Vision, Mission, and Guiding Principles for SCUHS

Application and enrollment fees shall be valid for a maximum period of twelve months; which corresponds to
three enrollment periods.
Academic Requirements
Candidates for admission to the College of Eastern Medicine Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine
(DACM) Program must possess a high school diploma or equivalent and must have completed at least three
years (90 semester units or 150 quarter units) of education from an accredited college or university, earning a
minimum grade point average of 2.75 on a 4.0 grade scale. In addition to the 90 semester units required for
admission, applicants must complete a minimum of 3 semester or 4 quarter units in Biology,with a minimum “C”
grade prior to matriculation the Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine Program at SCU.
Specific courses in Chemistry, Physics, and Psychology may be submitted prior to admission or taken as corequisite
while enrolled in the DACM program at SCU and must be successfully completed according to the
completion schedules.
In addition to general SCU English-language requirements for international students, applicants for whom
English is not a primary language must demonstrate competency by scoring at 80 (iBT based) on the Test of
English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and a minimum speaking exam score of 26 and a minimum listening exam
score of 22. As an alternative, a student can score a level 6.5 on the International English Language Testing
System (IELTS) exam to demonstrate competency.
Since the pre-professional requirements are subject to change, please consult the Office of Admissions at the
time of application.
Physical Requirements
The primary goal of the College of Eastern Medicine is to prepare students to become competent, caring
acupuncture and Chinese medicine practitioners. Contemporary acupuncture and Chinese medicine education
requires that the acquisition and utilization of scientific and professional knowledge be accompanied by
necessary sets of skills, professional attitudes, and behavior.
The College of Eastern Medicine maintains that prospective and enrolled students must meet certain technical
standards, which are essential for successful completion of all phases of the educational program. Candidates
for the doctor of acupuncture and Chinese medicine degree must meet the following technical standards with or
without reasonable accommodations. Candidates for admission and students must demonstrate:
1. The strength, coordination, and ability to stand and use the torso and all limbs in the performance of
common acupuncture and Chinese Medicine manual procedures and techniques.
2. The strength, manual dexterity, and tactile perceptiveness and ability to perform in all laboratory and
clinical settings, to diagnose and treat human ailments, and to maintain the safety and wellbeing of
fellow students and patients without posing a threat to themselves.
3. The visual, hearing and speech skills and personal hygiene requisite to professional performance
including reading all forms of diagnostic imaging, using microscopes, eliciting and recording patient
histories, performing all auscultatory exams, and performing any and all other diagnostic and
therapeutic procedures.
4. The ability to reason, learn, and perform independently demonstrating the conceptual, integrative, and
quantitative skills that are necessary for critical thinking, problem solving, measurement, calculation, the
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