Our Educational Programs

Diploma of Acupuncture

The CCATCM acupuncture program is a full-time acupuncture diploma program, which is offered in a three-year format or a two-year intensive format.

About the Acupuncture Diploma Program

  • Meets Provincial, National and International education standards
  • Incorporates other modalities into the curriculum to enhance your future practice
  • Provides a great balance of academic, practical, and clinical study
  • It is also optional to observe the S-T & L-C Acupuncture and Natural Medicine Clinics and other private clinics
  • Students only require 2.5 days of classroom studies to support the balance of home life and studies
  • Offers on-site clinical experience through classroom practice, student clinic and community outreach clinic
  • Transfer credits available from previous education if the final mark was 70 percent or higher and the class was 45 hours in length

Three-Year Acupuncture
Diploma Program

In the Three-Year Acupuncture Diploma Program, years 1 and 2 are entirely dedicated to academic classroom learning, finishing at the end of June each year. July and August are summer break, while the third year is dedicated exclusively to clinical practice with no classroom commitment required. In some cases, students have the flexibility to take some first and second-year courses in their third year in addition to their clinical studies to reduce their course load within the first two years. Students may also choose to begin some of their clinical practice in the second year of the program this is not mandatory.

What will you learn
in the 2 & 3 year program?

  • Acupuncture
  • Acupressure Massage Therapy
  • Ear (auricular) acupuncture
  • Fire cupping therapy
  • Gua Sha
  • Traditional Chinese medicine theories and diagnosis
  • Herbs and nutrition
  • Health counselling
  • Tui Na massage therapy
  • Tai Chi
  • Chi Gong

Intensive Two-Year
Acupuncture Diploma Program

The Intensive Two-Year Acupuncture Diploma Program and the Three-Year Acupuncture Diploma Program share the same curriculum. The only difference is the structure of completion and timeline, in other words, this is a fast track program. Students of both the Two- and Three-Year Acupuncture Program share the same classroom and attend the same academic and practical classes through years one and two.

  • Students in the two-year intensive program are required to finish all third-year required clinical hours within two years while completing classroom studies at the same time.
  • Students enrolled in the Intensive Two-Year Acupuncture Diploma Program don’t have a summer break. They also must commit to many evening and weekend clinics throughout their two-year studies, which will allow the students to complete the third-year clinical training in two years.
  • Students will be responsible for scheduling themselves for clinical practice in the CCATCM student clinic, community clinic, S-T/L-C Professional Clinics or other approved professional clinics. These students will also need to complete research projects and clinical hours in the summer between years one and two.

Blended Delivery
Acupuncture Diploma Program

This Blended Delivery Acupuncture Diploma Program has the exact same courses, hours, and credits as the Intensive Two-Year Acupuncture Diploma Program and Three-Year Acupuncture Diploma Program. The only difference is this program allows students to take a portion of their education (some of the theory courses) online followed by an onsite portion.

With this Blended Delivery Acupuncture Diploma Program, students complete the first year online using Moodle Remote Classroom Delivery with Zoom, or other approved video-conferencing software. This includes instructor-led learning of some of the theory and science components of the program. The schedule includes five classes per week of four hours per class.

During the second year, students complete the remaining year of their education (12 months), to obtain credit for their remaining courses including hands-on practical courses and the clinical practicum in order to complete the requirements for our 2,220-hour Blended Delivery Acupuncture Diploma Program. During this 12-month period there are four terms:

  • The first three terms are six classes per week (2.5 or 3 days), four hours per class, and 10 hours of student clinic, clinical internships and community clinic internships.
  • The fourth term, which falls within the eight weeks of summer, includes a minimum of 35 hours per week of student clinic, clinical internships, and no classroom study.