Paying for school

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Permalink Reply by purefyr on December 13, 2009 at 5:14pm

i still am tryin to pay and i have been licensed over 3 years i worked for massage envy which is horrible and i dont want to discorage you but you need a clientel

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Permalink Reply by Brian Kalstrup on December 13, 2009 at 5:30pm

So what would you suggest I do now to build a clientel for later once I graduate. And any tips on paying for school?

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Permalink Reply by Kim Goral on December 13, 2009 at 5:37pm

Your best bet would probably be to apply for financial aid and loans. Find a school you are interested in attending- and I would not recommend just going with the cheapest or shortest, do some research and find the best school in your area- and go in and talk to their finanical aid advisor, if they have one. They will be able to assess your situation and your options. Good luck! Oh, and when you graduate, get Laura Allen's book about building a successful practice in 1 year, I hear it's fantastic! :)

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Permalink Reply by Darcy Neibaur on December 13, 2009 at 10:14pm

I took out a low interest government loan to pay for my education. Once I graduated I did not have to begin to make payments for 6 months. I am now making double payments and have it almost half paid back.

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Permalink Reply by Gloria Coppola on December 13, 2009 at 10:42pm

Brian,
Many schools offering payment plans and financial aid. Contact your local schools and sit down with their finance advisor.
Ask family/friends for Holiday donations to your education instead of presents this year.
Maybe you have some "stuff" you can sell that you don't need anymore and get your down payment.
I know first hand that many schools are willing to work along with the students and some even offer scholarships. Check around and good luck!

As far as building clientele, until you have gone to school to learn massage , you cannot ethically give anyone a massage for payment.

I also agree with what Kim advised and Laura's book on building a successful practice. It takes time, commitment , a lot of networking!!!

Much Success

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Permalink Reply by Brian Kalstrup on December 14, 2009 at 7:29am

Thanks for all the advice guys. I really appreciate everything that you supplied. I have another question now (they just keep coming lol). How exactly does one go about getting a loan for school if the school itself isn't accredited. I sort of new to the professional world and don't have any experience with the loan process. Thanks again.

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Permalink Reply by Kim Goral on December 14, 2009 at 10:08am

Go to an accredited school :) You'll probably get a better education since they have to be in line with certain standards. Where are you located? Maybe someone on here is from your general area and can give you suggestions of good schools in your area.

Brian Kalstrup said:

Thanks for all the advice guys. I really appreciate everything that you supplied. I have another question now (they just keep coming lol). How exactly does one go about getting a loan for school if the school itself isn't accredited. I sort of new to the professional world and don't have any experience with the loan process. Thanks again.

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Permalink Reply by I. Paul Dunsdon on December 14, 2009 at 4:18pm

All my tuition was paid in full by Vocational Rehab. It's government money so there is a tone of red tape but its worth looking into. Contact me directly and I will give you the details.

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Permalink Reply by Gloria Coppola on December 14, 2009 at 7:11pm

Just because a school is accredited does not mean they yet qualify for government type loans.

It takes a few years for some of the newer schools to have that advantage and the high costs to get COMTA approved are often discouraging. So just because a school is accredited, does not mean they are the best, I beg to differ!

You definitely need to do some interviewing of the schools!

Some of these schools do offer private financing! For example, Privai Academy in Asheville, NC is a new school and they are offering private financing.
I believe you are near Winston Salem, NC and you can check with Living Arts Institute . I believe since they are Vo-Tech they might have some other funding options.

The schools will help you with the loan process in most cases.

Kim Goral said:

Go to an accredited school :) You'll probably get a better education since they have to be in line with certain standards. Where are you located? Maybe someone on here is from your general area and can give you suggestions of good schools in your area.

Brian Kalstrup said:

Thanks for all the advice guys. I really appreciate everything that you supplied. I have another question now (they just keep coming lol). How exactly does one go about getting a loan for school if the school itself isn't accredited. I sort of new to the professional world and don't have any experience with the loan process. Thanks again.

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Permalink Reply by Emmanuel Bistas on December 25, 2009 at 7:01pm

It is not necessarily true that you will get a better education at an accredited school. But, true, in most cases, accredited schools have access to the government's (tax payers') pockets for Pell grants and can get you low-interested loans. They also cost more than non-accredited schools, will keep you in school longer (with at least 720 hrs so that the school can get its full grant) and will have more students in the classroom (hard to cover the overhead of the process). The quality of the education does not necessarily depend on accreditation.

Warning: if you used a Pell grant when you went to college you may not be able to get a pell grant for massage school. Also, those low-interest loans that are guaranteed by the government are also known as 'cradle-to-grave' loans. You will NEVER be able to get out of paying those back, not even in a bankruptcy scenario. So, you really need to think twice before you sign your name for yet another loan.

I believe your first step would be to find a school that you love, with a good reputation, a school that feels right to you. Then, I would do as Gloria said.. talk to the school, sometimes there are work-study programs, payment plans, and other options available. Your state may also have vocational rehabilitation or workforce development grants available. The school would be able to tell you.




Kim Goral said:

Go to an accredited school :) You'll probably get a better education since they have to be in line with certain standards. Where are you located? Maybe someone on here is from your general area and can give you suggestions of good schools in your area.

Brian Kalstrup said:

Thanks for all the advice guys. I really appreciate everything that you supplied. I have another question now (they just keep coming lol). How exactly does one go about getting a loan for school if the school itself isn't accredited. I sort of new to the professional world and don't have any experience with the loan process. Thanks again.

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Permalink Reply by Laura Allen on December 25, 2009 at 8:19pm

Thanks for the plug, Kim. Re the loans, you may need to search for a COMTA accredited school. I have heard that federal grants and student loans have been cut off for the time being for schools that don't have COMTA approval, except for community colleges.

Kim Goral said:

Your best bet would probably be to apply for financial aid and loans. Find a school you are interested in attending- and I would not recommend just going with the cheapest or shortest, do some research and find the best school in your area- and go in and talk to their finanical aid advisor, if they have one. They will be able to assess your situation and your options. Good luck! Oh, and when you graduate, get Laura Allen's book about building a successful practice in 1 year, I hear it's fantastic! :)

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Permalink Reply by Laura Allen on December 26, 2009 at 5:01am

Gloria, I missed your post when I was replying. I have heard from several school owners that federal student assistance has been cut off for schools that aren't COMTA approved at the moment. Of course private schools like Privai and others that are willing to make private arrangements for their students can still do that, but the interest rate on federal loans tends to be much cheaper than those on private loans. Because of the fact that I have always paid on time and have mine automatically deducted, the interest on my student loan (for my master's study, not for massage school, I bartered that one) is less than 5%. That won't be the case with most private loans. Be very careful not to take a loan with an exhorbitant interest rate that will leave you paying way more than you borrow.

I know that you know this, but I'll clarify it for the student: "Board approval" from the state and "accreditation" from COMTA are two different things, and COMTA approval does indeed guarantee that a school is eligible for federal loans. Board approval does not.

Gloria Coppola said:

Just because a school is accredited does not mean they yet qualify for government type loans.
It takes a few years for some of the newer schools to have that advantage and the high costs to get COMTA approved are often discouraging. So just because a school is accredited, does not mean they are the best, I beg to differ!
You definitely need to do some interviewing of the schools!

Some of these schools do offer private financing! For example, Privai Academy in Asheville, NC is a new school and they are offering private financing.
I believe you are near Winston Salem, NC and you can check with Living Arts Institute . I believe since they are Vo-Tech they might have some other funding options.

The schools will help you with the loan process in most cases.

Kim Goral said:

Go to an accredited school :) You'll probably get a better education since they have to be in line with certain standards. Where are you located? Maybe someone on here is from your general area and can give you suggestions of good schools in your area.

Brian Kalstrup said:

Thanks for all the advice guys. I really appreciate everything that you supplied. I have another question now (they just keep coming lol). How exactly does one go about getting a loan for school if the school itself isn't accredited. I sort of new to the professional world and don't have any experience with the loan process. Thanks again.

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