Intensive Structure and Residency Requirements

The 36-month Master of Acupuncture (M.Ac.) program is structured in an intensive session format, which provides flexibility for those students who are working while going to school fulltime. The first two academic years of full-time study are taught in six intensive sessions, each ranging from 14 to 18 days in length. These intensive sessions are scheduled approximately every three to four months so that students are in Florida three times each year. All instruction is presented on-site by a live instructor, with classes beginning at 9 am and ending at 6 pm.

Non-local students commute to Florida for the entire duration of these intensives. After the intensive is over, students return home where they utilize Populi, our online learning management system, to complete a variety of homework assignments building on the course work they just completed, along with additional corequisite courses. Our teaching structure permits students from all over the country to enroll in our program without having to relocate to Florida during the first two academic years of the program. Many students who live outside of Gainesville find our structure ideal for their needs. The majority of our student body reside in states other than Florida.

The third and fourths academic years of our Acupuncture program is a 14-month clinical residency in Gainesville where the structure shifts to a weekly schedule of class and clinical study. At this time, students who do not already reside within a reasonable commuting distance of the Academy must relocate to Gainesville for the duration of the clinical internship to complete their training. The Clinical Residency is the heart of the program and must be completed in the Academy’s teaching clinic. Here, students work with experienced Five Element practitioners, gaining in-depth proficiency in treating their own patients in addition to attending weekly clinical seminars. The schedule includes a number of weekend courses in addition to the weekly clinical schedule.

For a complete breakdown of the Master of Acupuncture program sequence, please visit the summary of M.Ac Program Hours in our Catalog.

The 27-month Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine (CCHM) program is also offered in an intensive format, scheduled in conjunction with the acupuncture intensives. There are five intensive sessions for the Chinese Herbal Medicine program, with each intensive lasting four to five days. The clinical portion of the program is scheduled alongside the acupuncture residency, enabling students to complete the clinical training for both programs at the same time. Students will see patients in the Academy’s herbal clinic, recommending and compounding their formulas in the school’s dispensary. Students also attend weekly classes during the clinical year.

For those students enrolled only in the Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine program, the same residency requirements for the M.Ac. program apply to the CCHM program. Students must relocate to the Gainesville area for the clinical year in order to attend weekly classes, see clinic patients, and work in the herbal dispensary.

For a complete breakdown of the Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine program sequence, please go to the summary of CCHM Program Hours in our Catalog.

Our admissions office can provide a program schedule for a fuller view of the intensive structure of each program. Please see Tables A and B for hours, credits, and course descriptions for each program.