How To Become a Certified Massage Therapist Tips
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Becoming a Certified Massage Therapist
Becoming a certified massage therapist begins with education. During the course of your education, you will develop the skills to maintain relationships with your clients. This includes core values as a professional, with a focus on the practical applications and techniques of body mechanics. Furthermore, you will learn the theoretical foundations in Western and Eastern medicines that formulate the benefits, purpose, and outcomes of massage therapy techniques.
At the Cortiva Institute, for example, you will be prepared to become a certified massage therapist through the application of specific anatomy in posture assessment, ranges of motion, and flexibility. This focuses on the practicalities necessary to fulfil the obligations and regulatory requirements for becoming a certified massage therapist are also important to your education. You can find many innovative opportunities for education in becoming a certified massage therapist in massage therapy schools with a focus on integration of knowledge and skills applied through teaching clinics that prepare you for research and clinical reasoning applications in real world environments.
Therapist Certification Exam
The National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB) has administered the national certification program which consists of multiple exam options.
The NCBTMB has delivered nearly 100,000 exams across the nation for those wishing to become certified massage therapists, with 80,000 practitioners in the field holding one or more of NCBTMB's certificates. The certification program has been accredited for 15 years through the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. The NCBTMB is currently seeking accreditation through the American National Standards Institute.
As a prospective certified massage therapist exam student, you want to ensure that the facility where you take your exam is professional. The NCBTMB examines massage therapy colleges, facilities, job roles, and job functions every five years to ensure that the exam is up to date and aligned with real world applications and educations.
What If I Fail The Massage Therapist Exam?
If you fail the certified massage therapist exam from the national exam board, National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB), you will receive a letter explaining the areas in which you need more work. This is divided into three main sections. The first section explains “Area of Improvement' which details which exam categories in which you'r score was below the accepted level. Secondly, the “Medium” section describes which exam categories you obtained a marginally acceptable score. This allows you to know which area you need some study in, as this section expresses which exam areas you have only an average knowledge in. The next section is “High,” which details the areas of the exam that you obtained a score above the accepted level, demonstrating a strong understanding of the exam content. Minimal review in this area may help you when you retake the exam.
Within 60 days of receiving the failed test score, you must contact the NCBTMB by mailing the failed score report. You will then be given a 3 month window to retake the exam.
Who is Eligible to Become a Massage Therapist?
The eligibility criteria for becoming a certified massage therapist are outlined by the NCBTMB:
You must have a minimum of 500 hours of in-class supervised instruction at accredited massage therapy colleges. This 500 hours must be supervised by an instructor and include 125 hours of lessons on body systems, anatomy, physiology, and kinesiology. 200 hours of that time must include massage and bodywork assessment, as well as theory and applications. 40 hours of lessons on pathology, and 10 hours of business and ethics is also required. Lastly, 125 hours of specialization instruction, additional instruction, or field education in the massage therapy colleges program are also required. You can gain all the in-class instruction, as well as hands on experience, at accredited massage therapy colleges such as the Cortiva Institute. There, you will receive excellent instruction and preparation for the NCBTMB exams for becoming a certified massage therapist.
However, individuals already practicing massage therapy who have not attended massage therapy colleges can still become certified massage therapists. For example, if you have worked as a massage therapist in a State the did not previously require certification, but now does; or you want certification for a particular job or to accept insurance reimbursement, you can apply at www.ncbtmb.org for a portfolio review. A portfolio review is an extensive process for applicants who do not meet the eligibility requirements but can demonstrate the training, experience, and professionalism required to become a certified massage therapist.
Steps to Becoming a Massage Therapist
First, choose an educational facility that is reputable, professional, and accredited. Ensure that your State government recognizes the school for State licensing requirements. Cortiva Institute satisfies all of these requirements.
Once you find a school that is accredited, you want to ensure that it satisfies your personal needs as you become a certified massage therapist. Talk to the schools and find out their hours and facilities. Spend a day at the Cortiva Institute and sit in on a class or take a campus tour. This will familiarize you with the facility and give you a good idea of what type of education you will be receiving.
Financial aid, scholarships, and loans are available at many schools, including Cortiva Institute. Achieving your certification in massage therapy takes about 6-9 months and costs several thousand dollars, so financing is important.
It is a good idea to have a sense of your certified massage therapist career. This will help you understand why you are taking the courses offered and how they will fit into your future. Academic and job placement counsellors at the Cortiva Institute will help you discover what your certified massage therapist career will entail, and what job opportunities are available after you graduate.
Massage Therapy Colleges
Massage therapy colleges like the Cortiva Institute offer programs to help you become a certified massage therapist. This is a fairly comprehensive course of instruction that combines intellectual disciplines and theory with technical expertise and real world applications. Certified massage therapy colleges are grounded in the value of holistic client services by offering courses in massage therapy theory and practical applications, including communications and ethical responsibilities. Massage therapy colleges that offer real life clinical expertise support and complement study of the anatomy, physiology, and kinesiology that help build an understanding of the functions, movements, and diseases of the human body.
Hands On Massage Therapy Education
At the Cortiva Institute, instructors are engaged with hands on learning and support your education with textbooks, video, real world situations, and massage therapy technology. This creates a strong blend of scientific evidence and hands-on practice to develop an excellent learning environment that compliments any certified massage therapist career. The most important aspect of massage therapist colleges is that they prepare you to become a certified massage therapist. Education does this by developing instruction in elements of certification that pertain directly to the exam questions, but also develop you for real world professionalism. Massage therapy colleges such as the Cortiva Institute focus on the art and science as a holistic approach to massage therapy practice by encompassing a well rounded education that branches functional and foundational areas of research such as Science & Research, Communication and Ethics , and of course, Practical Hands-On training in the application of massage.
How is the Massage Therapist Exam Scored?
According to the NCBTMB, the certified massage therapist exam's passing score is determined by a systematic review of current practices in the field based on recommendations given to the NCBTMB Board of Directors by nationally certified massage therapists and bodywork professionals. Scoring is based on a scaled score, which is a transformed raw test score based on test performance. The test score scale allows for a frame of reference for the NCBTMB based on the amount of knowledge in each exam category that is necessary for being a certified massage therapist. The scores are scaled because this allows for a passing score to be consistent across exam categories, which removes the differentials of raw scores from exams, allowing for a uniform and easily understood scaled exam score.
While this may sound confusing, be assured that massage therapy colleges such as the Cortiva Institute will help you prepare for the exam. The scores are scaled from 100 (low fail) to 600 (high passing) with a score of at least 300 required to become a certified massage therapist. When you receive your score report from the certified massage therapist exam, you will not receive your numeric score. You will receive a PASS statement instead, and your score report will signify your passing score by that statement. However, if you fail the exam, you will receive a score report that includes a scaled score and the level of ability achieved in each area. This will help identify the areas in which you need further study before you retake the exam.
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