Chiro Match Eligibility & Rules

Eligibility Requirements

• Applicants

  Any applicant seeking an appointment in 2024 in a chiropractic residency that participates in the Chiro Match must register for the Chiro Match.

  Chiropractic residency programs may differ in their eligibility requirements.

  • Prior to matriculation in a residency program, applicants must hold a Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) degree from a chiropractic degree program accredited by the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE). A DC degree is not required to apply for residency.
  • For VA chiropractic residencies:
    • Licensure is not required prior to the start of the program. Accepted residents, prior to program completion, must obtain a full, active, and unrestricted chiropractic license in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the US, or in the District of Columbia.
    • Applicants must meet all VA employment requirements including United States citizenship, background check, and Selective Service registration when applicable.
  • For other chiropractic residencies:
    • Licensure is not required to apply for a position, but selected candidates are required to hold a full, active, and unrestricted chiropractic license in a given State, Territory or Commonwealth of the US, or in the District of Columbia at the time the Match results are released.
    • Other employment requirements may apply as determined by the residency program.

  Applicants are encouraged to contact individual programs for more information regarding institution and program eligibility requirements.

• Programs

  To participate in the Chiro Match, residency programs must be accredited by Council on Chiropractic Education, or have met the eligibility requirements for initial application for such accreditation, and be approved for participation by the Association of Chiropractic Colleges (ACC).

  Programs that register in the Chiro Match must offer all available residency positions through the Chiro Match. Programs must also pay a fee to ACC to register in the Chiro Match.

Chiro Match Agreements

Each participating applicant and program accepts the terms of the Chiro Match Agreements when they register to participate in the Chiro Match.

Chiro Match Rules

The Chiro Match is a program of ACC. ACC has set the following rules for participants in the Chiro Match:

• Activities pertaining to the Chiro Match are governed by the Schedule of Dates.
• Programs and applicants must fulfill the Eligibility Requirements of the Chiro Match.
• Registered programs must offer all positions available in 2024 through the Chiro Match. Positions which cannot be assured, either for funding or other reasons, by the Rank Order List deadline should not be offered in the Chiro Match. Programs may take no action to fill non-participating positions before 12:00 p.m. noon Eastern Time on the Chiro Match Results Day.
• Programs must provide complete and accurate information to applicants prior to the Rank Order List deadline concerning the position(s) being offered in the Chiro Match, including all institution and program policies related to eligibility requirements for appointment.
• The Chiro Match Application Service will provide information submitted by each applicant to the programs designated by the applicant. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information to the Chiro Match and to the programs to which they apply.
• Programs may accept and consider only applications submitted through the Chiro Match Application Service, and applicants must submit all applications to registered programs only through the Chiro Match Application Service, prior to the release of the Chiro Match results. Applications submitted outside the Chiro Match Application Service will not be considered.
• Applicants have sole responsibility to research and meet all program eligibility and resident selection requirements. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information to the Chiro Match and to the programs to which they apply. Applicants who provide incomplete or inaccurate information will be disqualified.
• Participants must demonstrate professional behavior throughout the application, interview, and matching processes by observing and adhering to practices that protect the right of applicants and programs to determine their selections in the absence of unwarranted pressure and by respecting the binding nature of a Match commitment.
• Programs may not make a commitment to any applicant regarding an offer of appointment, or require a commitment from any applicant, prior to the release of the Chiro Match results. Programs may rank on their Rank Order Lists only those applicants registered in the Chiro Match.
• Similarly, applicants may not make a commitment to, or require a commitment from, any registered program prior to the release of the Chiro Match results. If a registered applicant wishes to accept a position at a program that is not registered in the Chiro Match or decides not to participate in the Chiro Match for any other reason, then the applicant must submit a withdrawal from the Chiro Match prior to the Rank Order List deadline. Applicants may rank on their Rank Order Lists only those programs registered in the Chiro Match.
• Programs and applicants may express a high level of interest in each other and may freely discuss any matter that does not include ranking information. A program may voluntarily inform an applicant as to whether or not it intends to rank the applicant, and an applicant may voluntarily inform a program as to whether or not the applicant intends to rank the program. However, neither programs nor applicants may solicit such information. In addition, applicants and programs may not disclose or solicit any information regarding the positioning of any applicant or program on a Rank Order List prior to the release of the Match results. The Rank Order Lists submitted by each program and applicant are the sole determinants of their respective order of preferences for the Match.
• The results of the Chiro Match constitute a binding obligation between the applicant and the program. Programs must send letters of confirmation of the Match result to each matched applicant within 10 days of the release of the Match results, and applicants must sign and return the letters to the programs in accordance with the program’s instructions within 30 days of the release of the Match results.
• Appointment of an applicant to a position may be contingent on the applicant satisfying any institution and program eligibility requirements for appointment specified to the applicant by the program prior to the Rank Order List deadline.
• Release from the Chiro Match results can only be achieved by written approval of both the matched applicant and the program to which the applicant matched. Even if a participant is released from their Match obligation, they may be subject to legal action by the affected program or applicant with whom they matched and/or disciplinary action by ACC if they do not accept their Match obligation. Programs must not offer a position to any applicant who was matched elsewhere and has not received a formal written release from the program to which the applicant matched.
• If an applicant or program allegedly violates any of the terms of the Match Agreements or the ACC Match Rules, such as refusing to honor the Match obligation, the alleged violation will be reported to ACC. ACC may report the violation to other Match participants and may impose penalties on the violators, including barring them from future participation in the Chiro Match.