While yo are correct that the average income for Massage Therapists is under $30,000 per year…
One can make a lot more then the average income as a Massage Therapist. It will take desire, drive and a lot of “thinking outside of the box”, but you can earn $100,000 per year, or more as an MT while working only twenty hours per week.

If I can do it, anyone can. Check out my new book titled “The Magic Touch: How to Make $100,000 per year as a Massage Therapist” to learn how.

Cheers!

If she works as an employee for the gym she is associated with, her hourly pay is minimal but she gets paid a percentage for the hours she spends actually doing training. She is referred clients from the gym and she has healthcare benefits but no paid time off and no overtime. She is expected to “sell” the client on the benefits of personal training and get them to sign a contract to train with her – the gym just gives her the initial contact.

As an independent contractor, she pays a monthly fee to the gym, she gets no benefits and they no longer refer members to her, so she has to do her own marketing. She is also paid nothing (not even a minimal hourly rate) for administrative work.

On the whole, however, she does better as a contractor than as an employee. I would imagine a massage therapist would be in a similar situation.

$70 or $80 an hour sounds like a lot until you start calculating all the unpaid time and supplies involved.

Sorry, it was not my intention to knock private schools. I agree that there are some great ones, and Sutherland Chan has been around a long time, and is quite well known for their massage therapy program.

I was simply trying to say that when selecting a school, research them well before you pick one. I went to Kine Concept in Ottawa originally, it was private, and all in all, it was a great school, with great teachers. I was lucky that I graduated when I did, because a couple years later the school went under. I think there is still one left, but it’s in Montreal.

New students can be comfortable with going to a school like Sutherland, beause they’ve been around so long that it’s not likely they’ll go under. Public colleges like Algonquin, ensures that you will get your full education, you don’t have to worry about their financial stability.

I just wanted to mention that in Ottawa, it is true that Algonquin is the best of the best, and it is a public college (ie – Ontario community college). However, in other parts of the province, especially in Toronto, some of the best schools are private schools. Sutherland Chan is considered one of the best schools in the province and offers a wonderful education in massage therapy.

Basically I just wanted to make it clear that you really do have to research your options fully. Private schools differ GREATLY. One of the best ways to initially research your options is to look at the school pass rates on the provincial exams (OSCE and MCQ). That information is published by the CMTO once a year, in the spring following the exam year (so results for 2007 were published in the spring of 2008). To view these, go to http://www.cmto.com/media/print.htm and download the spring edition for the year you are curious about.

Algonquin College in Ottawa, offers an “excellent” education in massage therapy, and they employ the best professors in the business. You’ll get taught by people like Pam Fitch, Doug Alexander and Ian Dolmage. Maybe you haven’t heard of them, but trust me, they all have had years and years in the business, and the know their stuff. There is nothing like being taught by the best of the best. Algonquin’s program is 3 years long, at an approximate cost of $10K including your books. Check with them to make sure though.

You can go to an independent private school, and sometimes do it faster. Some offer a “Fast track” program. Private schools offer the same curriculum, but often you will find there is a price to be paid for it. Private schools tend to charge a lot more, upwards to $20K, but you can finish in 1.5 to 2 years, instead of 3. Be wary in your choice if you go this route, as sometimes private schools have a tendency to go bankrupt half way through your education. Something else to remember, if you take a fast track program to complete in 1.5 years, you will not have any time for anything else. So, forget about working while going to school, not even part-time. You won’t have much of a family life during that time either. I originally went this route and there were days we started at 8 am and didn’t finish till 10:30 at night after completing clinic for the evening. Then back to class for 8 am again the next day. And we often went to school on weekends and holidays.

There has been talk for several years now, of making the massage therapy program into a 4 year University degree, but that sounds a bit like overkill to me. I don’t know if this will ever happen, but if you start your education before this takes place, you’ll be “grand-fathered in”, and won’t have to worry about it.

As already discussed elsewhere in this blog, it’s not just a matter of graduating from your program. After graduating, you must pass the Provincial board exams. In Ontario, that means passing the OSCE and MCQ examinations by the College of Massage Therapists of Ontario. That cost is currently $925, plus your transporation to/from Toronto.

However, I would like to add to your blog, if you dont mind that is, that it also can vary on the style of massage that you do. Of course, there is the basic massage therapy bu there are also many other types and styles that can increase profit depending on how many people like certain syles and how many people offer it. Between Shiatsu, prenatal massage, infant massage, stone therapy; there is a large aray of possiblities that can change the outcome salary.

Thank you again for all the help that your blog has been to me, personally.

Sincerely,
Ookami Lynn

I think you’ll need to explain to your teacher that the vast majority of Massage Therapists are self employed, and therefore there is no ‘average starting salary’. How much you make reflects the items I mentioned in my blog post. Basically, this is your income from all the massages you do minus your business expenses. It isn’t like other jobs where you get paid by the hour or get paid a certain salary per year. Instead, you get paid for how many clients you see. This means that you could go to work one day and make no money, because you didn’t see any clients!

However, my statement still stands: “Taking into account all of the above factors, a new graduate can expect to earn somewhere between 20K-30K in their first year of practice, depending on how busy they are and what their percent split or rent is.” Do note that that does NOT take into account taxes and other expenses you need to shave off the top of your income.