In this section:

National Board
of Chiropractic Examiners
901 54th Ave.
Greeley, CO 80634
970-356-9100
nbce@nbce.org

Brief History of the NBCE

Pre-1963
Chiropractic licensure candidates took the medical boards’ basic science exams.

1963
Members of the FCLB leadership recognized the need for an independent chiropractic testing organization to provide credibility for chiropractic licensure—they recommended forming a national board.

1965
NBCE administered first standardized chiropractic exam (including Parts I, II and Physiotherapy) to 1,200 candidates for licensure.

1987
At request of state boards, the NBCE developed a written clinical competency examination (Part III) to replace the written portion of states’ licensing exams.

1992
At request of state boards, the NBCE developed a Special Purposes Examination for Chiropractic (SPEC) for use by states in reciprocity and disciplinary matters (for licensed practitioners only).

1996
NBCE introduces a national practical examination (Part IV) to replace the practical portion of licensure process.

2003
NBCE Acupuncture Examination introduced (for use in some states as an adjunct to chiropractic adjustment).

2004
Introduced NBCE Ethics and Boundaries Exam for disciplinary purposes (for licensed practitioners only).

2004
Introduced “ONLINE” unofficial score reporting. (Faster notice: six weeks vs. eight weeks [mailed] reports.)

2005
Introduced applications online.