Once I decided I wanted to start my journey to become a Chinese Medicine practitioner, I had to figure out which school to go to. Fortunately, I had experience picking out schools from my undergrad years, and I’d say the first step this time around was to talk to people.

What became apparent was that there are a few different styles of acupuncture and some school focused on a specific style,  so it was important to know which style resonated with me.  Location would also be a key factor, as would the scheduling (many schools offer classes on the weekends and/or evenings to allow people to work part/full-time) and of course the overall vibe of the school.

I immediately narrowed my search down to the Northeast, specifically Boston and New York City (I did look at some other schools around the Northeast) mainly because I didn’t feel like it made any sense for me to uproot myself and go somewhere I had no established connections, I’ve done enough of that in my life, at some point I might be ready for it again, but not yet.

Boston has one really great school, NYC had three. I slowly realized that I wasn’t really going to leave Brooklyn so soon (I’m part of a very supportive and nourishing community here) so I had three options: Pacific College of Oriental Medicine (PCOM), Tri-state, and the Swedish Institute.

PCOM  is the largest of the three, which potentially means that they have the most resources. It’s also the most expensive. It offers the most schedule flexibility. PCOM was also a strictly TCM school, with a strong emphasis on herbs. My initial vibes from the open house weren’t all that positive. I felt like it was a good school, that would teach me acupuncture, but that maybe it lacked some umph, some spirit. It felt very matter-of-fact.

Tri-State totally wowed me at their open house, though I was already somewhat more inclined towards Tri-state. They offer a unique 3-tier curriculum where you learn TCM, Japanese style acupuncture, and a European French Meridian System/American style. The idea being that more styles equals more tools and different patients will respond better to different types of treatments. Alumni I spoke with were very happy with their education there. Tri-state also offers a very hands on curriculum with palpating from day one and needling within the first trimester. Their schedule is set, and is pretty solid. Classes are mostly on the weekends, with a couple core classes on Monday and Wednesday(?) evenings. I left the open house feeling unsure whether I was wowed by quality or by charisma, and unsure about having so much class time on the weekends

Then there was the Swedish Institute. It seemed somewhat hard to get a hold of anyone and hard to get answers. Their focus was clearly on massage. Their acupuncture was unique because it had a Classical focus. The Dean, Jeffrey Yuen, is a well known leader in the field of Classical Chinese medicine and as an ordained Daoist priest in the 88th generation of the Jade Purity School he brings a lot to the table. I had heard a lot about him, and felt very drawn to the Classical approach. It sounded like I would be go deeper into the medicine. He spoke at the open house, and while he was speaking I just felt in my gut that I needed to go there. It was a surprising experience because I generally think of someone who makes decisions very intellectually, based upon methodical thinking and analysis, but here I was feeling a very strong gut feeling of “this is where I need to be.”

To make an already long story short, Jeffrey Yuen has moved to PCOM. So, I moved to PCOM, which now offers 3 programs: a 4-year Masters in Oriental Medicine (MSTOM), a 3-year Classical Chinese Medicine (CCM) program, and a different 3-year acupuncture program I don’t quite understand much about. I’m planning to go down the CCM path, which doesn’t include the herbs (the Classical approach is that you should first develop your skills as an acupuncturist and later learn herbs which originally evolved as separate medicines). I do plan on learning herbs shortly after I’m done with the program because I understand that they’re very powerful. Fortunately, we don’t have to make any final decisions until after our second semester, after we all take Herbs 1, but I’m pretty comfortable and confident with my decision. Interestingly enough, I feel like PCOM strongly stresses MSTOM program, largely because it’s the only program that certifies you to practice in California which has its own higher level of requirements for licensure. It’s like they expect us all to want to move to California at some point for some reason.

So that’s how and why I’m at PCOM. I’m happy there so far, and I think that bringing the CCM program to PCOM will be beneficial to everyone and so far am happy with my experiences there.

Let me know if you have any questions, comments, or want to share about your decision to be at whichever you’re school at!