Changes in Financial Aid Mix Since 2008
Golden, Colo., Dec. 14 – Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals (ABMP)
today released results of its biennial survey of massage school operations,
providing benchmarking data massage therapy schools and programs can use to
evaluate their operations. ABMP has conducted the research since 1998 as a
service to the profession.
In September, ABMP e-mailed a confidential survey to 1,229 massage, bodywork,
and somatic therapy schools in the United States for which ABMP had e-mail
addresses on file. ABMP received 253 responses, a 20.6 percent response rate.
The survey results were tabulated and analyzed in October.[i]
Of the respondents, nearly half were career schools, a quarter were proprietary,
20 percent were colleges, and the remaining 5 percent were public institutions.
Nearly 70 percent of the responding schools reported being accredited.
Tuition and Attrition
Financial aid was reported as available to students in 150 of the schools
surveyed, representing 73.9 percent of the 203 respondents who answered this
question. The percentage of students receiving financial aid varied widely. The
financial aid entities used by massage programs were as follows.
· Title
IV – 83.2 percent.
· Personal
loan – 66.4 percent.
· Sallie
Mae – 48.2 percent.
These figures represent a dramatic change from two years ago in that Sallie Mae
declined over the two-year period from 65.5 percent to 48.2 percent, while Title
IV financial aid jumped by 36.4 points from 46.8 percent in 2008 to 83.2
percent. Personal loans rocketed from 3.8 percent in 2008 to 66.4 percent this
year.
Fifteen schools (7.4 percent) offer payment plans for students, while 10 schools
rely on state aid (4.9 percent) and 13 schools (6.4 percent) offer scholarships,
Veterans Administration funding, and work-study programs.
School attrition rates dropped slightly from the 14 percent reported in 2008 to
12.6 percent reported this year. In 2006, the average attrition rate was 9.9
percent and in 2004 it was 11 percent. This year, schools identified the top 10
reasons students say they do not complete school. Family or personal reasons and
financial problems were the most common reasons students gave for leaving
school.
Marketing Tactics
Reflecting a trend over the last six years, schools report their most successful
marketing efforts are word of mouth, their Web sites, and pay-per-click
advertising. Of those answering the question, 92.4 percent named word of mouth
(146 respondents) and their Web sites (145 respondents) as their most effective
marketing tools. Social media are beginning to be used more often by schools for
communication and marketing to prospects and students. More than 95 percent
identified Facebook as their preferred medium for social networking efforts.
ABMP serves massage, bodywork, and somatic therapy professionals, and is devoted
to promoting ethical practices, fostering acceptance of the profession, and
protecting the rights of legitimate massage and bodywork practitioners.
Representing more than 75,000 members, ABMP is headquartered in Golden, Colo.
ABMP is employee owned and is the largest massage therapy membership association
in the nation.
Website:
Email: nora@abmp.com
