PRE-CHIROPRACTIC EDUCATION 

at UW OSHKOSH

Is this career right for me?

    Comprehensive information about a career as a Doctor of Chiropractic is available from the American Chiropractic Association at http://www.amerchiro.org (click on “What is chiropractic?”).  The career path is generally as follows: (a) 3-4 years of undergraduate school (usually to the B.S. degree), (b) 4+ years of chiropractic school leading to the D.C. degree, (c) National Board exams, and (d) licensure to practice in a particular state.

    The undergraduate coursework for a pre-chiropractic student is essentially the same as that for a pre-medical student.  However, the required undergraduate GPA for chiropractic college admission is lower than that for medical school. A cumulative GPA of 2.5 or more is required for admission to chiropractic college (see more details below), some of which also require a physical fitness exam (due no doubt to the rigors of practicing the profession).  

    Good credit for student loans is also important. One Midwestern Chiropractic program reports that the average debt of graduating students is $108,000.  Contact the chiropractic school you plan to attend for additional information.

There are several resources you should exploit fully before committing yourself to pre-chiropractic training.

• Contact the UWO Counseling Center for personal guidance and recommendations, understanding that the person you are as a college freshman is not the person you'll be upon entrance to chiropractic school. 
• Study the web site for the American Chiropractic Association (ACA; http://www.amerchiro.org).  It addresses many of the public's perceptions of chiropractic.   For particulars about the career, visit http://www.amerchiro.org/media/whatis/careers/.
• Take every opportunity to visit with a practicing chiropractor and ask him/her about the career.

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Schools & Admissions 

    UW Oshkosh students have access to excellent undergraduate preparation for any college of chiropractic. However, it's important to know that the admissions requirements vary slightly depending upon the chiropractic college in question.  Therefore, each pre-chiropractic student must familiarize him- or herself with the admissions requirements for every chiropractic college of interest. 

    For a comprehensive list of accredited chiropractic colleges in the United States, go to http://www.chirocolleges.org.  Links to each college from there will provide detailed information about their respective admissions requirements.  Once you decide to work toward chiropractic school, you should create a master list of all undergraduate courses required for admission to any chiropractic colleges that interest you.

    You can be admitted to chiropractic college without a Bachelor's degree, but most students elect to finish a B.S. degree first.  Any undergraduate major can be designed to meet the minimum prerequisites for chiropractic school, but a Biology degree (with an emphasis on animal systems) is probably the best fit overall.  After all, chiropractic education includes intensive instruction in human anatomy and physiology.

In January 2002, the Council for Chiropractic Education substantially altered the admissions standards for all accredited chiropractic colleges operating in the United States. Full text of the changes may be found at http://www.cce-usa.org/January-2002-Standards.pdf.  An overview of the new requirements for admission are as follows: 

1.      Completion of at least 90 semester credit credits, to include at least 30 semester credits at the 300+ level (i.e. upper division).  This works out to a minimum of 3 years of undergraduate education, but it's often difficult to get enough 300+ credits in such a short time-frame.  Students are therefore advised to plan to graduate with a Bachelor's degree. See advice from a UW Oshkosh student who is in chiropractic school for more on this subject. Application to chiropractic school is generally made in the junior year of undergraduate school.

2.  A GPA of at least 2.50 on a 4.00 scale.  This GPA applies both to the required prerequisites (see next) and to the undergraduate cumulative career. In addition, there is a “C” minimum for required Biology, Chemistry, and Physics courses (see below). Only the most recent grades for any repeated courses will be used.   

3. There is currently NO entrance exam for chiropractic school.

4.      At least 48 semester hour credits from the following prerequisite list:

English: 6 sem cr (Engl 101 + a 300-level composition course)

Psychology: 3 sem cr (Psych 101)

Social Science/Humanities: 15 sem cr (many to choose from)

Biological Sciences: 6 sem cr with labs (Bio 105 plus another course)

Chemistry: 12 sem cr with labs (Chem 105 + 106 + 235 + 335 or 305)

Physics: 6 sem cr (Phys 107 + 108 or biomechanics, statistics, or exercise physiology)

      Important note: licensing regulations in each state may also have particular undergraduate requirements.  What this means is that merely fulfilling the minimum requirements for admission to a particular chiropractic school does no necessarily guarantee that you will be eligible to be licensed to practice chiropractic in some states! It would be an unpleasant surprise to have to go back to undergraduate school to make up a deficiency. Licensure information can be obtained by calling 1-800-722-3648 and asking for the Institutional Planning & Research Department.   Licensure details can also be obtained from admissions personnel at any chiropractic school.

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Rounding out your application

Your application to chiropractic college will consist of more than just your college transcripts and a check for the application fee.   

• Personal essay

You should start a "pre-chiro journal" today. Whenever you read an article, see a program, hear a speaker, or experience an interaction with a patient or clinician (especially one whom you are shadowing), make a note of the date, what happened, who was involved, and how it made you feel about becoming a chiropractor.  These personal stories can be a powerful part of your application, particularly in the personal essay, in which you are usually asked to explain why you want to become a chiropractor.   You can't say, "The body is fascinating and I want to help people."   That's far too generic to be of any use.  You want to stand out from the crowd.  A vivid and unique story can do that for you.

These journal entries come in very handy if you should go on an interview, when you are asked, "What kinds of experiences have you had that make you think you'd be a good chiropractor?"  If you write things down as they occur, you don't have to rely on your memory to come up with specifics. 

In the personal essay, also be sure to include a sentence at the end which lists the courses you plan to complete prior to beginning chiropractic college (especially if you have yet to complete all the prerequisites!).

• Recommendation letters

You will probably need three (3) recommendation letters for your application. Think carefully before asking someone to write a rec letter.  Weak letters are worse than none at all.  Instead of asking, "Would you write me a letter?", ask: "Would you be able to write me a strong letter?"  Try to pick people who can say more than "This student got an A in my class."   If you have worked with a chiropractor in any capacity (volunteer, shadow, paid position, etc.) and have had a good relationship, be sure to ask that person.  Most chiropractic colleges recommend at least one letter from a chiropractor.

Give letter writers AT LEAST two weeks prior to the deadline; some are so busy, they may need considerably more advance time.  Provide each of them with the form to fill out (if any) and stamped, addressed envelopes.

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Advisors

Advising Office, College of Letters & Science, Dempsey 130.

Dr. Dana Vaughan (Halsey 249, Dept. of Biology, vaughan@uwosh.edu, 424-3076)

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A Sample Course of Study

You do not have to be a Biology major to be a pre-chiro, but you will need to take quite a bit of Biology and Chemistry to satisfy the entrance requirements of most chiro colleges.   Also, having had a solid biology education prior to Chiropractic school makes Chiropractic school itself a bit easier.  Therefore, many pre-chiros elect some kind of Biology major for their undergraduate work.  It is often possible to get a minor in Chem or Psych at the same time.  Here is some general advice that applies to all.

For best results, get your math and communication classes (i.e. ENGL 101 and SPEECH 111) underway as soon as possible, because they will help you to be a better student in your other courses.   Putting them off just hurts your study skills. 

To get a Bachelor's degree in Biology at UW Oshkosh, you must complete a Physiology course. The choices are: Animal Phys BIO 319, Plant Phys BIO 345, and Microbial Phys BIO 450.  Note: Human Phys BIO 212 will no longer count toward the Biology major.  The topics covered in Animal Phys will certainly be a big part of Chiropractic school, so most pre-chiros choose BIO 319. 

Pre-Chiropractic Biology Major with Liberal Arts Emphasis ("the blue sheet")

You will need to take at least 11 Gen Ed courses to get your Bachelor's degree. Suggested slots for those are shown, but there is a lot of flexibility in the schedule.  A list of Gen Ed courses that are particularly appropriate for pre-chiros is given below this chart.

***Instead of the second semester of Physics (Physics 108), you can substitute a statistics course, biomechanics (Phy Ed 348), or physiology of exercise (Phy Ed 350).

The 11 (eleven) Gen Eds you must complete for your UW Oshkosh Bachelor’s Degree:

Early Civ OR Modern Civ; must choose one.

Non-Western Culture course (3 credits).  Your STAR report has a menu of choices.

Ethnic Studies course (3 credits).  Your STAR report has a menu of choices.

Humanities (Lit, Art, Drama, Lang, Philos, Ethics, Music) (4 x 3 credits).  Your STAR report has a menu of choices.

        Strongly recommend Ethics for pre-health professionals.

        If you have Spanish already, don’t miss SPAN 231 Spanish for Med Prof!

Social Sciences (Psych, Hist, Soc, Anthro, Econ, Geog, Poli Sci, Relig) (4 x 3 credits). Your STAR report has a menu of choices.  Psych is required for admission to most chiropractic schools so plan on it being one of your Gen Eds.

        Strongly recommend Soc, Econ, and Relig for pre-health professionals.
        

Especially appropriate BIO 300+ electives to consider:
ComparAnat 308
DevelBio 316
Immunol 341
Neuro 444

You may take Human Anatomy 211, but it will not count toward your major. You should not take Human Physiology 212, but instead should take the more in-depth course, Animal Physiology 319.

Your BIO 300+ electives may include a BIO 446 Independent Study for 1-3 credits.  All you need is a BIO faculty member willing to supervise your efforts and then to evaluate them.  Ind Study may be lab research with your faculty mentor or even a "super" term paper on a topic agreeable to you and the sponsoring faculty member.  An Ind Study can reflect your particular interest in medicine.   There is a form to fill out (obtained from the Biology office) and a simple contract to write up with your chosen faculty mentor.

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Advice from a UW Oshkosh who is in Chiropractic school

    Started chiropractic school in fall 2000: "Dr. Vaughan, I have a little time to spare for once, so I can give you advice for aspiring chiropractors. The way things are going with the chiropractic system, it sounds like most schools are encouraging incoming students to have a Bachelor of Science degree. I don't think it is written in stone yet but some states are requiring it, so it would be smart to go ahead and earn a degree. I can't say what I did was perfect, but now I know what I would have done differently. As far as Biology classes, take the required ones for a degree: Biology 1 & 2, Genetics, Animal Physiology, Molecular Biology. I don't think it matters if you take animal (BIO 319) or human (BIO 212) physiology because the concepts are the same and you need the animal phys (319) for the Biology Major. You also need to take Algebra-based Physics 1 & 2, Chemistry 1 & 2, and Organic Chemistry 1 & 2. As far as electives are concerned, I would strongly suggest your Neurology course (BIO 444). Biochemistry (CHEM 305) would be advisable because you can test out of the 1st and 2nd semester here by taking a test. I don't recall if we had an Endocrinology course (we don’t), but you can also test out of that class if you took it as an undergrad."

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Last updated 03/31/05.