Gary Stocker of College Viability warns that a federal earnings test coming in summer 2027 will expose that acupuncture and naturopathy schools charge tuition graduates cannot earn back, likely forcing closures and leaving students with debt and untransferable credits. He argues the system is broken and calls for debt-free training pathways instead.
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This is Gary Stocker with College Viability. Let's go beyond the college brochure. For decades, the path to becoming a healer in the world of alternative medicine was paved with good intentions and very, very expensive textbooks. Students of acupuncture and naturopathy didn't enter the classroom looking for a corporate ladder. They were looking for a way to help their friends, to help their neighbors. They wanted to master the ancient arts of the needle and the herb. And for a long time, the schools were happy to provide the seat as the student provided the tuition. But behind the serene atmosphere of the clinic, a financial storm has been brewing. And come the summer of 2027, the clouds, the clouds are almost certainly going to break. You see, there's a new set of rules coming out of Washington, D.C. They call it the earnings test. But in the hallways of these private institutions, it might as well be called the day of reckoning. The government has decided to pull back the academic curtain They're going to publish a website, a ledger of truth for every prospective student, for every prospective college student to see. And it won't just show the beautiful campus. It won't just show the list of prestigious faculty. It's going to show the cold, hard math, exactly how much the average graduate earns in these healing disciplines and exactly how much debt they're carrying into the world. And the consensus? It is looking bleak for these colleges. Imagine a young student in the fall of 2026, this coming fall. They have a passion for healing and a signature on a $50,000 tuition loan. They think they are starting a career, but by July of 2027, their school fails the test. The earnings of the graduate just, just don't justify the cost of the degree. And so suddenly the golden ticket turns to lead. The school announces a teach-out. They'll try to stay open one more year to get current seniors across the finish line. But for the freshmen, for the sophomores, and for others, they, they are left in a desert. No more loans, no good transfer options, and a mountain of debt for a degree that will no longer exist. And some say there will be a lawsuit, kind of a Hail Mary pass to keep the taxpayer money flowing a little while longer. But even if the lawyers delay the inevitable, they can't hide the data. The secret, the secret is out. The earnings test is being called the do no harm test, and that's a phrase that should ring a bell for anyone in healthcare. Can we honestly say we are doing no harm? When we recruit students into an environment that is financially terminal, the teachers, the faculty, the instructors, the staff will get their unemployment. The buildings will probably be sold as assets, but the students, the students, they're the ones left holding the bag, broken dreams, and a debt that could last a lifetime. It's time to stop looking for ways to preserve a broken system and start building a different pathway for the next generation of healers, because a healer who is buried in debt is a healer who is never truly free to serve. The ancient texts say we should treat the root cause Not, not just the symptoms. Well, the test results are in, and the root of the problem is finally being exposed. And now we've gone beyond the college brochure. I'm Gary Stocker at College Viability.
