Career Suggestion

Medical herbalist

Medical herbalists use plants and herbal remedies to help improve their clients' health and wellbeing.

Average salary (a year)

£0.0 to £0.0 (starter to experienced)

Typical hours (a week)

37.0 to 39.0 variable

You could work

freelance / self-employed managing your own hours

You can get into this job through:

  • a university course

University

To prepare for work as a medical herbalist, you can complete a degree level course in herbal medicine approved by the National Institute of Medical Herbalists .

Courses last 3 years full time or 4 to 6 years part time and include at least 500 hours of supervised clinical practice with patients.

If you're a trained medical practitioner like a doctor or nurse, you could take a postgraduate degree in herbal medicine.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 or 3 A levels, or equivalent, including biology for a degree

  • a degree in a relevant subject for postgraduate study

More Information

  • equivalent entry requirements|https://www.gov.uk/what-different-qualification-levels-mean/list-of-qualification-levels
  • student finance for fees and living costs|https://www.gov.uk/student-finance
  • university courses and entry requirements|https://www.ucas.com/

Volunteering

You'll find it useful to arrange some work shadowing with a practising medical herbalist before you begin your studies.

More Information

Career Tips

Some training providers offer short courses in herbal medicine, which give you the opportunity to learn more about the subject and to see if it's a career you want to get into.

Further Information

There is currently no statutory regulation for medical herbalists.

You can find out more about how to become a medical herbalist from the National Institute of Medical Herbalists.

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • knowledge of biology
  • sensitivity and understanding
  • knowledge of psychology
  • counselling skills including active listening and a non-judgemental approach
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • thinking and reasoning skills
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • the ability to understand people’s reactions
  • to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

Restrictions and Requirements

You'll need to:

Day-to-day tasks

As a medical herbalist, you may:

  • take a detailed history of your client's symptoms and lifestyle
  • carry out a physical assessment and tests
  • prescribe an appropriate course of herbal treatment
  • grow herbs and prepare them, including capsules, extracts, ointments or infusions
  • keep accurate client records
  • refer clients to their GP where necessary

Working environment

You could work in a therapy clinic or at a client's home.

With experience you could move into teaching or research.

Related careers

Back to course details