by Susan Stamper •
Content Marketing Manager, ChiroHealthUSA •
You survived gross anatomy. You made it through technique labs, boards prep, student clinic, and probably at least one moment when you wondered if your brain had officially reached maximum storage capacity.
Then, finally, someone offers you a job.
Cue the confetti.
After years of school, hearing, “We’d love to have you join the practice,” can feel a little like finding water after wandering through the desert. You may be ready to grab a pen before they even finish the sentence.
But hold up.
Your first job offer is exciting, but excitement has a funny way of putting rose-colored glasses on situations that really deserve a magnifying glass.
You do not want to be six months into a position thinking, Wait… that was in my contract?
Hindsight may be 20/20, but your first job decision does not have to be made with your eyes half closed.
Research suggests that new chiropractic graduates often feel prepared clinically while still recognizing gaps in areas such as business, communication, and professional expectations. That makes sense. School teaches you how to examine a patient, develop a care plan, and make clinical decisions. It may not spend quite as much time teaching you how to dissect an employment agreement without needing a cup of coffee and a legal dictionary.
Before you say yes, ask questions.
Lots of them.
Because the interview is not just about whether they want you.
You are interviewing them, too.
1. What Am I Actually Going to Be Doing Every Day?
Job descriptions can sometimes read like online dating profiles.
“Fast-paced environment.”
“Growth opportunity.”
“Team player.”
“Great culture.”
Lovely.
But what does Tuesday at 2:15 p.m. actually look like?
Ask what a typical day involves.
How many patients will you see? Will you perform new patient exams? Re-exams? Therapies? Documentation? Community events? Social media? Lunch-and-learns? Are you expected to help generate new patients?
You want to understand the difference between the job being advertised and the job being lived.
Also ask how your performance will be measured.
Is success based on patient volume? Collections? Retention? Documentation? Patient satisfaction? Some combination of all of the above?
If the expectations are fuzzy before you start, they probably will not magically become crystal clear later.
2. Am I an Employee or an Independent Contractor?
This sounds about as exciting as reading the terms and conditions on your phone.
It matters anyway.
Your classification as an employee or independent contractor can affect taxes, benefits, expenses, scheduling, insurance, and how much control the practice has over how you work.
Do not assume that “1099” simply means, “Cool, I make my own schedule.”
And do not assume that putting “independent contractor” at the top of a document automatically makes it so.
The IRS looks at the actual working relationship, including how much control the business has over what you do and how you do it.
Translation?
If the practice controls your hours, patients, procedures, equipment, workflow, and pretty much everything except what you packed for lunch, it is worth asking a few more questions.
This is also one of those situations where a qualified attorney or tax professional can be worth their weight in gold.
3. How Does the Pay Structure Really Work?
If you remember nothing else from this article, remember this:
“You could make up to…” is not the same thing as “You will make…”
Ask exactly how compensation works.
Are you paid:
- A salary?
- Hourly?
- Salary plus bonuses?
- Based on collections?
- Based on production?
- Based on patient volume?
If bonuses are involved, ask for an example.
Not a unicorn-and-rainbows example where every patient pays perfectly, and the schedule is packed from sunrise to sunset.
Ask for a realistic example.
If your income depends on collections, find out what happens when claims are denied, balances are written off, or patients do not pay.
Numbers can look mighty pretty from across the room. Get close enough to see what they actually mean.
4. What Is Included Besides the Paycheck?
Salary gets most of the attention because, well, student loans do not pay themselves.
But salary is only one slice of the pie.
Ask who pays for:
- Malpractice insurance
- Licensing fees
- Continuing education
- Professional memberships
- Credentialing
- Health insurance
- Retirement benefits
- Paid time off
- Required travel or events
Two jobs could offer the exact same salary and leave you with very different amounts in your bank account.
Think of compensation like an iceberg.
The salary is the part sticking out of the water.
You need to know what is hiding underneath.
5. How Is Malpractice Insurance Handled?
If someone tells you, “Don’t worry, you’re covered,” your next response should be:
“Great. Tell me more.”
Ask what kind of malpractice policy the practice carries and whether it specifically covers you.
More importantly, find out what happens if you leave.
You may hear terms such as occurrence coverage, claims-made coverage, and tail coverage.
You do not need to become an insurance expert overnight, but you should understand enough to know what protection follows you after your employment ends.
One especially important question:
If tail coverage is needed, who pays for it?
Future-you does not want present-you leaving that question unanswered.
6. What Does “Mentorship” Actually Mean Here?
“Mentorship” is one of the most beautiful words in a new-grad job posting.
It is also one of the most flexible.
Sometimes it means regular case reviews, clinical coaching, communication training, documentation feedback, and someone who genuinely invests in your growth.
Sometimes it means, “Dr. Smith’s office is technically down the hall if you have a question.”
Ask for specifics.
Who will mentor you?
How often will you meet?
Will someone review difficult cases with you?
Can you ask questions about documentation, coding, referrals, imaging, patient communication, or treatment planning?
Your first year in practice can feel like learning to fly while already in the air.
A good mentor helps you read the instruments.
A bad one just waves from the ground.
7. What Are the Practice’s Clinical and Compliance Expectations?
This question may not feel glamorous, but neither does explaining questionable documentation to a board, payer, or attorney.
Ask how the practice approaches:
- Exams and re-exams
- Documentation
- Care planning
- Informed consent
- Billing and coding
- Referrals
- Patient financial discussions
- Privacy
- Evidence-informed care
If you hear things like:
“Everybody gets the same care plan.”
“Just use this code.”
“Don’t worry about documenting that.”
That should get your attention faster than someone yelling your name across the student clinic.
The practice may sign your paycheck.
You are still responsible for your license.
You don’t want to learn that the hard way.
8. Is There a Noncompete or Other Restriction?
Here is where reading contracts becomes less “light bedtime reading” and more “pay attention as this might be on boards.”
Look for language about:
- Noncompete agreements
- Nonsolicitation clauses
- Geographic restrictions
- Patient contact
- Confidentiality
- Ownership of patient relationships
Laws surrounding restrictive covenants vary by state and keep changing, which is exactly why you shouldn’t shrug and assume, “They probably cannot enforce that anyway.”
Maybe they can.
Maybe they cannot.
Maybe the answer is, “It depends.”
That last one is an attorney’s favorite phrase for a reason.
Have someone qualified review your contract before you sign it, especially if it could affect where you are allowed to work later.
9. Why Did the Last Associate Leave?
Yes, ask it.
Politely.
You are not digging for office gossip. You are looking for a pattern.
How long do associates normally stay?
Why is this position open?
Has the practice had several doctors cycle through in a short period?
Do previous associates move on to ownership opportunities, partnerships, or successful practices of their own?
Or does the revolving door look like the entrance to a busy department store?
You can also ask if you may speak with a current associate.
The answer may tell you almost as much as the conversation itself.
10. What Happens When I Leave?
Nobody likes discussing a breakup on the first date.
Do it anyway.
Your first job probably will not be your last job.
That is not pessimism. That is career reality.
Ask what happens if you decide to leave or if the practice ends the relationship.
Find out:
- How much notice is required
- Whether you can be terminated without cause
- What happens to unpaid bonuses
- Whether you owe money for training or relocation
- How malpractice coverage is handled
- Whether you may notify patients
- What happens with restrictive covenants
Pay extra attention to any paragraph beginning with:
“Upon termination…”
That sentence may matter more than the paragraph describing your signing bonus.
Your First Job Is a Starting Point, Not a Marriage Proposal
Your first chiropractic job does not have to be perfect.
Honestly, it probably will not be.
You are still figuring out what kind of doctor you want to become, how you like to communicate with patients, what kind of team brings out your best work, and whether your dream practice involves a busy multidisciplinary office or a quieter space where everybody knows the front-desk staff by name.
Your first job is a trailhead, not the whole mountain.
What matters is starting somewhere that allows you to grow without asking you to check your judgment, ethics, or common sense at the door.
So when that first offer lands in front of you, enjoy the moment.
Celebrate it.
Call your family.
Maybe even do a little happy dance.
Then come back to the table and start asking questions.
Read the contract.
Understand the compensation.
Ask about mentorship.
Know your responsibilities.
Protect your license.
And remember one thing:
You are not just trying to get hired. You are trying to find a place where you can become the kind of chiropractor you worked so hard to be.
Sources
American Chiropractic Association. (n.d.). Compliance & contracts. ACA Today.
Albertson, A. K., Maiers, M. J., Lucht, A. G., Ratté, P., & Sawyer, C. E. (2025). Training, professional skills, and experiences of doctors of chiropractic working in U.S. Federally Qualified Health Centers: A mixed methods study. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 48(1–5), 237–246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmpt.2025.09.007
Gleberzon, B. J. (2021). Survey of students’ perception of the jurisprudence, ethics and business management course at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College. Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, 65(1), 105–120.
Haworth, N. G., Horstmanshof, L., & Moore, K. M. (2022). Australian chiropractic and osteopathic graduates’ perceptions of readiness for transition to practice. Journal of Chiropractic Education, 36(2), 153–164. https://doi.org/10.7899/JCE-20-4
Internal Revenue Service. (2026). Independent contractor (self-employed) or employee?
National Board of Chiropractic Examiners. (2025). Practice analysis of chiropractic 2025.
NCMIC. (2026). Malpractice insurance coverage types.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2025). Chiropractors. Occupational Outlook Handbook.
