Course Description

The Aroma 504 Materia Medica includes the study of the therapeutic uses, active constituents, methods of administration, and cautions and contraindications for each of the oils studied; oils are studied alphabetically. Aroma 504 grants credit towards the Master of Science in Complementary Alternative Medicine program.

The focus of the aromatherapy department is holistic aromatology. Holistic aromatology focuses on restoration of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health through the application of essential oils. We use the terms "aromatherapy" and "aromatology" interchangeably throughout the program. All healing modalities offered by ACHS focus on the holistic approach. Our philosophy is that only by taking care of the whole person--the physical, emotional, and spiritual--can health and wellness occur.

Course Objectives & Prerequisites:

There are no pre-requisites for this course. Admitted students shall have a minimum of a high school diploma or state-approved equivalency and acceptance from the ACHS Admissions Committee.

Upon successful completion of this course, each student will be able to:

• Recall and correctly use the parts of speech
• Recall the parts of a sentence and correctly use a variety of formal sentence structures
• Identify correct punctuation and use a variety of punctuation marks in formal writing
• Recall the basic rules of capitalization and correctly use capitalization in formal writing
• Identify common writing errors, explain why they are ineffective in academic writing, and provide examples of how to correct these errors

This Aromatherapy Chemistry course provides students with a systematic approach to learning the chemical functional groups and pharmacological actions of essential oils.

Aroma 303 is the first of two 300-level aromatherapy Materia Medica courses at ACHS. This course begins the essential oil Materia Medica training, covering half of the oils studied in the two Level Three courses.

Consumer use of Complementary and Alternative Modalities (CAM) continues to increase, fueled by a number of factors, including increasing research of efficacy, dissatisfaction with allopathic models (particularly for chronic health problems), and an aging population. 

The focus of the Certificate in Aromatherapy is holistic aromatology. Holistic aromatology focuses on restoration of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health through the application of essential oils. We use the terms “aromatherapy” and “aromatology” interchangeably throughout the program.