Academy of Chinese Culture and Health Sciences

Key Highlights

• Established in 1982 as a school of traditional Chinese medicine
• Private nonprofit 501(c)(3) California public-benefit corporation
• Single reported location at 1600 Broadway in Oakland
• Master’s and post-professional doctoral programs identified by ACCHS as ACAHM-accredited
• Entry-level DAcCHM disclosed as approved to enroll but not ACAHM-accredited as of August 13, 2025

Student Life & Environment

Student life is organized around a small professional school and teaching clinic rather than residence halls, varsity athletics, or a large undergraduate campus. The 2025–2027 catalog describes in-person attendance two days per week for the principal English- and Chinese-language schedules, with full-time and part-time study options intended to accommodate working adults. Because students in the full-time sequence progress through an intensive professional curriculum together, classroom and clinical collaboration are central to the experience. Facilities include classrooms, a teaching clinic, herbal pharmacy, computer space, student lounges, and a bilingual Chinese-and-English library. The catalog reports more than 4,000 volumes in traditional Chinese medicine and related subjects, reading rooms, computers, and online databases. Lounges provide refrigerators, microwave ovens, and space for individual or group case study. Free academic tutoring and advising are available, while administrators can refer students to outside counseling services when personal support is needed. New students receive an orientation covering the campus and academic system. The academy also describes open houses, demonstrations, seminars, and campus tours for prospective students. Students and their immediate families may use the teaching clinic at a reduced visit charge stated in the 2025–2027 catalog, with herbs charged separately. ACCHS provides no campus housing, so the social experience and daily routine are likely to resemble those of a commuter-oriented professional school.

Location & Surroundings

ACCHS occupies a single reported site at 1600 Broadway, Suite 200, in downtown Oakland. The 2025–2027 catalog places the academy near Oakland City Center and within easy reach of the Bay Area Rapid Transit system. Government buildings, cafés, shops, and other downtown services are nearby, while Oakland’s Chinatown—with restaurants, shops, and herbal pharmacies—is described as being within a few blocks. This setting gives students direct access to a culturally relevant commercial district alongside the wider employment and healthcare environment of the East Bay. The academy is across the bay from San Francisco and approximately five miles from Berkeley. There is no institution-operated housing and ACCHS says it does not assume responsibility for arranging accommodation, although it maintains a small electronic board for shared-housing and community listings. The catalog’s quoted rental estimates are not repeated here because local housing prices can change quickly; prospective students should build a current Oakland transportation and housing budget independently. The downtown location may reduce dependence on a car for students living near BART, but clinical placements or personal commitments elsewhere in the Bay Area can alter commuting needs.

Costs & Career Outcomes

For the 2025–2027 catalog period, ACCHS lists estimated total institutional charges of $61,637 for the MAcCHM, comprising $59,637 in tuition and $2,000 in fees. The dual DAcCHM/MAcCHM is listed at $65,345, including $63,345 in tuition and $2,000 in fees. The DAcCHM Bridge is estimated at $7,695.50. These figures exclude variable living, transportation, health, textbook, and miscellaneous expenses. The catalog lists a $100 application fee for U.S. residents and $400 for international applicants, the latter including a deductible registration deposit. DAOM pricing is governed by its separate catalog, so candidates should obtain the applicable enrollment agreement before comparing total costs. Eligible degree-seeking students enrolled at least half time may use federal Direct Loans and Federal Work-Study after completing the FAFSA. ACCHS does not participate in California state financial-aid programs. Federal aid eligibility is generally limited to U.S. citizens and eligible noncitizens, so international students should not assume access to these funds. Installment arrangements are available, but the catalog states that they carry interest and late-payment consequences. The MAcCHM is a professional licensure pathway: the California Acupuncture Board’s current approved-program list includes ACCHS, and completion of an approved program is one way to qualify educationally for the California licensing examination. Licensure is state-specific, and admission or graduation alone does not guarantee a license. Career preparation is concentrated in acupuncture and Chinese medicine practice rather than broad healthcare employment. The 2024 BPPE report associated the master’s program with the occupation of acupuncturist, but its small graduate cohort makes historical placement percentages unsuitable as a prediction of an individual student’s outcome.