Classical Chinese Medicine School
An oriental medicine school offering the Master of Science in Oriental Medicine degree
NCNM's Classical Chinese Medicine school offers a four-year program to train practitioners in Classical Chinese Medicine. NCNM has one of the few oriental medicine schools offering a degree in Classical (as opposed to traditional) Chinese Medicine. Graduates of the Master of Science in Oriental Medicine (MSOM) program are eligible to apply for acupuncture licensure in the state of Oregon and to take both the herb and acupuncture exams administered by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, which many states use as a basis for licensure.
Students who are concurrently enrolled in the MSOM and ND programs complete a six-year course of study with coursework from the ND program being transferable to the MSOM program.
To begin the journey toward your Master of Science in Oriental Medicine degree, click here to fill out our application form. We look forward to reviewing your application!
Master of Science in Oriental Medicine Mission
The mission of the MSOM degree program is to educate students to become health care professionals in the practice of Oriental medicine as illustrated by the classics. Above all, the program is intended to impart to its students the holistic spirit of Oriental medicine.
Specifically, through the MSOM coursework, the program seeks to accomplish the following:
• Instruct health care practitioners in the art and science of Chinese medicine.
• Immerse students in the culture of Chinese medicine by combining emphasis on scholarly erudition and attention to multi-layered detail with the “atmosphere” inspiring aspects of holistic life science.
• Cultivate respect for Oriental medicine as an independent science that has its own parameters and does not require validation by other scientific systems.
• Honor the philosophical precepts that are shared by naturopathic medicine and classical Chinese medicine--belief in the healing power of nature, focus on identifying the root causes of disease, and treatment of the person as a multifaceted entity.
• Foster awareness of the historical development of Oriental medicine, including knowledge of the major schools of Chinese medical thought.
• Present Oriental medicine as a renaissance-style art that is embedded in and closely related to other traditional arts and sciences.
• Educate students to effectively treat disease, especially chronic and recalcitrant disorders, by training them broadly and equally in all major modalities of Oriental medicine, while developing their distinguishing sense for when each of these modalities should be applied in various clinical situations.
Educational Objectives
The program seeks to educate students in the practice of Oriental medicine as illustrated by the classics and to share the holistic spirit of Oriental medicine. Specifically through the MSOM coursework and training graduates will be able to do the following:
• Diagnose according to the traditional parameters of Oriental diagnosis.
• Master the theory and practice of the main modalities of Chinese medicine.
• Acquire a distinguishing sense regarding the clinical situations under which each of them should be applied.
• Engage in scholarly discourse regarding the nature and origin of Chinese medicine.
• Work cooperatively with other health care practitioners for optimal patient care.
Chinese Medicine as Explained by the Classics
The defining image of Chinese medicine for most westerners is that of the acupuncturist’s needles extending porcupine-like from a patient’s skin. This is indeed a dramatic image, but it represents only a glimpse of the philosophy and practice of the world’s oldest intact system of natural healing. The antiquity, beauty, and efficacy of Chinese medicine have drawn western scholars for generations. But as modern China sought credibility for its age-old system of medicine, and as westerners have striven to understand it within their own scientific context, each has emphasized only select pieces from the rich tapestry of Chinese medicine.
The MSOM degree program at NCNM emphasizes the holistic spirit of the classic teachings of Oriental medicine. This 212.69 credit-hour, 3768 hour academic and clinical program, taught over four years, was developed and is taught by practitioners trained in China. Delving into the history and philosophy of this challenging system of thought, one will find that it combines the art and science of a medicine developed over millennia. This course of study will take you outside the Western concept of science into an approach that integrates the systematic and intuitive aspects of medicine while remaining observable and reproducible.
The classical Chinese medicine approach is especially suited to give new insights into the treatment of difficult and recalcitrant diseases. By bringing the legacy of an independent medical system into modern Western practices, our program is specifically designed to inspire interest in the challenges posed by chronic diseases that are difficult to cure or even diagnose.
History of MSOM
When the establishment of an Oriental medicine program at NCNM was first considered, the College found that Chinese medicine, as a natural healing art, was well within the scope of the philosophy underlying the general mission of the College. NCNM decided to include the more specific purpose of focusing on the classical tradition of Chinese medicine.
Historically, it has been the didactic direction of the College to emphasize the “classical” traditions of naturopathic medicine and homeopathy. The academic background of the Department Chair and all core faculty members is, moreover, distinguished by extensive training in the classical tradition of Oriental medicine. Therefore, the mission statement of the Classical Chinese Medicine (CCM) program was designed to include several items that specifically define its traditional orientation.
Dual Degree Program
National College of Natural Medicine ND students who have met the prerequisites for the MSOM program and are in good academic standing may apply for admission into the MSOM program by following the admissions procedures described in the Admissions section of the catalog. If accepted into the MSOM program, the dual degree student would concurrently complete both the ND and the MSOM in a 6-year combined program. See the Office of Admissions and/or the Office of Academic Affairs for additional information.