Massage Therapy Students – Is a high GPA an indication of future success?

As a former Massage Therapy educator I always encourage students to strive to be their best academically, as the knowledge learned in school is the foundation of a career. However, “average students” – don’t despair! A high GPA is only one of many indicators of potential success in your future as a massage therapist.

What makes a great massage therapist? Is it academic intelligence and a high GPA, or is it a deeper, intangible quality which makes someone successful in this profession?

Is a high GPA an indicator of future success?

I recently read an article in the May 2009 issue of Massage Magazine – “How GPA Affects Success” – and I can say that while some great points were made, I don’t entirely agree with the sentiment that a high GPA is the primary indicator of commitment to, or future success in, the massage therapy profession. My opinion is based not only on my 7 years of post-secondary education and work history in various industries, but also as a massage therapist of 9 years, and as a massage therapy educator for 3 of those years.

When I graduated in July of 2000 from a really intense, 2200-hour massage therapy diploma program, I was not at the top of the class. While I was a good student with an above average GPA, I was not at the top of the heap in spite of the fact that I attended class, avidly learned new techniques and worked darn hard throughout my two year program. (our passing grade was 70% for each course) There were many like me at graduation, and at that time, I was just grateful to have finished with decent marks and a job. And truthfully, working in the profession is when my real education began.

Observing my former classmates and, more recently, former students, what has struck me the most is that while some students were technically and academically very gifted, this didn’t necessarily translate into success in business or practice. What gives? What makes an “average” student an exceptional therapist or entrepreneur, and what makes a “stellar” student with a high GPA just “average” in real life?

My colleagues and I have discussed this at length, as we are often approached by other massage therapists who are looking to hire for their clinics. In summary, here is what employers or clinics tend to look for:

1) If a student has good attendance, and comes prepared to class, exams and clinic, he or she is proving reliability. Attendance record is usually one of the first things I am asked about a student from an interested clinic or therapist, and is always the first thing I mention if I am asked about a student therapist.

It is possible to get great marks with poor attendance, some people just know how to study for the test, and some people are great performers during practical exams. Is it fair? No, but life isn’t fair either, so an average student has to prove his or her value in other ways.

The lack of reliability is a huge problem in the massage therapy industry. I have observed that therapists who lean excessively toward the “free spirit” part of their personalities are usually the first to cancel work if, say, they have an invitation to a barbeque or the snow is good for skiing. As a result, the therapist and clinic gain a reputation for being unreliable and lose clients. So, if you demonstrate a lack of reliability in school, you’re setting yourself up for failure.

2) Does the student have passion for the profession, and a desire to learn? Nothing great is ever achieved without passion, so if a student is decidedly unenthusiastic about the profession then he or she is not a good bet for longevity in the industry. Of course, people who are very passionate about learning will do well in school and achieve a high GPA, but this isn’t the same as being passionate about the profession. Once the challenge of academia has ended, is he or she passionate enough about massage therapy to carry on, striving to be the best therapist he or she can be?

3) How does the student get along with teachers, staff, and other students? This is an indication of a student’s ability to work well with a variety of people.

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times – instructors and classmates will be colleagues some day, so a student who makes an effort to be pleasant, social and reasonable (when times get rough) is a great catch for a clinic that is looking to hire. Let’s face it, a great academic history doesn’t mean a thing if a massage therapist lacks communication and people skills, or if he or she is “cold”.

Case in point: Former colleagues and I have refused to provide references to students who were at the top of the class, but who were trouble-makers, rude or condescending to our fellow instructors and staff. After all, I wouldn’t want to hire someone only to find out a few months down the road that a person was a trouble-maker, rude or condescending to me, my staff or clients. (not to mention that I would take issue with the person who gave a good reference for this same therapist.)

4) Does the student have a good intuitive sense concerning treatment, and does he or she have good hands. Technique can be taught, and a therapist with no real natural gift for touch can be technically perfect and effective, but great hands and intuition are really born and developed, not made. This isn’t to say that I wouldn’t hire a therapist who maybe seemed to lack a little on the “intuitive hands”, it would really depend on what I needed. And please note, I have seen some of the greatest gifts for touch from students who only had an average GPA.

5) Academic performance comes last on this “must have” list. What I would look for is a student who was solid in his or her foundation, not necessarily at the top of the heap. On the other end of the spectrum, I wouldn’t be interested in hiring a student with a “barely passing” GPA either.

What is really important is how a student is able to integrate what he or she knows and apply it to individual clients. There is no formula to a great treatment, and everything learned in school is just a guideline. I have found that many students with an extremely high GPA tend to be perfectionists and a little rigid at times, always wanting an exact formula to make a treatment effective, and this elusive formula just doesn’t exist. Flexibility and the willingness to experiment with techniques can create fantastic results with clients, so
creativity shouldn’t be underestimated.

Of course, if your massage therapy program allows transfer of credits to other diplomas or degrees, or if you’d like to continue your education elsewhere, then a higher GPA will work to your advantage TO A POINT. Keep in mind that the older you get the more life and work experience you have, and many academic programs take this into account when you apply, so all is not lost with an average GPA.

I would like to mention that learning styles differ, and some people just don’t do well in a traditional academic type setting. Most massage therapy programs are very intense, and it takes a while to integrate all of this knowledge and for it to “gel”. This process of “geling” actually usually happens when a new graduate begins his or her practice in the real world, and can take quite a while. It is interesting to note that many highly successful and wealthy entrepreneurs and business people were “C” students – proving that, in the end, a GPA of 4.0 has less to do with success than common sense, talent, hard work and practical experience.

Finally, massage therapy isn’t just about knowledge. Massage therapy is a gift of your hands and your heart that you share with your clients, and that is what people will take away from your treatments more so than anything else.

Now, stop making excuses and go study!

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