An accredited school is one that meets the minimum requirements to teach massage in your state or municipality. These schools teach according to the requirements necessary for students to earn a massage license after completion. Each state or municipality will have minimum hours of instruction in specific areas such as pathology and ethics. Without accreditation, students cannot be guaranteed their education will meet the state's minimum standards.
Each school will teach the basics of massage. Some schools may offer courses in specific modalities of massage such as reflexology or Reiki, while others might focus more on the medical side of massage. Pick the school that meets your expectations and needs.
Another thing to consider is the type of massage practice you hope to have. For example, determine if you want to see medical massage clients, or work in a spa. Decide if you will someday own your own practice or work on a cruise ship. Examine the school's business offerings and check into job placement for graduates.
Most schools offer some sort of internship or clinic. This gives the students the opportunity to work on actual clients and not just each other. Real-world experience gives the student a taste of real massage work, and can often help inform later career decisions.
During the classroom portion of massage education, students will study many aspects of the human body including muscles and bones, and how they interact. Pathology, or the study of disease will also be covered in addition to sanitation, ethics, business, and history and theory of massage. Other classes may include Chinese Medicine, an exploration of different massage modalities or guest speakers coming in to share their professional experiences.
The key to massage school is learning how to massage, and massage students will get to do a lot of it. Some schools have students doing massage on one another several times a week. An instructor will move through the room, observing and helping students work on their technique. This not only prepares the student for work as a professional massage therapist, it also helps each student develop his own style of massage, which helps set them apart from other massage therapists once they are out of school.
Student employment is a big key for attracting students, so an active job placement office is important. Most schools will offer job placement to any graduate who seeks, it, and typically this is a lifetime benefit. The higher the placement percentage, the better the chance a graduate will be employed right out of school.