About AOMA
Transforming lives and communities through graduate education
The master of acupuncture and Oriental medicine program engages learners in their own process of transformation from student to professional. The program begins with foundational courses in Oriental medical theory, acupuncture point location, meridian theory, acupuncture techniques, biomedical sciences, and Chinese herbal medicine. By the end of the first year, a student has achieved the foundational knowledge necessary to begin his or her clinical internship. In the second year, learning progresses with advanced courses in acupuncture techniques and acupuncture treatment of disease, advanced biomedical assessment courses, and the continuation of the herbal medicine sequence. During the second year, the clinical internship emerges as a space for integration of classroom knowledge.As students begin their third year, they complete the acupuncture sequence and move into advanced courses in Chinese herbal medicine and biomedical treatment of disease.They are increasingly called upon in clinic to apply their knowledge in support of their patients’ health. By graduation, students have provided care for over 450 patients using the main modalities of Oriental medicine: acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, mind-body exercise,Asian bodywork, and nutrition.
This transformation is encouraged academically by courses that focus on a student’s professional development. For example, in the clinical communications sequence, students explore the boundaries of the patient-practitioner relationship and learn to improve their clinical outcomes through listening and educating. In the practice management sequence, advanced students develop the essential components of their business and marketing plans, explore accounting and insurance billing, and develop short and long term post graduation plans.
As Oriental medicine is a holistic medicine, this is also a holistic transformation.Throughout the program, students take courses in taichi and qigong and these courses provide quiet opportunities to reflect on health and healing. Students learn to recognize the connection between mind-body exercises and healthful living and are able to share that understanding with their patients in clinic. Students also choose from one of two sequences in Asian bodywork therapy, further expanding what they can offer their patients. Students may elect to take additional courses in Asian bodywork therapy. Although these elective courses are not eligible for financial aid, students completing the series may apply to the American Organization for Bodywork Therapies of Asia (AOBTA¨) and to the NCCAOM for national certification as Asian bodywork therapy practitioners.