Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACAOM)

As the benefits of Oriental medicine and acupuncture have become more widely known, recognized and accepted in the West, the need for an agency to oversee and accredit educational programs became evident. The Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine answered this call in 1982 by establishing the National Accreditation Commission for Schools and Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, which subsequently changed its name to the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, or ACAOM. This organization is the only one recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to accredit programs in this area of study at the level it concentrates. ACAOM is considered the national accrediting agency for master's level degree programs in acupuncture and Oriental medicine. It also grants accreditation to master's level certificate and diploma programs in the field. Only about 50 schools and colleges have managed to attain accreditation status or candidate status with ACAOM currently.

ACAOM's primary focus is to ensure excellence in acupuncture and Oriental medicine education. It does this by establishing a variety of standards that oversee the accreditation process. Schools that receive ACAOM accreditation must conform to a number of very high standards in regard to their educational programs, teaching practices and more.

The accreditation process itself involves an in-depth study of any applicant program's educational offerings. This includes not only the program material and teaching, but also the performance, ethics, integrity and quality of education the schools provide. The accreditation process itself includes program evaluation, on-site visits to see the program in action and more. This multi-step process can take a great deal of time to complete, but institutes of higher learning that offer acupuncture and Oriental medicine programs find it invaluable for attracting students and proving the value of their educational programs.

Campus-Based Colleges Accredited by ACAOM

For more information and a complete list of schools accredited by ACAOM, visit http://www.acaom.org/.