NAO Online vs In-Campus education

It is frequently asked if there is a difference between the online and campus based education provided by National Academy of Osteopathy.

Here are some similarities and differences between the two types of education.

- In-campus education is more expensive.

- Both online and campus based cover the same material and have the same amount of teaching lecture hours (the practice hours differ however). While campus based students stay over 8 hours in the NAO campus to practice and watch the lectures, the online students practice at home. This means the total numbers of hours (practice & teaching) differs between the two programs. The online students practice at home, therefore the total number of hours they spend with an instructor is less than the campus based student. However the teaching hours are the same for both programs.

- Campus based students watch lectures for two hours per day and practice over six hours at the school technique room. Online students study a couple of hours of online lectures per day and spent 6 hours of technique practice at home. NAO video server has available only the teaching lecture videos, not the practice sessions. Online students spent less time with an instructor as there is no recorded practice session available on NAO video server.

- The campus based students, after the lectures get to practice on each other while online students must practice on a friend or family member.

- The campus based students also have access to the online education.

- The online students have the option of attending two weeks of full time practical in-campus classes at the end of their program, free of charge.

- The instructors are the same for both programs.

- The practice hours of online students at home is considered part of their education and they should spend 8 hours per day (for full time classes) watching the lectures and practicing. 

- Both the online and in-campus types of education are accepted by associations that accept NAO.

- NAO diploma does not mention if a student is an online or campus based student. 

- Less than 1% of NAO students register for in-campus program. Majority prefer online education.