How Long Does it Take to Become a Licensed Massage Therapist

A massage school is like any college or trade school. It's an investment of your time and money so you can learn a particular set of skills and earn a living with them. The return on your time and money investment to become a licensed massage therapist is greater than a manicurist, bartender, or even a cosmetologist.

Massage schools, like Healing Hands Massage Institute in Dallas, offers a 500-hour certification program for less than $4,500. That's an amazingly quick and sizable return on your investment: Spend less than $4,500, go to school for two and a half months, and begin a career where the average pay is almost double that of a manicurist. Keep in mind that in Texas the average salary for a massage therapist is $46,190 a year. In Dallas and the DFW Metroplex, that average salary is even higher! The uniqueness of HHMI is that they offer classes taught in English which can also be translated into Mandarin and Spanish.

The top massage schools will offer all these essentials:

• Seasoned and skilled instructors
• State-of-the-art facilities
• Variety and comprehensiveness of massage curriculum
• Hands-on/real-life classroom training
• Licensing test preparation
• Flexible and affordable tuition
• Networking and career training and placement resources

So, a career in massage pays well, is inexpensive to get licensed, takes a short-period of required training time, and, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, has an industry demand that will drastically increase in the short-term future. Why else would someone want to become a massage therapist? Flexibility!

Once you have your standard license, the Massage & Bodywork Licensing Examination (MBLEx), you can work on your own, for a massage studio, a physician or occupational therapist, even on a cruise ship! You can choose your path, control your hours, and be your own boss.