Massage Schools Article

Massage Schools are alot more common these days than they used to be. Chances are if you live in a large enough city there is at least one massage school, if not more.

One of the toughest decisions of any person wishing to attend massage school is to pick the right school for them. Some massage schools are more medically oriented, some are more spiritually oriented. I am a little biased and think a bit of balance is the ideal.

While I haven't visited all that many massage schools, I know based on talking to other therapists and getting massage from other therapists that some schools are indeed better than others.

So what are the types of things you should consider if / when deciding to goto massage school?

The first and most important thing is choosing a school that allows you to practice in your city / state. This is absolutely critical. There is nothing worse than going to a massage school, spending all that money and find out that your state doesn't accept that massage schools training. Some states are less friendly than others when it comes to training. Some are run by medical boards, others are run by nursing boards.

So choosing the right school that allows you to actually do massage professionally where you intend to live and practice is step one. Do not pass go until you have found out about step one.

How do find that out? Simple, call your local city's licenses and permits office. They can tell you what you need to know to get a business license to practice in your town. If they don't know, then you'll have to do more research. I wouldn't practice massage professionally without going to a massage school. So even if your municipality doesn't require any certification (rare), then you should still take some hands on training first.

But other things to keep in mind are:

How many hours will you need to attend to get your diploma?

How many hours does the state / National Certification Board require?

Does your state even require National Certification?

What's the cost?

Do they offer student loans?

Are there any scholarships? Can't hurt to ask.

Are there any reviews from former students?

Ask to see the curriculum

Where are they located?

Can you go part time?

So do your homework before choosing a school. If I had to do it over again, I'd choose a school in the state I wanted to practice to avoid any legal territorial BS. I'd also go and visit the school and talk to the students.

Just realize that massage school is truly an adventure. I honestly believe that everyone on the planet could benefit from going to a massage school, whether they practice professionally or not. It's just a great life experience regardless of your goals.