Accreditation & Board Certification
Transparency: Board Certification for natural health graduates is not required to open an office/start a business, work for another natural health professional, attend continuing education classes, hold seminars and classes, write article, etc. Natural health/natural health professionals refers to Master Herbalists, Clinical Master Herbalists, Traditional Naturopaths, Holistic Health Practitioners, etc. Certification is a private matter, issued by a private organization. It does not involve regulation of the state.
AANWP: American Association of Natural Wellness Practitioners
All of our programs are prequalified for Board Certification. If a designation (such as Clinical Master Herbalist) is not on their list, AANWP will give you a custom board certification title.
- No exams are required. This includes the use of the Traditional Naturopath (TN) designation.
- If you have two designations (such as CMH & TN) a separate application form needs to used for each one. You may want to just choose one title to have for board certification.
- AANWP does not require continuing educational units (CEU).
- Initial Fee is $295.00 and the annual renewal is $195.00.
ANWPB Board Cerification: American Natural Wellness Practitioners Board
The ANWPB is part of the AANWP. The ANWPB is only for those who wish to be Board Certified with the use the term “Doctor” – Traditional Doctor of Naturopathy.
Requirements:
- Initial Fee (exam): $765.00
- $195 Annual Renewal
- ANWPB members are required to submit 12 CEU’s per year.
ANWPB members are added to the International Registry and are automatically approved for Designs for Health AND Standard Process (free) practitioner education to qualify for a professional account.
AADP: American Association of Drugless Practitioners Certification and Accreditation Board provides full board professional accreditation and certification to both institutes of higher education and professional practitioners. All of our programs meet the standards of the AADP – graduates are prequalified for Board Certification.
- AADP does not require continuing educational units (CEU) option.
- The initial fee is:$295.00 and the annual membership fee is $175.00.
- You may be Board Certified with the AADP as a Traditional Doctor of Naturopathy without taking an exam.
WHAT IS ACCREDITATION?
One of the most frequently asked questions we receive at Genesis School of Natural Health is on the subject of accreditation. Understanding what accreditation means is important when looking at non-traditional schools
General Definition: Accreditation constitutes public recognition that an educational program meets the administrative, organizational, and financial criteria of a recognized agency.
Recognized agency? In the United States, educational standards for schools are set by a network of agencies approved by the U.S. Office of Education (USOE) or the Council on Recognition of Postsecondary Accreditation (CORPA). USOE or CORPA do not accredit individual schools, but they approve the national and regional agencies that do so. Almost all such agencies are voluntary and nongovernmental.
Government Accreditation is not the same as Professional Accreditation. Professional Accreditations that are NOT recognized by the US Secretary of Education include (there are more):
- American Association of Drugless Practitioners (AADP)
- The American Association of Natural Wellness Practitioners (AANWP)
- Hygienic Doctors Association (HDA)
- American Naturopathic Medical Accreditation Board (ANMAB)
- American Naturopathic Certification Board (ANCB)
- International College of Holistic Medicine (ICHM)
- American Council for Holistic Medicine (ACHM)
- International Association of Natural Health Practitioners (IANHP)
- National Association for Nutrition Professionals (NANP)
Licensure: A few states require a license to work in specific areas of the natural health field (massage therapists, Naturopathic DOCTORS…). Genesis School of Natural Health does not meet the educational requirement of any state where a license is required. It is the student’s responsibility to find out the individual requirements of your state so you are in compliance with their laws. Our online distance learning programs lead to non-traditional diplomas and designations. Genesis School of Natural Health does not have, nor do we plan, to seek accreditation through the U.S. Department of Education.
Graduates: Boards & Certifications
What Students Need To Know
When a student has completed all the program requirements and receives a diploma from a non-traditional school (not a state college or university) they are eligible to apply for Boards & Certifications by a professional group – it is not required to work as an herbalist or other natural health professional.
The requirements for each organization vary and are briefly described below. Some organizations prefer (but don’t require) that the students have completed courses from a school they have accredited/accepted.
The purpose of this article is about transparency. We are not against certification organizations. We do want our students to understand what certification is and what it is not.
KEY POINTS
- Certification is a voluntary process. Voluntary means that it is not required by law and it is not required or needed to work in the field of natural health. It means that you want a certificate that says you are board certified and you are willing to apply, pay, and maintain the certification. Certification is not a permission to act, but rather a statement of completion or qualification. Certification is a private matter, issued by a private organization. It does not involve regulation of the state.
- Licensure is a non-voluntary process by which an agency of government regulates a profession. It grants permission to an individual to engage in an occupation if it finds that the applicant has attained the degree of competency required. Once a licensing law has been passed it becomes illegal for anyone to engage in that occupation unless he or she has a license.
- In the absence of licensing, the First Amendment of the Constitution protects our freedom of speech to provide information to clients related to their health. However, this is restricted by the necessity to avoid practicing medicine without a license. -American Herbalist Guide
- Currently, 17 states, the District of Columbia, and the United States territories of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands have licensing or regulation laws for naturopathic doctors. In these states, naturopathic doctors are required to graduate from an accredited four-year residential naturopathic medical school and pass an extensive postdoctoral board examination (NPLEX) in order to receive a license. – naturopathic.org
- Herbalist certification is not required in California (or any state I am aware of), nor does the state issue licenses to certified herbalists. Practitioners only need be licensed if they plan to practice herbalism in conjunction with acupuncture, traditional Chinese medicine, or other forms of licensed alternative medicine.
- If you attend a Professionally Accredited school and you receive Board Certification you are NOT eligible for licensing! Licensing for Naturopathic Doctors is saying you are a medical doctor who also uses natural methods. In my opinion this is a perversion of naturopathy – support organizations fighting state licensing.
- Board Certification for herbal, nutrition, naturopathy, holistic health…is not required to open an office/start a business, work for another natural health professional, attend continuing education classes, hold seminars and classes, write articles…
"When my Student Advisor called to follow up on my academic progress, I told her how pleased I am with the high quality of textbook selections and professional-level courses that Genesis offers. Currently, I am enjoying the Phytochemistry book and study guide and am learning so much. The other books are great too as they are filled with scientific, clinical, and down-to-earth no-nonsense information. The curriculum of other natural health schools pales in comparison. This is precisely the reason I chose Genesis! I’ve already been using what I have learned for myself and my clients".
