Can you imagine being 24 years old and owing $70K? That’s what Chelsea Grove owes for her aborted education at Bowling Green State University. Please read the NY Times article (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/13/business/student-loans-weighing-down-a-generation-with-heavy-debt.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all) and see how people need to live in order to pay their student loan debts. Now imagine doing it at 28…or 34…or 45…and then imagine living that way for 10 years or longer. Then imagine that once you’re free from student debt, you’re pretty much starting from scratch…at age 38…or 44…or 55…when your peers have passed this point and are so much ahead of you. Is this a reality that’s appealing to you?
As unfortunate as this scenario is, it’s a very likely future for Pacific College of Oriental Medicine (PCOM) students. If you’re set on pursuing this dead end future, ask the hard questions: what job postings are available for acupuncturists? how many postings for paid internships are there? What’s the backup plan if I can’t make a decent salary as an acupuncturist? How will I fund my retirement? Read the POCA acupuncture community forums and see what they say about jobs, salaries and the profession (https://www.pocacoop.com/).
Pacific College of Oriental Medicine NY Issues 
Posted by goodmedicineforbadschools on May 31, 2012 at 5:30 pm
This scenario is actually quite common.
I dealt with these circus-like schools for years. Complaining about the ridiculous incompetence and lack of standards at my last school caused the school to make it impossible for me to progress in the clinic. So I left school for good. My experiences at two different schools was very eye opening. I am one of those with 70k in student loan debt after wasting most of a decade on the scam machine.
What is more incredible is that a couple years before quitting the program I met another student, in another state, who quit for the same reasons. She was 8 credits from graduation requirements, had been to two schools, and was 70k in debt. Like me, she had discovered that AOM schools are not about sharing medicine, they are about taking money.
Most students and practitioners believe they are “healers.” They are actually investors – in a pyramid scheme.
Posted by TM on June 10, 2012 at 6:26 pm
Why hasn’t the New York Times run articles about acu schools? They certainly have about the scams involved in attending Law School. BTW: some of you LAc’s have more student debt than law students….astounding.
How much is tuition to medical school these days? One can actually get a job after.