Do you want a career that is practical and also allows you to fulfill your dream of making a difference in people’s lives?
Massage therapy school can be a very rewarding experience, not only from a professional standpoint, but also from a personal one. Many graduates report that aside from learning about massage therapy, they also learned more about themselves, their own personal journey, and how that journey fits in with the journeys of others.
A career in massage therapy can also be professionally and financially rewarding. But the truth is that a career in massage therapy may not be for everyone, the same way that not just anyone is suited to be a massage therapist.
You may have already done some research into the requirements in your state and possibly even looked into some massage therapy schools, but you kind of wish that you had a clear and definitive guide on which to base your decision. We hope this article will help you decide if enrolling in an accredited massage therapy school, such as ASIS Massage Education, is the best choice for you.
Your Self
The first thing to consider is arguably the most important: Who are you? Are you the type of person who believes in helping your fellow man (and woman), who enjoys making others feel better, who wants to have a real and lasting impact on people’s lives? Then you are the type of person who could find fulfillment as a massage therapist.
Do You Want to Work in a Growing Industry?
Even before all the reports of Olympic athletes using massage therapy for training and healing, massage therapy has been a steadily growing field. The number of opportunities for massage therapists is growing and it is growing fast. In fact, according to the United States Department of Labor, the definitive source on career information, between now and 2024, job opportunities for massage therapists will go up 22 percent. To give you an idea of what that number means in terms of job opportunities, the Dept. of Labor says that other professions are growing at an average of only 7 percent. Let’s put those numbers in perspective for a moment—jobs for massage therapists are growing at a rate of over three times that of other careers.
A Doable Education
Unlike some other rewarding professions that may require extensive college, you can become a licensed massage therapist in as little as 26 weeks. In addition to a relatively short path to licensure, you are also afforded the flexibility to make your school schedule work with your life schedule. ASIS Massage Education offers both day and evening classes and full and part-time programs because we encourage our students to find a healthy life/work balance. As far as admission requirements, while we do require a high school diploma, we are more concerned with you as a person than we are with your SAT scores or high school grade point average.
Freedom
If you enjoy being physically active and making personal connections with other people, then massage therapy school is the first step towards a career that fits your desired work style. Whether you decide to practice in a healthcare setting such as a hospital, or in the hospitality industry at a spa, you have the ability to work part or full-time. In fact, you can work part-time at a spa and part-time at a hospital if you want to gain experience in both settings. And if you decide you want to be your own boss and operate your own private practice, you can decide what days and what hours you work. Some massage therapists enjoy the flexibility and variety of working at a professional establishment part-time while also running their own practice. You have many more options available to you than you would with a 9 to 5 job, so if you appreciate more personal flexibility and more professional freedom, a career in massage therapy is a good fit.
Earning Potential
Income for massage therapists varies depending on location and other factors, such as whether they operate their own practice, work at spas or hospitals, and so on. On the higher end, massage therapists earn over $100,000 per year. That doesn’t mean that your massage therapy license should be viewed as a wining lottery ticket. Therapists in this income bracket put in a lot of hard work to get there, whether that work involves marketing themselves, building their own practice, or by performing an average of 26 one-hour massages a week at $75 per massage—which is a lot of hard work. On average however, you can expect to earn between $20,000 and $50,000, depending on where you live. The American Massage Therapy Association reports that, on average, massage therapists make $47 (including tips) per hour, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the average annual wage as $37,180 in 2014. According to that same data, the highest-paid 10 percent in the profession made over $71,950, while the bottom 10 percent made under $18,460.
To recap, if you want a rewarding career—one in which you are making a difference in people’s lives, want to join an industry that features a fast and growing job market, would enjoy a hands-on and personally fulfilling education that doesn’t take four years to complete, and would like some freedom as far as the kind of setting you work in and the amount of hours you spend there, it sounds like massage therapy school would be an ideal option for you.
If you’d like more information about our programs, you can call us at 1-866-334-3348 or click here to request for one of our admissions staff to contact you.