FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
HOW CAN I DETERMINE IF DISTANCE EDUCATION IS RIGHT FOR ME?
If you are independent by nature, not easily swayed by others, and are a "self-starter" type of person, distance education would most likely be quite ideal for you! It's also frequently a great option for the busy professional. On the other hand, if you've found that you tend to study better in a more structured environment, you would probably need to exert a more powerful effort with reference to the 'self-study' sort of format that characterizes distance education. (However, see #8, below, for ways in which MWSHS can help.)
DO I HAVE TO BEGIN AT ANY CERTAIN TIME OF THE YEAR OR CAN I BEGIN AT ANY TIME CONVENIENT TO ME?
You may begin at any time of the year that is convenient to you!
HOW DO I BEST GO ABOUT COMPLETING THE "WORKSHOPS" COURSE (#8) IF I LIVE SOME DISTANCE FROM YOUR SCHOOL?
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There may be workshops in your own area that would qualify. (Prior approval would be needed.) Health-food stores, alternative newspapers, and local holistic practitioners are often good resources for finding these. Then, too, all registered students receive our newsletter, which features announcements of both our workshops and qualifying workshops from other sources--throughout North America--of which we become aware. (Students may also bring to our attention workshops not listed in the newsletter of which they become aware to learn if they might qualify.) Also, don't forget the option of sitting in with a clinical herbalist or other practitioner of herbal therapy (e.g., an Oriental-medicine practitioner, an Ayurvedic-medicine practitioner, or a naturopath) in your own area to fulfill some of these workshop requirements. Remember, too, that there is no time limit to complete the "Workshops" module of the M.H. program.
HOW MUCH IS SCHOOL TUITION?
See our Order Page for Details.
HOW PROACTIVE IS THE MIDWEST SCHOOL OF HERBAL STUDIES IN THE DISTANCE EDUCATION OF ITS STUDENTS?
Very proactive! For example, we offer reasonable email support for students encountering questions or "sticking points" in their lesson work along the way. We also publish periodic Student Newsletters to assist and encourage our students in their studies. The Newsletter lists resources for workshops, features student profiles, and contains articles on efficient study methods and other matters of interest. Both of these resources are provided to registered students at no additional cost.
MIGHT MY EMPLOYER PAY, OR REIMBURSE, ME FOR ONE OF THE HERBAL-STUDIES PROGRAMS?
You will have to ask your employer about this. However, a number of our students have been pleased to find their employer willing to pay for one or the other of our programs!
WHAT, EXACTLY, IS A MASTER-HERBALIST DIPLOMA? IS THIS A MASTER'S-LEVEL DEGREE? IS IT ACCREDITED? OR WHAT, EXACTLY, DOES THIS DIPLOMA ENTAIL?
This is not a master's level degree. (Note that, in the phrase "master-herbalist diploma," the word "master" modifies "herbalist"--as in "master gardener" or "master chef"--and is not in the possessive with reference to "diploma.") There are currently no distance-education, herbal-educational programs in America that are regionally accredited in an academically recognized sense, to our knowledge. We are aware of some distance-education, herbal-educational schools who advertise that they are "accredited," but these are actually through "accreditation mills" and not through academically-recognized, regional accrediting agencies (although, not unexpectedly, these schools proceed to charge heavily for tuition as if they were truly accredited in an academically-relevant sense)! For almost 50 years now, however, the Master-Herbalist diploma has been granted by a number of bonafide and unpretentious herbal-educational schools in recognition of successful completion of two or more years of intense focus in the area of herbal studies. As a result, it has earned its place in history as the outstandingly recognizable symbol of educational excellence in the field of herbology. And isn't that what you really want--an historically meaningful and recognizable symbol that you have achieved a high level of study in your chosen field of pursuit?