Residency programs are full time, consisting of a minimum of 55 hours per week with additional weekly time needed for scholarly study and training activities. Each program is broken down into two or three consecutive, one-year commitments, each with their own requirements for successful completion.
All residencies include an annual stipend and health benefits. Training for all residencies takes place on campus, with multiple off-site rotations throughout Southern California. Off-site rotations include team-based management of complex cases in collaboration with other medical specialists and healthcare providers. Residents engage in clinical education rotations through services including pain management, surgical specialties, and rehabilitation disciplines. Additionally, residents participate in various scholarly activities and attend and give presentations at multiple academic/research venues. Residents are selected on a competitive basis and openings are limited.
The sports medicine residency is a two-year program that provides advanced clinical experience concentrated in sports medicine. Its mission is to develop board certified doctors of chiropractic in sports medicine and foster a culture of scholarly research that benefits the advancement of chiropractic through patient centered evidence based care.
Residents are mentored by world-renowned senior sports medicine chiropractors. Residents follow a comprehensive syllabus, which provides for a variety of learning formats, clinical and field experience, academics, and scholarly research. Residents participate in a wide array of exciting real-world sports and integrated healthcare settings, providing care for all levels of athletes from high school to world-class professionals. Residents selected for rotations with professional teams will travel throughout the United States and abroad.
Upon completion of this program, a doctor of chiropractic is eligible to sit for the certification examination for the Diplomate of the American Chiropractic Board of Sports Physicians® (DACBSP®).
Admissions Requirements
The minimum specific requirements the applicant must meet for residency consideration include the following:
- The applicant will have achieved a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or equivalent;
- The applicant must have earned a DC degree from a CCE-accredited chiropractic program; and
- Have a current, full, active, and unrestricted chiropractic license in California or be eligible for such licensure.
Selection of residents will be made without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, age, or sexual orientation.
Eligibility Requirements
Residency programs are open to applicants who hold a doctor of chiropractic degree from a program accredited by the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE). Applicants must have a current, full, active, and unrestricted chiropractic license in the state of California or be eligible to sit for the California Board of Chiropractic Examiners. Ideal candidates will be within three years of graduation.
Application Requirements
Applicants for a residency program must provide the following items.
- Completed residency application form. The downloadable form is available on www.scuhs.edu
- $50 application fee (non-refundable).
- Three letters of recommendation. Letters should be mailed by each reference directly to SCU.
- Curriculum vitae.
- A copy of the applicant’s California chiropractic license, or a letter from the state of California Board of Chiropractic Examiners indicating eligibility to sit for the California Law and Professional Practice Examination (CLPPE). The Board of Chiropractic Examiners notifies CLPPE applicants by letter of their eligibility to take the exam.
- Verification of Licensure in Good Standing from all other states where licensed.
- The applicant must have successfully completed Parts I, II, III, IV, & Physiotherapy of the NBCE Boards. Scores must be submitted as soon as available.
- TOEFL results for those applicants whose primary language is not English.
- Official transcripts from all colleges attended.
Submit completed application packages to the LACC Dean’s Office, SCU Health Systems, 16200 East Amber Valley Drive, Whittier, CA 90604.
A committee of program faculty, including representation by the academic affiliate as appropriate, reviews applications of the minimally acceptable candidates. Residents are selected following an interview process for the most qualified candidates. Telephone interviews may be arranged in instances when a visit cannot be scheduled. Applicants will be informed in writing of the decision of the committee. Selected residents receive a letter of appointment from SCU confirming the applicant’s acceptance of the position and providing information regarding the duration of the program, hours of attendance, and stipend.
Physical Requirements
The primary goal of each SCU Residency Program is to prepare residents to become competent, caring specialists in their chosen field. Contemporary clinical education requires that the acquisition and utilization of scientific and professional knowledge be accompanied by necessary sets of skills, professional attitudes and behavior.
SCU maintains that residents must meet certain technical standards, which are essential for successful completion of all phases of the educational program. Candidates for Residency Completion Certificates must meet the following technical standards with or without reasonable accommodations:
- The strength, coordination, and ability to stand and use the torso and all limbs in the performance of common chiropractic manual procedures and techniques.
- The strength, manual dexterity, and tactile perceptiveness and ability to perform in all laboratory and clinical settings, to diagnose and treat human ailments, and to maintain the safety and wellbeing of fellow students and patients without posing a threat to themselves.
- The visual, hearing and speech skills and personal hygiene requisite to professional performance including reading all forms of diagnostic imaging, using microscopes, eliciting and recording patient histories, performing all auscultatory exams, and performing any and all other diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.
- The ability to reason, learn, and perform independently demonstrating the conceptual, integrative, and quantitative skills that are necessary for critical thinking, problem solving, measurement, calculation, the ability to comprehend three-dimensional and spatial relationships, diagnosis, and therapeutic applications.
- The emotional health required for the full use of intellectual abilities, the exercise of good judgment, and the prompt and safe completion of all responsibilities; the ability to adapt to change, to display flexibility and to learn to function in the face of uncertainties and stressful situations; empathy, integrity, concern for others, interpersonal skills, interest, and motivation which will be assessed during the admissions process and throughout their education.
Completion Requirements
Residents must perform the duties assigned by their Resident Supervisor and/or their Department Chair. They will be expected to spend a minimum of forty hours per week on campus in one of the University Health Centers or other rotations as assigned, for two or three academic years. Upon successful completion of all residency program requirements, the resident shall receive a certificate of residency completion and competency.
Evaluation
Residents shall be evaluated for performance at the conclusion of each trimester, and continuation in the program is based upon the outcome of this evaluation. The evaluation shall include consideration of attitude, competency, motivation, attendance, progress and shall be carried out by the appointed committee and/or the resident’s supervisor.
Accountability
Residents shall be subject to all of the rules, regulations and policies established by the University.
Withdrawal from Program
The Dean’s Council will review withdrawal from the residency program for reasons other than illness, military or similar extenuating circumstances. Forfeiture of the stipend will result upon withdrawal from the residency. Consideration will be made by the Dean’s Council for readmission to the residency, if appropriate.
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