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UEL acupuncture degree offers new international opportunities

Wednesday 9 April 2008

The University of East London’s (UEL) pioneering BSc (Hons) degree in Acupuncture is now offering students exciting opportunities to develop their skills internationally through work placements and clinical training in Cuba and China.

The programme, the first of its kind in east London, enables students to develop the knowledge and professional training necessary for the practice of acupuncture.

A new exchange programme with the Matanzas Faculty of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Cuba will allow them to observe acupuncture being practised as part of the Cuban national health system. Clinical training opportunities are also available for final-year students in Nanjing, China. 

Charmian Wylde, Programme Leader for Acupuncture at UEL, said: “These exciting new exchange programmes offer wonderful opportunities for our students to experience working and learning in inspiring global contexts.

“Acupuncture is fully integrated into the Cuban and Chinese healthcare systems, offering relief and hope to millions. Working in the field is an immensely rewarding profession and, with recognition growing of its effectiveness, there’s never been a better time to train as an acupuncturist!”

Acupuncture is a powerful therapy which uses fine needles inserted at specific points on the body surface to restore or maintain health. It originated in China over 2000 years ago and remains widely practiced in hospitals throughout that country, as well as increasingly accepted and popular in the West.

The UEL degree focuses on both traditional Chinese medicine and western systems of anatomy, physiology and pathology. Third-year students have the opportunity to consider how acupuncture can be used to relieve specific east London health problems, putting their theory into practice on local community placements.

David Kemp (43), of Maldon, Essex, is a current first-year student on the programme. David said: "I previously worked in manufacturing and was looking for a change of career. Acupuncture attracted me as a holistic medical practice, which tied in with my experience of teaching tai-chi to people with health conditions.

"The course has been really interesting; it's already changed the way I view health and these new international placements are a very exciting bonus. I've been to China before and would love to go back - my wife's already packing the bags!"

UEL is running a new six-week short course, Looking for a direction into further study, aimed at building confidence and offering guidance for anyone interested in pursuing further educational training courses. The first session will take place on Thursday 24 April. For further details, call 020 8223 4354 or e-mail advisors@uel.ac.uk.

For details and pictures contact Daniel Cherry: 020 8223 2194

Notes to Editors

The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.

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