One of ARONAH’s roles is to oversee the national education standards for naturopaths, and to assess educational institutions who apply to be accredited by these standards. These standards were updated in 2021, when ARONAH commissioned an independent review of the naturopathic education standards in Australia, 5 years after the initial education standards were benchmarked.
Education standards are important as they are a framework to ensure that the students who are taught under the relevant naturopathic degree are competent in their skills, and safe to practice upon graduating.
In January 2023 Southern Cross University (SCU) became the first tertiary institution to have their application assessed against the National Standards and has been accredited. This accreditation is valid from January 2023 until December 2025 and applies to:
- Graduate Entry Masters pathway (Masters of Advanced Naturopathic Medicine)
- Integrated Masters pathway (BHSc/MNatMed)
- (3-year BHSc(Health and Lifestyle) + 1-year of Masters of Advanced Naturopathic Medicine) 4 years full-time
As this course is brand new, and some documentation is not physically available yet, the course has been accredited under the category – Initial Accreditation. All documentation will be finalised by February 2025.
At this stage, SCU are the only education institution in Australia to be accredited against the national standards.
ARONAH looks forward to working with all tertiary education bodies teaching degrees in naturopathy in Australia and New Zealand.