Admission Standards

The admission standards that follow apply to all applicants to graduate study at Palmer College of Chiropractic. Applicants should also consult the appropriate section for the program of study they wish to pursue for specific expectations for admission to that program.

A strong academic background is central to undertake and be successful in graduate studies. The academic and research experiences integral to these programs place specific requirements on the potential graduate student beyond what might be expected in other programs. Therefore, a successful applicant should have analytical abilities, and above average reading and writing skills. Preference is given to applicants who demonstrate excellence and a strong commitment and capacity to undertake the research central to the degree. A grade point average from a previous academic program and letters of recommendation are central to evaluate these qualities. Successful applicants must hold at least a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution with a minimum overall grade-point average of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale.

For international students needing to document English proficiency, a minimum score of 550 on the TOEFL written examination (215 on the computer-based examination) is required for consideration for admission to the Division of Graduate Studies. However, the Division of Graduate Studies reserves the right to require that some applicants complete additional training in English, if such training is deemed necessary and appropriate. This training may be specified to occur either prior to or concurrent with their first trimester of enrollment.

An applicant must have the ability to reason, interpret orally presented information, express themselves orally in English without interpreter, express themselves in writing, and interpret visually based information.

Students who have been dismissed from any college are ineligible for admission or matriculation into the Graduate Program at Palmer College.

Admission Status

All students upon admission may be placed into one of three categories:

Degree Students: Students who have exceed the minimum requirements for admission and have been accepted by the Graduate Council for course of study leading to a Master of Science degree.

Provisional Students: Provisional students are those admitted based upon their superior applications, but in the absence of GRE scores. Registration as a provisional student is allowed for one trimester only.

Non-Degree Students: Students who have met the minimum requirements for admission but are not candidates for a graduate degree. A student so registered may take no more than two courses during that trimester.

All policies applicable to degree students also are applicable to non-degree and provisional students. These include attendance, grading and examinations. Degree students have preference for available seats.

Should a non-degree student decide to enroll in a graduate program, courses completed may not be used to satisfy any unfilled prerequisites.

Transfer Credit

Transfer credit may be granted on a course-by-course basis to students with transcripts from accredited graduate programs. Such credit will only be given for courses in which a grade of “B” or better has been earned. Students requesting transfer credit from non-American programs must have World Education Service (W.E.S.), or equivalent, evaluation of that credit completed before applying for exemption by transfer.

Condition of Admission

The student, as a condition of admission, agrees to abide by all College regulations contained in the College Catalog, Student Handbook and other College publications, and notices placed on official College bulletin boards. The Code of Student Ethics is printed in the Student Handbook.

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