Hands-On Learning

The numbers say it all.

SCU offers you an evolved healing experience like no other. Our chiropractic program integrates solid evidence-based instruction with exceptional hands-on learning, so you're applying knowledge as you learn it. We incorporate more hours of practical training in our curriculum than most schools of chiropractic:

• 750 (number of technique hours dedicated to a diversified approach that covers the majority of techniques applied in the day-to-day practice of chiropractic)
• 4,785 (number of laboratory hours, which exceeds the 4,200 required by our accrediting agency) 

Then there are the experiences. 

The more opportunities you have to hone your adjusting skills, the stronger physician you'll become. That's why we offer a wide variety of opportunities for you to heal people of all ages, backgrounds, and conditions. As early as your first trimester, you'll begin developing the professional, analytical, and clinical skills that are essential to your success as a chiropractic physician.

Standardized Patients

Get comfortable with chiropractic care by working with real people, not dummies, through one-on-one interactions with standardized patients (trained actors) who present a particular ailment and expect you to diagnose and treat them. You'll work with standardized patients throughout the program.

Clinical Rotations

Connect basic science with its practical application through clinical rotations that take you throughout Los Angeles and Orange Counties. Opportunities are available at our two on-campus health centers, University Health Center – Pasadena and Whittier, and in other university settings such as Cerritos College, Mount San Antonio College, El Camino College, and the California State University system, local community health centers, homeless shelters, HIV clinics, and much more.

Health Centers

Observe and train with chiropractic and acupuncture/oriental medicine experts in our state-of-the-art Health Centers in Whittier and Pasadena, offering chiropractic care, acupuncture/oriental medicine, sports medicine, massage therapy, rehabilitation services, and radiological services to local residents. You'll intern at the health canters, diagnosing and treating patients under the guidance of a skilled doctor-mentor.

Community Service

Treat various groups such as bicyclists, athletes, firefighters, and breast cancer walk and tae kwon do tournament participants through community service projects. You also can volunteer your time locally at the Center for Brain Injured Children and local sporting events.

Preceptorships

Prepare for the real-world by working in private practices during your last year of study, which often leads to job placement upon graduation and licensure. We also offer a postgraduate clinical training program for up to one year for recent graduates who are actively pursuing licensure in the state of California.

Research

Discover the many health-related benefits of chiropractic and acupuncture/oriental medicine by conducting research alongside faculty members.

What our Curriculum Offers You

Our curriculum gives you a distinct advantage over graduates of other chiropractic schools. Classes and labs are strategically integrated with one another, allowing you to absorb information in a natural and logical manner and begin applying it as early as the first day. You will evolve with a curriculum that offers:

More Lab Time

You will participate in hands-on learning experiences that will explain what procedures you need to know for each condition, teach you effective treatment methods, and then allow you to hone your skills by working with real people.

Two Models of Instruction: Holistic and Biomedical

You will become proficient in diagnosis, able to identify and effectively treat disorders responsive to chiropractic procedures, knowledgeable in how to prevent illness, and more importantly you will become skilled at helping people achieve and maintain optimal health.

Standardized Patient Program

We enhance student learning by providing standardized patient experiences throughout the curriculum. During the course of learning, you will interact with standardized patients, who are actors portraying patients with health conditions. This interactivity adds an exciting dimension to the student's evolution to practitioner.

Collaboration

You will learn how work to in partnership with other health care professionals in the care of patients, and understand the circumstances in which to work with or refer a patient to another type of practitioner.

Flexibility

You will be well prepared for the expanding world of health care with a solid understanding of the basic health sciences, an appreciation for integration, the ability to anticipate changes, and the skill to treat a variety of populations.

Becoming Knowledgeable, Terms 1-3

• Discover the power of touch
• Become proficient with the human body, how it functions, and how it heals itself
• Understand the relationship between the trio of anatomy, physiology, histology, and how they determine the function of the human nervous system
• Conduct physical and neuromusculoskeletal examinations, apply clinical knowledge, and make diagnoses
• Expand comprehension of the scientific method

Becoming Confident, Terms 4-6

• Learn to identify and distinguish between a wide range of disorders
• Develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary for the treatment of the spine, ribcage, and extremities
• Discover the ways in which prescription drugs can alter the presentation of symptoms
• Learn the benefits of good nutrition
• Produce and interpret radiographs to assist with differential diagnoses in the clinical setting
• Determine the validity and usefulness of research as it applies to chiropractic.

Becoming Successful, Terms 7-10

• Learn how to establish and grow your own practice
• Treat actual patients through clinical internships in terms 7 through 10, in which you’ll perform histories and physical examinations, make diagnoses, and devise and implement management and treatment plans.
• Explore specialized chiropractic procedures that complement adjustive procedures
• Develop your own style for each of the various techniques by adjusting different body types
• Understand how diagnosis works with clinical chiropractic applications relating to dermatology, psychology, pediatrics, geriatrics, obstetrics/gynecology, and eyes/ears/nose/throat.