Natural Healing Institute

This school is not accredited by any of the recognized university level accreditation agencies. You get what you pay for — there are really good university nutrition programs that have been established and produce well-​rounded students who have received proven education and supervised practice instruction. Invest in yourself and your future and enroll in an accredited program. A «licensed» school is not the same as an accredited school. You need a license to operate a business. Accreditation ensures standards of quality are met. Go to
to search for an accredited university or college program.

This is a terrible school. I’ve almost completed the distance learning program for Holistic Health Practitioner, and I would not recommend this school to anyone. The failures of this school are far-​reaching, from a completely disorganized staff who have asked me to resubmit work that THEY lost, typos on most of the tests, and hidden «extension» fees for not completing the course within 18 months — they state this at the top of each study guide:
«Dear Friend and Student,
We wish to emphasize there are no deadlines. Complete your lessons and submit your open book exams and/​or projects at your own pace as your own schedule allows.»
What they don’t tell you is that for every 6 months you go beyond 18 months, they will charge you $ 50 – 100 and hold your degree hostage until you pay them. I am only finding out this information at the very end of my training course.
I took a Shiatsu course in person with them and the instructor told me he’d fail me if I didn’t wear a bikini bottom to class so we could draw meridian lines with magic markers on each other. I told him if that was how he felt, he should make all the guys wear speedos, to which he replied. «No one wants to see that.»
The tests are haphazardly thrown together, information is outdated and the staff are neither timely or too friendly. If I wasn’t so self-​motivated to teach myself, I would be extremely disappointed with the quality of information that was given.
They don’t even teach muscle anatomy for massage in the distance program.
Please save your money. Go elsewhere. Spend your resources on an excellent education.

This «school» is a mess! Misinformation, double talk, every person has a different story on how to fullfill class obligation. What a joke! And the final straw was when one of the office staff HUNG UP ON ME when I called for the 5^th time in a week and a half trying to decipher what I needed to do to complete my final. Now I’m out over $ 2000 dollars and have no certificate. Do not go to this school! The first 3 months were very interesting (Herbalist program with Steve)– BUT after the intro to herbs, it was the same information over and over, the same stories over and over, boring, nothing new learned whatsoever. And because the office women and Steve do not communicate well nobody has a definite say on how to accomplish the parts and pieces of the final. I’ve called, I’ve gone in person, I’ve talked to 3 different office members… they pass you around, they tell you to talk to the next person, none of them take responsibility although they claim to be the final say. I turned in my final projects 3 times and was told that it looked great 3 times only to receive an email forwarded from a person that I had never heard of (after 9 months of classes at the school, not remote) saying that I completed 1 of 3 pieces correctly. Im tired of playing with these idiots and dont want any further association with the school, much less a certificate with their nonsense name on it. Half of my class stopped showing up midway through the 9 month course because the info was regurgitated over and over. Terrible staff, terrible teaching format, terrible waste of money, completely unprofessional. Oh sure they will take time to chat before you enroll and will spend an hour explaining how the payment plans work, but try and get a clear answer about recieving your certificate and its the major run around and RUDE BEHAIVIOR. UNBELIEVABLE! N.H.I. should be ashamed of themselves. Find another school, believe me, I should have listened to the other reviews before spending my time and money. Could have learned the same information by spending $ 200 on books and/​or researching herbs at the public library.

im currently enrolled in the CNC distance learning program and very happy. The staff is super nice and clearly cares about the success of their students. The materials and classes are well organized. The teachers are very knowledgable and very professional. I was very knowledgable about nutrition before I stated and still have learned a tremendous amount of information. Highly recommend.

I noticed that most if not all reviews on here are by people with VERY few reviews or just a handful. Its hard to take reviews seriously when its not coming from someone who has a background with Unilocaling.
I found out about this school through a friend who took their aromatherapy course. A few months later I went to the open house. I don’t recall Steve having an air of self importance or a raging ego. I remember after leaving the open house, thinking «wow it is a lot more legitimate than I had expected».
After a few years (I didn’t have the $ at the time) I decided to take the long distance course for Herbalism. They offer some great discounts to students outside of SD county. If you live right outside the county or in LA, you can take the classes hybrid, so you can do some work online and the hands on parts in class.
I honestly didn’t have high hopes for the online program as it seemed pretty new and like they wouldn’t have their sh-​t together. I have taken many classes at the university level back in college online, and in comparison to those, NHI online classes are structured very similarly.
Some of my complaints with the program is there isn’t much interaction at all. In college level courses usually there are discussions going on all day, and there is a lot of interaction with the teacher. There doesn’t seem to be any here. I think one student posted a comment with no response from a teacher at all. Other than that, I really enjoy the self paced class since I run my own business and am very busy. I unlike some don’t agree that I could have learned it on my own. Sure, I do own tons of books on herbalism, and I could do my own research but having the structure and tests to back it up really help someone with a scattered mind to absorb the info and be tested on it.
After having almost finished the course, I can say I have a much higher understanding of herbs and herbal medicine. Looking back on the price tag on the whole thing, I am not sure that its really worth the money considering the low interaction rate with instructors or other students. It would be nice to know who else is enrolled and be able to have discussions. I think if they lowered the price to somewhere around $ 800 it would seem worth it to me.
But I am thankful to almost have my certificate in herbal studies. For me this is just a jumping off point into further studies, but I am overall pretty satisfied. I wish they would have called me about the nature walks though, as I would have loved to have gone on one!

Do not waste your money or time on this school. I took one of their online programs and I am extremely disappointed in the professionalism and structure of the whole thing. I finished knowing absolutely nothing I couldn’t have learned by researching online myself. It is horribly designed and very unorganized. I am sad I wasted valuable money that could have been spent furthering my education at a different school.

5 weeks into the Nutrition Program and the Clinical Master Herbalist Program and I am loving it! Take the negative reviews of the school with a grain of salt. Steve the owner is totally a character and his teaching style might not be for everyone. I can see why some people might not like the way he teaches (especially if you are used to «text book» style learning). I find his teaching style great and I love his experiential stories and his name dropping. THIS IS THE GOOD STUFF PEOPLE! If you want to get the cut and dry just take an online nutrition class or a program at a CC. If you want to learn from people who have been on the front lines for many years, know what they are doing and how to truly facilitate healing then go to NHI.
I have been studying these subjects for some time and have a solid foundation in nutrition and herbology… maybe this is why the program is to my liking. Most of the subject matter is geared towards practical clinical use so I can see that it might be overwhelming for some people but no one said practicing medicine was going to be easy. If you don’t have patience to deal with the quirks and mutable nature of the instructors or the curriculum then I think you might be perusing the wrong field of study! Good luck finding clients that fit the «text book» style of healing…
In my honest opinion this school is the perfect balance of structure and self guidance. If you have a good set of organizational skills and creativity you will certainly thrive here.

UNETHICAL practices and this business has absolutely NO INTEGRITY. If I could give a negative star I most definitely would. After attending a joke of a intro to nutrition class by the Owner/​instructor found it almost immediately to be a waste of time. The class had to endure over 2 ½ hours of narcissistic/​ego maniac banter of self importance, and received the equivalent of a 2^nd grade intro to nutrition that lasted approximately 10 minutes at the end of 3 grueling hours.
The following morning I had made the decision to withdraw from all classes based on the fact the owner would be teaching the majority of the courses I would need to take for the program I had enrolled in. I was advised that I would have to go in person and drop off my books and that I could pick up my refund, and that an itemized report of fees and refunds would also be ready at this time. Once I arrived at the school, I was interrogated by the owner and advised he would «consider» refunding my money if I would reconsider attending another class that evening. I refused his offer, stating that I only wanted my refund prorated for the classes that I had attended, and a full refund for the Herbology classes that had not yet begun. Susan, the office assistant, informed me that she did not have my itemized report ready, and would have to «figure out my refund and mail» my check. After two weeks, I was notified that my refund would be mailed and was given amount that my refund would be. Upon receiving my refund check it was $ 200.00 less than what was quoted, and several other hidden costs and fees were also subtracted from the refund. It is evident why they no longer have VA accreditation for the GI Bill. I would advise any veteran and their family to steer away from this school and find another institution that won’t take advantage of your hard earned benefits.
Bottom Line: WORST educational experience.

I suggest that anyone considering attending this school should take the first class before committing to the whole program. I am so grateful I did! The Clinical Nutrition program looked great on their website, but after reading the other reviews about the owner/​instructor, I was a bit leery. Steve’s style of teaching was not for me. He spoke a lot about his accomplishments and how great his school was, and very little about nutrition. Unfortunately some of the other students I spoke with at break felt the same way and were considering asking for a refund — but there is a cancellation fee of $ 200, so I strongly suggest you take his class first before paying for the whole program.

The owner may have a lot of knowledge in his field. But some people just should not be teaching! There is no organization or structure to the classes. And the teacher constantly wants to talk about how wonderful he is. Leela at the front desk has absolutely no personal skills! And the school is full of bad energy.

I completely agree with Becca M’s review! This school is a joke. I have a doctorate degree in the medical field, but I thought it would be fun to brush up on some info. Not the case. Here are just some examples of how disappointing the class series I attended– one of the teachers couldn’t pronounce words in her lecture. After stumbling over some of them a few times, she actually said «and this long word». And she’s supposedly qualified to teach this subject? Hmm. Moving on. Steve comes across as very rude and clearly thinks very high of himself. His slides were from 2002, I just took the class a couple months ago in 2014. He claims that nothing has changed. I have my own research and studies that prove otherwise. His slides also say «ND», which is very deceiving seeing as he’s only an naturopath, NOT a naturopathic doctor. When I discussed my long list of concerns, I met with a lot of resistance from the staff. It took Steve several weeks to even acknowledge my phone calls and emails. When I did talk with him, he was very defensive and had excuses for everything. There are so many other issues I had, but I’ll leave it at this. Don’t waste your time here. But if you’re still interested, ask to try out a class before you pay for anything.
Maybe some of the other programs are better, but I wouldn’t bet on it.

I recently completed my Yoga Teacher Training through the Natural Healing Institute — a series that included Ayurveda, Soma-​Kinetics, Yoga Therapy and Yoga Teacher. I felt that each module supports students in expanding to their full potential. Compliments to the school for providing amazing instructors — all bringing their expertise and real-​life experiences to the classroom. The program is life changing and I am in deep gratitude for the continued support of NHI and the staff. Namaste’

I have just completed my Holistic Healthcare Practitioner through the distance Learning Program at The Natural Healing Institute. I feel honored to be a graduate of this School. Its starts at the top with Steve Schechter,(N.P., HHP NHI Founder). From the start I have found Steve to be passionate, inspirational, extremely knowledgable, and committed to teaching. I am grateful for all that I have learned and would whole heartedly recommend this school. I am now in the process of working toward my Naturopathic Practitioner with this College.

I am about 4 months into the Clinical Nutritional program. I have always had a passion for health and nutrition and I am grateful for the opportunity to be able to be a resident student. The teachers and the lectures they provide are really informative.
The downside is that there is absolutely no structure to this program whatsoever! Lila the lady that works at the front is just one unhappy lady. She makes me feel like I inconvenience her anytime I have a question or need something. Steve might be passionate about this program, but he has no business teaching any of the classes! He talks to much and tells too many stories about himself and then wonders why half the class leaves at break! He won’t answer any questions during class or during break… you have to «make an appointment»!!! I feel like I can find more info online instead of sitting listening to him talk.
The quality of the recorded lectures are SO BAD it isn’t even worth listening too. Save the $ 10 and do your own research online.
Regarding emails… I responded to an email regarding the temperature control and I received an extremely RUDE response back. I was giving my honest opinion in feed back and the respond was just really unprofessional. I feel like the staff needs to «grow up».
Like I said I am 4 months into this program and I am not super impressed. I feel like it is more informative information vs teaching one to be a Clinical Nutritionist. I am really bummed because I was hoping to learn how to apply this information to potential clients.
I will update my rating farther along in the program or after the program if it gets better, but so far it’s just ok!
UPDATE: April 2014
This program is almost over and I am no where near feeling ready to put my information to use. I have actually enrolled in another program at another school that I feel will give me the knowledge I need to carry out to be a Clinical Nutritionist. The only thing this is really good for is the piece of paper that will have my name on it at the end. Over all had I known the program was going to be run like this I never would have enrolled. Save your money and go somewhere else. Utter disappointment!

I love this school! The directors treat you like family, and the teachers are just plain amazing. I am so grateful for everything the teachers here have taught me. Really great resource for natural health education. I just finished my massage training here, and I would recommend the school to anyone who wants to be a massage therapist.

I’ve really enjoyed my overall experience at this school. Friendly staff and great teachers so far — I’m in the massage therapist program but excited to take more nutrition and herbs classes. I’m thinking of going into the entire Holistic Health Practitioner program. So many great classes to choose from! Thanks NHI!

It’s always that the best instructors are in the most random schools… I needed 12 CEU for my state licensing for massage therapy and I have always been interested in reiki… So me and my friend decided to try this place and now I feel my eyes are open to a world I never experienced.
Walking in you can tell this building has old bones… very small … they have a office for paperwork, restroom and just a medium size classroom where only one modality can be taught one at a time… During the evening class the room gets pretty chilly and dark so their are about 8 standing lamps around the room. This is not your traditional classroom more of a hands on… No desk just chairs:)
But you know what they say the more run down a building is the better the instructors are … his name was Frank Carucci. A reiki master at that… You can sense he has been healing, teaching and inspiring for many years…
Anybody that need CEU more massage therapy I advise you to check this place out and Frank Of course. Or if you need healing you can check out Franks website: