How does Chiropractic compare to medical school?

Chiropractic education has changed considerably over the years. Today’s education does compare to medical school. In fact, hundreds of insurance company’s now ask chiropractors to do independent medical examinations and pre-employment physicals over the medical doctor.

Just as there are similarities, there are also many differences. The sciences and diagnosis are very similar between the schools, but the varying method of treatments is very different. Medical doctors learn of surgery and medicine while the chiropractor trains with manipulation, physical therapy, adjunctive therapies and nutrition. The following chart on this page compares medical and chiropractic education in classroom hours. It was compiled from a review of the curriculum catalogues of 22 medical schools and 11 chiropractic colleges. This does not reflect any specialty training for either profession.
Course
Chiropractic
Medical
540
240
360
165
120
360
320
360
60
60
210
Anatomy
Physiology
Pathology
Chemistry
Microbiology
Diagnosis
Neurology
X-Ray
Psychiatry
Obstetrics
Orthopedics
508
326
401
325
114
324
112
148
144
148
156
3,065
TOTAL CLASS HOURS
2,706


Other Required Subjects
Spinal Adjustments
Pharmacology
Manipulation
Immunology
Advanced Radiology
General Surgery

 
GRAND TOTAL CLASS HOURS
Chiropractic: 4,485
Medical: 4,248