Issue:  The pre-chiropractic program at SDSU is now giving students the opportunity to begin chiropractic school a year earlier. 

If you’re a pre-chiropractic student, would you like to be done with school a year earlier? And what price – both in time and money – would you be willing to pay for it? It’s now possible at SDSU for those students and if successful, it can be a great opportunity. What this entails, however, is students taking their last year of their undergraduate degree online through SDSU while simultaneously being enrolled in their first year of medical school courses on one of three campuses that collaborate with SDSU. 

We think this is a viable option for students dedicated to completing their studies and earning a degree. Students will be able to get done with coursework more quickly and be able to earn a professional salary sooner. No matter how you split it, students have to pay the full cost whether over six years or seven. If students are able to earn a professional degree in less time, they can begin to pay off their debts more quickly. 

The combination of the undergraduate program and med school means students will miss out on their senior year in both experiences and in-class knowledge. Learning the senior coursework online may not be enough hands-on experience, especially considering that these students are also going to medical school full time. It is a possibility that students may fall behind in their last 30 credits, as med school becomes a priority. Essentially students are working on two degrees at once.

However, it is a very rigorous undertaking and students must be extremely dedicated to their studies. Stress will also be a major factor in determining if students will be able to handle the program. Converting two years of school into one, especially in a medical profession, can be an overwhelming amount of coursework. Considering the fact that while working with difficult curriculum, these students must also maintain specific requirements such as grade point average. Simply put, the student must be prepared to take on a large amount of pressure.

Though it will make SDSU look more successful if there are more students that are graduating from the program, and they will be able to have more students in class as well as online, many questions remain as to what the university is doing to support the program. What is the department doing to prepare students to have so much coursework going on at once? Usually there is a financial aid limit, which could potentially cause issues when paying for two degrees at once. Education does not come cheap, and that is for a typical student only enrolling in one program at a time. Multiply the tuition by two and you have one large bill to your name. 

We think that while this is a good program for SDSU to implement, there are many possible pitfalls. Students are able to finish a degree in a shorter amount of time but with that comes many additional stresses and requirements all placed on a student at the same time. If the student is well prepared for the pressure and expectations that accompany the program, it could be a large success for both students and SDSU in general. Students must be ready to buckle down and take on a rigorous curriculum, double that of any previous year.  In the end, it all depends on the graduation rate and success of the students whether or not the program will work out. 

 Stance: A shorter route to graduation has some pitfalls but if students are committed to the effort, it can pay off nicely.