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One of the biggest hurdles for people wanting to become a massage therapist can be paying for massage school. Tuition alone can run into the thousands, sometimes well into the thousands. Typically, tuition costs $9.00-$10.00 per contact hour. On top of tuition, students must find resources to cover related school expenses such as books and supplies, and to pay for their living expenses while they are in school.
The funding methods below are important possibilities for potential students to explore.
- Payment Plans: Many schools offer payment options that allow students to make monthly payments instead of paying tuition in full. Payment plans differ from school to school. The school’s admissions staff can explain their policies regarding payment plans.
- Federal Financial Aid: Some schools offer federal financial aid. This means that their students are eligible for federally backed student loans. For schools to be offered federal funding, they must be nationally accredited. The fee for accreditation is costly to the school and the staff time required to obtain and maintain accreditation is a large investment.
- This means that smaller, more intimate massage schools are generally not nationally accredited. The advantage of federal financial aid is that funding is more accessible and interest rates can be lower. Without federal financial aid, some students are unable to get loans at all. The downside to federal financial aid is that schools that offer federal financial aid are often more expensive than schools that do not. Some federally funded schools cost as much as $20 per contact hour.
- Other Student Loans: Non-federally backed student loans are available for students with good credit. This gives students who need to borrow money for tuition more options to fund their education. However, students should carefully examine student loan products. There are companies that charge 18% interest for non-federal student loans. With thorough research, a student should be able to find better deals. One company that provides loans for non-federally funded programs is SLM Financial. They offer a direct career training loan product that many massage programs would be eligible for.
- Personal Loan: For students with good credit and collateral, personal loans may be an option. Interest rates on personal loans are generally higher than on federally backed student loans, but personal loans can pay for schools that don’t qualify for federal funding. Apart from personal loan, home equity loan is a good option. Interest rates for home equity lines of credit can be lower than for personal loans.
- other resources: A Small Business Administration once recommended looking for financial assistance called the “Bank of Friends and Family”. For some lucky massage students, it is a viable form of support. A student’s grandfather helped each of his grandchildren with their college tuition. However, Grandpa missed the “massage parlor” of the past and was not enthusiastic about helping his granddaughter go to massage school.
- She took it upon herself to educate her grandfather about massage therapy as a career and healing modality. With some hesitation he decided to assist her, but by the time she graduated, he was a convert. This approach to education and inclusion can be invaluable when a student is receiving financial aid from a family member or friend.
- Parents or grandparents may wish to contact the school’s administrative staff to discuss their educational programs or area of massage therapy. If the student familiarizes himself with massage therapy careers and is realistic about employment opportunities, it can help reassure family members who are considering financial aid.
- Scholarships: In reality, it is difficult to locate and obtain scholarships for massage school. They are probably not the complete answer to massage school funding needs, but can help complement other funding sources. Libraries have scholarship books that list the various scholarships; The reference librarian will be able to help locate these resources. There are also online scholarship websites.
- Savings: There are many stories of people who have wanted to go to massage school for years. He followed his dream, saved as much money as he could, and went to school when the time was right.
Those who want to become massage therapists may have to work hard towards their goal of massage school. The profession needs dedicated and passionate practitioners. Sometimes what we are most passionate about takes dedication, patience and hard work. With a little effort, everyone’s dream of attending massage school can come true.
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