuncturist: An acupuncturist administers needling work, often to those who have experienced poor results from traditional western treatment. Needling involves the use of needles to stimulate specific points on the body. As a result, patients achieve a balance of the physical, mental, and emotional. They also perform moxibustion and cupping, depending on the needs of the patient. These needs are determined by an interview process, which demands the acupuncturist be sensitive, understanding, and perceptive.
  
  
• Herbalist: In order to provide an alternative to western prescription medicine and all of its side effects, herbalists grow, dry, and blend herbs that work in conjunction with one another and with the body to restore balance and harmony to the patient's system. Herbalists can have careers in retail, agriculture, or consulting.

Alternative medicine doctors will often be engaged in more than one discipline. Since the study of Chinese medicine often involves prescribing many forms of treatment that will work in conjunction with one another, most Chinese medicine doctors are able to perform acupuncture, massage, and herbal prescriptions.

Certification and Licensure

After obtaining a Masters degree in alternative medicine, students must get licensed by the state in which they reside before they can begin to practice legally. Licensure requirements vary from state to state, and some states do not as of yet offer licensing in alternative medicine. Licensure is also necessary in order to be accepted to a doctoral program in alternative medicine.

Some schools offer licensing as part of the educational process, making it easier for students to transition from an educational environment to a clinical one. When selecting a degree program, ask if they offer licensure before deciding to apply.

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