Chiropractic 2025:

Chiropractic 2025: Divergent Futures
work for the M.A. in Acupuncture offered by National University of Health Sciences is conducted online. Many
non-chiropractic college courses are offered through Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), which have enjoyed
a growing popularity in the U.S. MOOCs distribute content on major web platforms that are produced specifically
for online instruction. University-level content is provided via platforms such as Coursera, Udacity, and edX. The
increasingly popular Khan Academy largely targets the K-12 population. As Clayton Christensen puts it, “the rise
of online education could effectively render terrible teachers redundant, while bolstering the careers of talented
educators.” 37 Applied to chiropractic education, MOOCs may in the coming years offer both challenges and
opportunities. Although interviewees varied in their comfort with how far to take online learning in the chiropractic
curriculum, they felt that there could easily be a consortium of online courses, including continuing education and
elective courses in subjects such as business, contract management, and legal matters, as well as basic sciences,
clinical reasoning, and case presentations. Ultimately, such flexibility widens the range of choices available to
students. In the longer-term, once students graduate, this may also allow for greater chiropractor diversity, increasing
the range of choices for customers.
Loan Repayment
It has become a challenge for DC college graduates to make a living while paying back their loans. Much of the
graduate DCs’ debt now comes from their undergraduate studies. According to a 2010 survey conducted by the
American Chiropractic Association (ACA), 72% of recently graduated respondents reported holding $100,000 to
$200,000 in student loan obligations, and 15% had over $200,000 in debt. 38 Although this survey shows that current
chiropractic students are somewhat comfortable with their loan burden, it is not clear how many prospective students
are put off by high costs and small financial aid.
Besides private loans, federal aid for the doctor of chiropractic programs consists of a number of student loan
programs, particularly Perkins Loans, Federal Direct Loans, and Federal Direct Grad PLUS loans. Chiropractic
students may also receive support from chiropractic-specific organizations. For example, until its demise in
2009, the Foundation for Chiropractic Education and Research (FCER) had been supporting major funding and
infrastructure development for chiropractic research as well as fellowships and research residencies in chiropractic
colleges. Another source of support is NCMIC, which has established a self-perpetuating foundation to fund both
research and educational projects. 39
Additionally, Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) introduced the Frontline Providers Loan Repayment Act in 2011. If
passed by Congress, it provides for chiropractic student loan repayment in exchange for commitment to practice in
an underserved area for at least 2 years, similar to the National Health Service Corps.
Forecasting Enrollments and Practicing DCs
As is the case for practicing chiropractors, diversity characterizes the contents, formats, and experiences that
chiropractic education delivers in the U.S. The general attractiveness of chiropractic education is influenced by the
ROI question for chiropractic students heavily burdened by debt contracted during or prior to their chiropractic
studies. Currently, the U.S. education system as a whole is striving to provide solutions to skyrocketing tuition
fees and uneven quality of education. This is spearheaded by online platforms providing on-demand personalized
learning, but also by innovations at the individual institution level. Chiropractic education is following the same
path, with an interest in adopting online learning and an array of curricular innovations.
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