Sherman College of Chiropractic

About Sherman College of Chiropractic

Sherman College is a specialized graduate college whose institutional mission centers on preparing chiropractors to locate, analyze, and adjust vertebral subluxations. It was chartered in South Carolina on January 11, 1973, and welcomed its first class later that year. The current official name is Sherman College of Chiropractic; “Sherman College of Straight Chiropractic” is an earlier name rather than a separate institution. The college is a private nonprofit institution and operates from its Spartanburg-area campus. It is licensed by the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education. Sherman states that it is institutionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the Doctor of Chiropractic degree. Its professional licensure disclosure also identifies the institution as eligible for federal Title IV participation. Students should understand that institutional accreditation and authorization to award a degree do not by themselves guarantee professional licensure in every jurisdiction. This is an unusually narrow academic environment. Sherman offers the Doctor of Chiropractic rather than a portfolio of undergraduate majors or unrelated graduate degrees. That concentration creates a community organized around chiropractic education, clinical work, professional examinations, and eventual practice. It also means the database’s existing list of programs such as accounting, engineering, nursing, and psychology should not be treated as Sherman degree offerings. Applicants comparing Sherman with broader universities should base their decision on commitment to chiropractic, fit with the college’s stated philosophy, licensing plans, and readiness for an intensive professional curriculum.

Admission is for the Doctor of Chiropractic program, not direct entry to a bachelor’s degree. The current admissions-requirements page states that applicants need at least 90 semester credits of prior college study, a cumulative GPA of 2.75, and 24 hours in life and physical sciences. Required materials include an online application, two recommendations, a personal statement, and official transcripts from every college or university attended. Applicants with prior chiropractic or professional-college study follow a separate transfer review, and all transfer students must complete Sherman’s full seven-quarter clinic sequence. Sherman enrolls a new class each quarter. As published for the upcoming cycle, Fall 2026 begins September 29 with an August 30 application deadline; Winter 2027 begins January 5 with a December 7, 2026 deadline; and Spring 2027 begins March 30 with a February 28 deadline. The college recommends applying six to twelve months before the intended entry quarter. Applicants should confirm dates directly before submitting because later quarters may be updated. International applicants must satisfy the same academic standards and provide course-by-course evaluation of applicable non-U.S. credentials. Applicants from countries where English is not the sole official language must document proficiency. The current page lists minimums of TOEFL iBT 79, IELTS 7.0, or Duolingo English Test 110. International students must also document sufficient first-year funds and obtain F-1 status after admission and issuance of the Form I-20.

Sherman’s sole degree program is the first-professional Doctor of Chiropractic. The registrar describes a minimum of 4,460 clock hours completed through a prescribed sequence over 14 quarters, equivalent to about three and a half years of year-round study. Because the sequence is fixed, students do not assemble a conventional major or freely choose each term’s schedule. The curriculum progresses from foundational work toward supervised professional practice. Early study covers basic sciences, chiropractic philosophy, palpation, and technique. Later quarters introduce clinical courses, increasing patient-care responsibilities, and advanced practical experience. The program includes subjects such as anatomy, physiology, radiology, diagnosis, chiropractic analysis and adjusting methods, public health, ethics, and practice management. Elective hours allow some additional exploration of techniques, radiology, research, diagnosis, and clinical care, but electives supplement rather than replace the core sequence. Clinical education is central. Students move into supervised care in the college’s on-campus Chiropractic Center and spend progressively more time in clinical work during the latter part of the program. The curriculum is also structured around preparation for the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners examinations. Graduating from Sherman is only one stage in becoming licensed: each U.S. state or territory controls its own requirements, and the college directs students to verify whether its curriculum meets the rules where they intend to practice. The program’s concentrated structure is best suited to students with a settled professional goal. Applicants looking for bachelor’s programs, research doctorates, or alternative health-profession degrees will need another institution.

Key Highlights

• Private nonprofit chiropractic college founded in 1973
• Licensed by the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education
• Institutionally accredited to award the Doctor of Chiropractic degree
• Specialized graduate institution rather than a comprehensive university

Student Life & Environment

Student life reflects Sherman’s identity as a small, professionally focused graduate college. The Office of Student Affairs coordinates orientation, student advocacy, counseling-related support, accommodations, campus activities, community involvement, and relationships between students and the administration. Academic-support services described in the 2026 catalog include success coaching and individual or group peer tutoring. Chiropractic Student Government represents student interests and oversees campus clubs. The college reports more than 20 student organizations, although offerings can change by quarter. Activities include professional groups, technique clubs, special-interest organizations, intramural recreation, seminars, guest speakers, and social events. This gives students ways to practice skills and build professional relationships outside formal classes, but the experience is different from the residential and athletics-centered life of a large university. Sherman does not provide on-campus housing. Students must rent locally, find roommates, or make another commuting arrangement. Student Affairs publishes local classified listings, but the college states that these are informational and that it is not responsible for housing choices. On campus, the Gelardi Student Center contains a café, a Starbucks coffee program, and a self-service market. Prospective students should evaluate transportation and rental availability alongside tuition because daily study and clinical responsibilities are campus based.

Location & Surroundings

Sherman College is located at 2020 Springfield Road in the Spartanburg area of upstate South Carolina. The setting is suburban rather than a downtown campus, so prospective students should plan around commuting and access to daily services. Because the college has no residence halls, location decisions are closely tied to the private rental market. The college’s housing page points students toward nearby apartment complexes and Student Affairs classified listings for houses, duplexes, rooms, roommates, and owner-listed properties. These are leads rather than college-managed accommodation, and Sherman explicitly advises students to exercise judgment when selecting housing. A campus visit can therefore serve two purposes: assessing the academic and clinical facilities and examining realistic neighborhoods and travel arrangements. Spartanburg provides restaurants and other city services beyond campus, while basic food options are available in the Gelardi Student Center. Students relocating from outside the region, especially international students, should budget for housing, utilities, food, and transportation rather than assuming a bundled residential-college cost.

Costs & Career Outcomes

For the period from March 31, 2026 through March 2027, Sherman lists tuition of $10,480 per quarter, or $41,920 for four quarters. Its published per-quarter cost-of-attendance budget totals $21,106, combining tuition with estimated books, housing and utilities, food, transportation, personal or medical expenses, and loan fees. Only tuition is billed by the college; most other figures are planning allowances. First-quarter books may exceed the standard books estimate, and professional board-examination costs arise during eligible quarters. Federal aid applicants must complete Sherman’s financial-aid application, the FAFSA, entrance counseling, and the relevant federal promissory note. The college requests that financial-aid applications be filed at least six weeks before registration. Institutional scholarships and family discounts are available under stated eligibility conditions, but awards should not be assumed until confirmed. International students should use the applicable financial-certification figures supplied by the college because federal aid access differs by status. Career planning is tightly linked to chiropractic licensure. Students complete supervised clinical training and prepare for National Board of Chiropractic Examiners examinations, but each jurisdiction sets its own education, examination, and other licensing rules. Sherman advises students to contact the relevant licensing agency before enrolling. The degree is designed principally for chiropractic practice; the college does not publish sufficiently current, independently verified salary or placement figures on the selected official pages, so applicants should investigate local licensing conditions, practice models, and likely borrowing carefully.