There are a few different things that you must consider when you are deciding what classes you want to take to get a massage therapy degree.  It is important to carefully pick your classes so that all your requirements are fulfilled, just like with any other degree.

Massage Therapy Degree Considerations

The first thing you must consider are your school requirements.  Most schools will tell you that you need at least a certain amount of hours in different massage therapy classes in order to graduate.  However, some schools that are not approved by the state massage organization will not have those requirements, because there may not be any licensing requirement in your state at the time.

Secondly, you need to decide if you want to take a national exam later on.  Both the NCBTMB exams require you to fulfill a minimum level of hours of training in different areas, as shown below.

For the NCBTMB A minimum of 500 hours of instruction as follows:

• 125 hours of body systems (anatomy, physiology and kinesiology)
• 200 hours of massage and bodywork assessment, theory and application, in-class and supervised
• 40 hours of pathology
• 10 hours of business and ethics (minimum of 6 hours in ethics)
• 125 hours of additional instruction in an area or related field that theoretically completes the massage program of study

If you want to take one of the NCBTMB exams make sure you cover all the areas that you need to by taking the appropriate massage therapy classes.

Other Massage Therapy Classes Considerations

Last but not least you need to consider YOU! What areas of massage therapy and the body are you interested in most? Do you want to specialize? Do you want extra certifications later to look good on your massage therapist resume?  All of these things will contribute to any classes you need to take.  For a basic massage therapy degree you can take the bare minimum as designate by your school, but if you want to stand out you will need to take and excel in extra massage therapy classes.