Masseur/masseuse to massage therapist
A masseur/masseuse already meets 70% of what the massage therapist role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
37.9/ 100
1 How much of what a massage therapist is expected to do is already part of a masseur/masseuse’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the massage therapist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A massage therapist role treats 15 of its required skills as things a masseur/masseuse already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- accept own accountability
- apply massage therapy
- communicate with customers
- contraindications
- develop personalised massage plan
- give massages
What stands in the way is 6 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 46 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A massage therapist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a masseur/masseuse background worth leading with.
- already held contraindications health and welfare
- already held apply sports massage assisting and caring
- already held apply thermotherapy assisting and caring
- already held conduct pregnancy massages assisting and caring
- already held electrotherapy health and welfare
- already held develop personalised massage plan assisting and caring
All 46 carried skills, including the 15 the massage therapist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 20 missing skills fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn discuss the medical history of the healthcare user required
- still to learn provide health education required
- optional, not held carry out preventative internal medicine interventions optional
- still to learn human anatomy required
- optional, not held manual lymphatic drainage massage optional
- optional, not held phytotherapy optional
- optional, not held reiki optional
- optional, not held tai chi optional
- optional, not held human physiology optional
- optional, not held pathology optional
- optional, not held rehabilitation optional
- optional, not held sport and exercise medicine optional
- still to learn empathise with the healthcare user required
- optional, not held comply with legislation related to health care optional
- still to learn manage healthcare users' data required
- optional, not held process medical insurance claims optional
- still to learn maintain work area cleanliness required
- optional, not held administrative tasks in a medical environment optional
- optional, not held health care legislation optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a massage therapist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 discuss the medical history of the healthcare user practise this
- 02 empathise with the healthcare user practise this
- 03 human anatomy study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 46 skills that carry over
- already held accept own accountability skill
- already held apply massage therapy skill
- already held communicate with customers skill
- already held contraindications knowledge
- already held develop personalised massage plan skill
- already held give massages skill
- already held identify customer's needs skill
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held maintain personal hygiene standards skill
- already held maintain privacy of service users skill
- already held massage theory knowledge
- already held massage types knowledge
- already held musculoskeletal anatomy knowledge
- already held skin types knowledge
- already held work ergonomically skill
- already held administer appointments skill
- already held administer hydrotherapy skill
- already held apply acupuncture skill
- already held apply aromatherapy skill
- already held apply deep tissue massage skill
- already held apply sports massage skill
- already held apply thermotherapy skill
- already held balneotherapy knowledge
- already held conduct pregnancy massages skill
- already held cosmetic manicure knowledge
- already held cosmetic pedicure knowledge
- already held cosmetics knowledge
- already held develop a collaborative therapeutic relationship skill
- already held electrotherapy knowledge
- already held energy therapy knowledge
- already held etiopathy knowledge
- already held fasciatherapy knowledge
- already held hydrotherapy knowledge
- already held kinetics knowledge
- already held liaise with industry experts skill
- already held maintain equipment skill
- already held maintain professional administration skill
- already held manage a small-to-medium business skill
- already held order supplies skill
- already held perform facial treatment skill
- already held pluck hair skill
- already held process payments skill
- already held provide individual exercise programmes skill
- already held reflexology knowledge
- already held shiatsu knowledge
- already held use hair removal lasers skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held health care system optional
14 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held manual lymphatic drainage massage optional
- optional, not held administrative tasks in a medical environment optional
- optional, not held carry out preventative internal medicine interventions optional
- optional, not held phytotherapy optional
- optional, not held reiki optional
- optional, not held tai chi optional
- optional, not held comply with legislation related to health care optional
- optional, not held health care legislation optional
- optional, not held health care system optional
- optional, not held human physiology optional
- optional, not held pathology optional
- optional, not held process medical insurance claims optional
- optional, not held rehabilitation optional
- optional, not held sport and exercise medicine optional
2 held skills the massage therapist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role give shiatsu massages skill
- not needed by the target role manage personal professional development skill
12 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn human anatomy required
- optional, not held manual lymphatic drainage massage optional
- optional, not held administrative tasks in a medical environment optional
- optional, not held phytotherapy optional
- optional, not held reiki optional
- optional, not held tai chi optional
- optional, not held health care legislation optional
- optional, not held health care system optional
- optional, not held human physiology optional
- optional, not held pathology optional
- optional, not held rehabilitation optional
- optional, not held sport and exercise medicine optional
Common questions about this move
Can a masseur/masseuse become a massage therapist?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A masseur/masseuse already covers 70% of what a massage therapist is expected to do: 46 skills carry over, 15 of which the massage therapist role treats as required.
What skills does a masseur/masseuse need to become a massage therapist?
6 required skills are missing, plus 14 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is discuss the medical history of the healthcare user.
How hard is the move from masseur/masseuse to massage therapist?
Its learning distance is 37.9 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.