Curriculum
Kickstart Your Career in Osteopathy
The Canadian Academy of Osteopathy offers a comprehensive four-year program (three-year program option available at our Hamilton campus) grounded in principles-based osteopathic thinking, assessment, and treatment. As a student, you’ll receive hands-on training in the lab, in-depth education in anatomy/physiology, osteopathic theory and history, professionalism/ethics, alongside extensive supervised clinical training through all four years. With lifelong career support after graduation, you’ll feel fully supported throughout your journey. Students at CAO receive the highest standard of osteopathic education in Canada.
At CAO, you’ll benefit from
- A supportive admissions process
- A community-centered environment with extracurriculars and events
- An education that aims to meet or exceed international standards
- A principles-based education; the elite specialty within osteopathy
- Small-groups teaching in the lab for personalized attention
- Expert instruction from World Class Osteopathic Faculty
- Supervised hands-on clinical training in dedicated teaching clinics
- A recognized graduate designation that opens doors across Canada and worldwide
With a growing demand for elite-level Osteopathic Manual Practitioners, your CAO diploma offers abundant career opportunities, including private professional practice.
Flexible Schedule Format
The CAO’s program offers a full-time program with a modified schedule that condenses classes so you can maintain employment while you study and there is no need to relocate!
Principles-Based Osteopathy Education
At the CAO, our graduate-level program offers over 4,200 hours of curriculum, including 1500 hours of total hands-on training, meeting or exceeding international standards. We teach principles-based osteopathy, an elite specialty within osteopathy that is a standalone profession. This equips graduates with a deep understanding of osteopathic principles and the clinical skills to deliver effective patient care.
Our curriculum focuses on three core areas
Principles & Practice
Students apply principles-based practice and theory in our Classroom Labs and Student Clinics.
Osteopathic Theory & History
Centralizing the writings of A.T. Still and the early writers of the profession, students dive deep into osteopathic thinking and, discussions on the application of osteopathic theory.
Health Sciences
Our curriculum covers surgical-level functional anatomy and physiology, among other elements, focusing on the body as a dynamic system, moving beyond traditional allopathic models
At CAO, we go beyond techniques, teaching the principles that guide osteopathic assessment and treatment. You’ll learn to see the body through an osteopathic lens, creating custom treatments for each individual patient by the time you graduate.
The Clinical Experience
At the Canadian Academy of Osteopathy, students gain essential hands-on experience by training in our supervised teaching clinics. Whether working with peers or treating real patients, they develop the skills needed for safe, effective, and ethical manual osteopathy.
All clinical environments are overseen by professional faculty who are Osteopathic Manual Practitioners themselves. Some of these clinics are open to the public and serve the community with free osteopathic care. This allows students to refine their clinical skills while giving back.
We’re proud to have provided over 100,000 free treatments to the public. Our services to the community are valued at over $8 million in free osteopathic care!
In our under-year clinic, students
- Practice interview and intake procedures
- Learn to report patient history
- Identify red flags, signs, or symptoms
- Assess and treat fellow students
This practicum builds the confidence needed to succeed in a clinical setting while laying a strong foundation of skills and techniques. It prepares students for the upper-year clinic, where they further refine these critical clinical skills.
In our upper-year clinic, students
- Refine patient observation and evaluation skills
- Lead real patient treatments
- Deliver effective osteopathic care
- Build strong patient relationships
This practicum builds the confidence needed to succeed in a clinical setting while laying a strong foundation of skills and techniques. It prepares students for the upper-year clinic, where they further refine these critical clinical skills.
4-Year and 3-Year Options Available
May 2025 | September 2025
Currently Enrolling for
Calgary | Hamilton
*3-Year option is only available at our Hamilton Campus