ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program Eligibility

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This guide to ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program eligibility walks you through the program eligibility criteria, provides a link to the eligibility survey, explains what the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program prepares students to do, and provides information on certification.

Who is the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program designed for?

The ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program is primarily oriented toward licensed clinicians and practitioners—such as medical doctors, nurse practitioners, naturopaths, chiropractors, and acupuncturists—who can order and interpret lab tests, diagnose disease, and prescribe the treatments that are taught in the course. (For a comprehensive list of these labs, along with which practitioners are eligible to order them and what countries they can be ordered from, see this page.)

Who else is eligible?

We strongly believe in a multidisciplinary approach to patient care that includes a variety of practitioners: not only clinicians who can work independently but also allied providers who work as part of a healthcare team, including licensed professionals like registered nurses, physical therapists, pharmacists, and certified nutritionists.

Who is ADAPT not for?

The ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program is a professional-level course for clinicians and qualified allied providers who wish to incorporate a functional and ancestral approach into their practice.

The following groups are not eligible for the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program:

  • Health professionals and allied providers who do not meet the eligibility criteria (due to a lack of experience, supervision, and/or education)
  • Consumers without pre-existing training who are seeking to start a career in Functional Medicine or ancestral health

How do I know whether I am eligible for the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program?

Take our Program Eligibility Quiz. If you have an active or expired healthcare license or you are currently enrolled in a health care licensing program and have completed at least some undergraduate or graduate course work in the field of medical sciences, then you are qualified for the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program. Common eligible degrees include:

  • Medical Doctor (MD)
  • Doctor of Chiropractic (DC)
  • Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS)
  • Doctor of Optometry 
  • Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO)
  • Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD)
  • Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)
  • Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (DPM)
  • Naturopathic Doctor (ND)
  • Physician Assistant (PA)
  • Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN), including Nurse Practitioners (NPs), Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs), Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNSs), and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs)
  • Registered Nurse (RN)
  • Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS)
  • Registered Dietician (RD)
  • Licensed Acupuncturist (LAc)
  • Occupational Therapist (OT)
  • Physical Therapist (PT)

If you do not meet the criteria above but still think you might be eligible, please contact with one of our enrollment advisors.

What does the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program prepare me to do?

The ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program provides foundational training in Functional Medicine, ancestral nutrition and lifestyle, and practice management.

Functional Medicine and an ancestral/evolutionary perspective are approaches to healthcare, rather than separate professions. This means that practitioners from many different disciplines and backgrounds may take the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program, but the program does not qualify or license practitioners to do anything that they cannot already legally do before entering the training. All graduates of the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program are expected to practice according to the dictates of their scope of practice as defined by the regulatory body they are subject to.

We describe this clearly in the Terms of Service that everyone must sign when they register for the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program. The following are excerpts from that agreement:

  • “The ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program is not intended as a substitute for, or in lieu of, other health and wellness training, certification, accreditation, and/or licensing.”
  • “Participation in the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program is not a substitute for any licensing requirements that may be applicable to you and does not independently authorize you to render care, prescribe regimens, or prescribe medications or supplements.”
  • “Your activities in the health and wellness field remain subject to your education, qualifications, and licensure.”

Licensed clinicians who can order labs, make diagnoses, and prescribe treatment as part of their scope of practice will also be able to use the specific Functional Medicine labs and protocols we teach in the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program.

Qualified allied providers will gain an understanding of how the lab tests and treatment protocols in the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program are used by clinicians and will be able to make nutrition, behavior, and lifestyle recommendations according to the scope of their practice. However, the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program does not enable allied providers to order labs or prescribe treatment if they are not already qualified to do so. 

Does the Kresser Institute offer certification for the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program?

Yes, the Kresser Institute offers certification for the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program. In order to be eligible for the Certification Exam, you must have and maintain an active and eligible healthcare license, complete all the ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program course materials, complete and pass all the weekly quizzes in the course, complete all payment obligations for the program, and pay the Certification Exam fee. 

Certification will remain current as long as graduates maintain an active ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Training Program Alumni membership, hold an active healthcare license, and pass all updated quizzes as the curriculum is updated.

Demand for Functional Medicine practitioners far exceeds the number of competent providers available. Certification assures patients and clients that you have the skills-based training to not only practice the theory of Functional Medicine but actually apply evidence-based skills in practice. It ensures your inclusion and priority status in the Kresser Institute’s Practitioner Directory of trained and certified practitioners, where the public can find and contact the practitioner who best fits their needs.

Learn more about ADAPT Functional Medicine Practitioner Certification here