Costa Rica School of Massage Therapy Certification

Hello, I just returned from this program after 8 days of "instruction". This place is a complete money grab. Just awful! I am a licensed aesthetician/esthetician, and I have a teaching credential, therefore I have taken classes in education theory. They are not "teaching" classes at all. In 2 hours, they go over a whole chapter of A&P via straight lecture, and you are given homework for each chapter without a review of the homework, nor grading the homework, and being given a test on 4 Chapters without even turning in, correcting, or reviewing the homework for the 4th chapter. There is no grading rubric available. The Western Technique classes have papers turned in without being graded, or given back. They start with 10-15 new techniques of Deep Tissue, without giving you a chance to process 1-3 at a time to master first. You have to pay $25/hour to have a teacher "tutor" you which is literally nothing. They make you pay $50/hour if you want to see a counselor. I paid over 22K, and they think I should be ok with getting 8 K back after 8 days of instruction. I have reported them to their licensing board, as well as the staff, and I'm planning on having them shut down. They are located 8 miles away from the equator in a 3rd world country, and the living conditions are terrible. The electricity goes on and off all day. You have to pay $215/month for a/c for your ROOM, not even the whole house. My roommate was locked in sides her room twice because the door handles were broken. They don't have any fire/smoke, or Carbon Monoxide detectors in their buildings. The fan in the kitchen was broken. Meanwhile, they have all kinds of distractions as the school with the terrible heat, gravel on the ground that you easily trip on, no washing facilities. There is a "library" at the school, but I was told that you can't use it if you are not a commuter, even though it was listed in the contract. The beach has garbage spilling out of the garbage cans. The sidewalks are uneven and you can trip and fall easily, There are only 2 doctors in the town, and then you can't even get in when there is even an opening because you are in class. One of the supermarkets was closed for Health Violations, the other had no a/c and was deathly hot, and the last one was ok, but I was told by the school to budget $100/week for groceries, and I ended up spending that in 1 day with a small bag of groceries. It's sad that they take advantage of the native people working for them, as well. It's Americans ripping off Americans in a 3rd world country, The owners, Courtney and Debbie Krenz, are investors running a complete racket.

Be willing to grow out of your comfort zone! Immersion in a foreign country at an accelerated learning pace calls for one to be able to embrace and adapt to challenges. With that said; the skills, character, and sense of community one develops by going through this program is second to none. This is a truly incredible experience for anyone interested in learning massage therapy while experiencing “Blue Zone” lifestyle in a tropical paradise! Rana 2023

I was lacking in my traveling experiences until CRSMT. This was a wonderful place to begin opening up my horizons. However, it wasn't without it's challenges: spending all day outside (in shade), no AC (optional up-charge), separated from family/home, travelers sicknesses, lots of memorizing, a few 11hr-ish days of classes, sunburn (if you're not careful), and many mosquitos! The things I loved there most was the friendly community. I never felt any judgement for speaking my broken Spanish, in fact sometimes the locals would help and teach me a few words here and there. There are plenty of places to find food including farmers markets, grocery stores, small local venues and many restaurants. There are two pharmacies in walking distance as well. You're a five minutes walk from the beach. Being able to look around during classes enjoy the beautiful green nature and the animals that would travel though was a pleasure. This course was very fast paced and intense but having this program while in Costa Rica made it feel like a retreat from normal hectic life to vitalize for my future. It also helped highlight all the things I'm grateful for at home.