Doctor of Chiropractic

Overview

By diagnosing and treating musculoskeletal disorders (via manual spinal adjustments and other approaches) Doctors of Chiropractic offer a natural approach to improving nervous system function, reducing pain, increasing mobility, and supporting the body’s innate ability to heal itself.

At SCU, we’ve been pioneers in chiropractic medicine for more than 110 years. Founded in 1911 as the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic (LACC), we were one of the nation’s very first chiropractic colleges, challenging convention and advancing the profession long before it was widely known or accepted. Today, LACC is one of several colleges within Southern California University of Health Sciences and continues to be a leader in chiropractic medicine and healthcare transformation.

Program at a Glance

  • Full-time, hybrid program, online and on-campus learning (3-4 years)
  • No bachelor’s requirement; ability to enter with 90 or more undergraduate credits
  • Practical business skills training to help you launch a private practice or advance in other healthcare settings
  • Unparalleled real-world, resume-building clinical training
  • Degree customization opportunities including our popular Sports Medicine emphasis
  • Accredited by The Council on Chiropractic Education and recognized by the California Board of Chiropractic Examiners
  • Fixed tuition guarantee, federal financial aid for those who qualify, and a range of institutional and program-specific scholarship opportunities

What Sets Our Program Apart

BUSINESS SKILL-BUILDING

Success after graduation requires more than strong clinical skills; it requires business know-how. Through a series of coursework on private practice development, risk mitigation, coding & billing, and more, you’ll gain invaluable, practical skills for establishing, operating, and sustaining a successful practice and career.

REAL-WORLD, RESUME-BUILDING CLINICAL TRAINING

At SCU, we offer students an extensive range of clinical training experiences that build both comprehensive clinical skills and standout resumes. While many institutions limit students to working in university health clinics that primarily serve other students, we offer something different. You’ll begin your real-world training at SCU Health Clinics which are open to the community year-round, accept commercial insurance, and serve more than 40,000 diverse patients annually. After completing those rotations, you’ll have the chance to broaden your clinical skills at various partner sites across California and beyond. SCU collaborates with more than 500 private practices specializing in fields like pediatrics, sports medicine, integrative medicine, and functional medicine, in addition to Veterans’ Health Administration (VA) hospitals, renowned teaching hospitals, Division 1 athletic programs, Federally Qualified Health Centers, and Hispanic-serving community clinics.

DEGREE CUSTOMIZATION OPPORTUNITIES

As an SCU chiropractic student, you’ll have the opportunity to focus in the areas that interest you most, through elective coursework paths in Sports Medicine, Eastern Medicine, Functional Medicine, Chiropractic Techniques, Business, and much more. In addition, you’ll have the option to earn two doctorates (Doctor of Chiropractic and Doctor of Acupuncture & Chinese Herbal Medicine) through our dual-degree track, saving both time and money.

OPTIONAL SPORTS MEDICINE EMPHASIS

One of our most popular degree customizations, our Sports Medicine emphasis will prepare you to work with wide-ranging athletes from amateur to professional. You’ll gain expertise from experienced faculty in the Sports medicine field, and train at SCU’s Human Performance Optimization Center (HPO) under the mentorship of practitioner faculty from the sports medicine industry. You will also work in diverse athletic settings like marathons, triathlons, endurance cycling races, weightlifting competitions, international taekwondo competitions, high school and college athletic departments, and more.

CADAVER LAB

At SCU, you won’t learn anatomy solely through textbooks and technology. You’ll have the powerful opportunity to learn in our cadaver lab—a classic teaching method offering unparalleled insight into the shape, feel, and function of the body. During this awe-inspiring experience, you’ll examine and dissect real human tissues and structures, gaining an understanding of human anatomy that is simply not possible through textbooks and virtual models alone.

EVIDENCE-BASED FRAMEWORK

Chiropractic colleges tend to fall into (or lean toward) one of two approaches: evidence-based or philosophically-based. SCU takes an evidence-based approach, emphasizing research, clinical trials, and integrating chiropractic care with modern scientific practices. We believe this not only equips you to achieve superior patient outcomes but also prepares you to communicate and collaborate more effectively with conventional healthcare professionals.

TECHNOLOGY-ENHANCED LEARNING

In addition to classroom lessons and hands-on clinical training, we support your learning through advanced teaching technology including:

  • Force Sensing Tables: These specialized tables measure the pressure, direction, and speed of forces being applied to them—providing invaluable real-time feedback as you learn and master your adjustment skills.
  • Complete Anatomy: Also known as 3D4 Medical, Complete Anatomy is a powerful simulated anatomy suite on which you can perform intricate tasks such as removing layers of tissue and visualizing details of the human body.
  • SynDavers: These lifelike silicone structures replicate living human tissue and are designed to be ultra realistic, helping you better understand the human body as you move muscles and parts.
  • Draw It to Know It (DITKI): This interactive tool is perhaps our most popular, featuring YouTube-style videos that include drawings, animations, and digital worksheets to help you more easily learn about physiology and successfully prepare for your licensure exams.
  • Diagnostic Imaging Technology: You’ll learn to use advanced tools like X-rays, MRIs, CT scans, and more to “see” inside the body without surgery, for less invasive, earlier diagnosis.

BROADER INTERPROFESSIONAL EDUCATION

Most of today’s healthcare colleges offer an “interprofessional education” through which students learn with, from, and about other disciplines. But at SCU, our Interprofessional Education is broader and, frankly, we think that makes it better. Unlike other colleges, we teach you about both conventional and complementary disciplines—not just one or the other—because we believe in both and we teach both, all under one roof.

AN INTEGRATIVE, WHOLE HEALTH APPROACH

All too often, healthcare providers “stay in their lanes” rather than building comprehensive care plans that include other disciplines, professionals, and approaches. In addition, they look strictly at the physical body as opposed to all the factors that may be influencing a patient’s health and well-being—genetics, lifestyle, mental health, relationships, physical environments, community support, and beyond. But at SCU, no matter what program you are in, you’ll learn to blend the best of conventional and complementary approaches (integrative healthcare) and to treat the entire mind, body, and spirit (whole health)—for true lasting wellness.