Level 3 Practitioners Diploma in Therapeutic Body Massage (Including Oncology (Cancer) massage)

Study to become a professional Massage Therapist 

What is Therapeutic Massage?

Therapeutic massage is a broad term used to describe any massage approach that aims to support a person’s overall well-being—whether by relieving muscular tension, reducing stress, easing discomfort, or promoting relaxation.

Rather than focusing on a single technique, such as Swedish massage, students are trained to become well-rounded therapists. They learn to apply a range of skills and techniques—tailored to the individual—using the appropriate level of pressure depending on the clients preference. 

During the course, students are introduced to techniques drawn from a variety of massage modalities, including:

• Soft tissue techniques

• Relaxation massage

• Swedish massage

• Deep tissue style massage

For those who wish to deepen their skills and work at a more advanced level, progression to specialist qualifications is available after completing this course.

✅ Definition (General Use):

Therapeutic (adjective)
1. Having a beneficial, soothing, or healing effect on the body or mind.

Example: “Massage can have a therapeutic effect on stress and muscle tension.”

🔹 In a Massage Context (UK):

In massage therapy, “therapeutic” typically means:

• Supporting muscle relaxation
• Easing tension or minor discomfort
• Improving general wellbeing
• Encouraging mental and emotional calm
• Helping with recovery from non-serious aches (e.g. from overuse or stress)

Importantly, in the UK, “therapeutic massage” does not mean clinical treatment of medical conditions.

What makes our course different from many (not all) other courses?

We take an evidence informed approach to massage therapy. 

 Contrary to common belief. The current evidence says that massage is not;

• Mechanically changing the structure of tissue through force.
• Breaking adhesions and muscle knots/myofascial trigger points mechanically with our hands.
• Realigning muscle fibres (or anything) back to “normal” form.

What is massage therapy with a modern, evidence informed approach?

• A more probable explanation with supporting clinical evidence involves the nervous system, which is constantly adjusting muscle tension, movement patterns, perception, and pain sensitivity in response to new sensory information, including highly sensory information caused by massage therapy (and other social and environmental factors)
• A safe way for the therapist to apply a firmer pressure during massage if that is a more enjoyable/preferred sensory stimulus and not because the firmer the pressure the more effective a massage is.
• Communicating with our clients and not be talked into delivering a pressure that may be inappropriate, unsafe or unnecessary for some.
• Understanding that the skin is a medium to interact with the nervous system and effect change.

Progression 

Once you have successfully passed this massage course, you will be a fully qualified massage Therapist who can gain insurance and set up your own business or gain employment within the industry whether that may be in spas, salons, private clinics, community health projects, cruise ships, hospital or hospices.

Progression from Level 3 to level 5 

For students who have successfully completed our Level 3 Therapeutic Massage qualification, we offer a clear and direct progression pathway into our Soft Tissue Therapy Level 5 Upgrade course delivered by THE ST SCHOOL and held at The Glasgow School of Massage. This bridging qualification has been specifically designed to build upon the knowledge and practical skills developed at Level 3, advancing learners towards Level 5 clinical reasoning, assessment, treatment and rehabilitation competencies.

The course enables therapists to expand their scope of practice and develop the advanced skills required to assess, treat and rehabilitate clients presenting with common musculoskeletal conditions. It is an ideal next step for therapists who wish to take their practice to a more clinical level, enhance their professional credibility, and ensure their knowledge remains current and aligned with industry standards.

Upgrade To Level 5 in Soft Tissue Therapy (Glasgow)

Oncology Massage

Massage treatments need to be adapted to make a treatment safe and appropriate for someone affected by cancer. This training is very important to enable therapists to adapt a treatment with confidence.

At the Glasgow School of Massage with believe that it is time that people affected by cancer are no longer excluded from massage as they have been for a long time but instead therapists seek additional training to include. That is why every student qualifying as a Massage Therapist will have an oncology massage qualification and this is integrated into our courses.

For full details on this course please visit this webpage; https://theglasgowschoolofmassage.com/oncologymassage/

Whilst enrolled upon the course you will study four distinct units:

• Body massage
• Anatomy and physiology
• Business Practice for Complementary Therapies
• Oncology massage -Massage with people with Cancer 

The Anatomy, Physiology and Pathology section of this course is studied and examined online.

Our Anatomy & Physiology Partner: Movement Therapy Education

To provide our students with the highest standard of Anatomy and Physiology education, we have partnered with Movement Therapy Education (MTE) to deliver the online Anatomy & Physiology component of our programme.

Led by Mike Grice, MTE has established an outstanding reputation within the therapy, rehabilitation and movement professions for delivering evidence-informed education that bridges the gap between traditional therapy training and clinical practice. Mike is an Osteopath, Clinical Anatomist, university lecturer, international presenter, and educator with over 20 years of experience teaching anatomy, therapy and rehabilitation professionals. He has lectured throughout the UK and Europe and regularly presents at leading industry conferences.

We have chosen Movement Therapy Education because of their commitment to high-quality, clinically relevant education. Their approach goes beyond simply learning anatomical structures, helping therapists understand how anatomy, physiology and pathology relate directly to assessment, treatment and client outcomes.

By learning through Movement Therapy Education, our students gain access to industry-leading educational resources and teaching from one of the most respected names in therapy education, ensuring a strong foundation for both further study and professional practice.

https://movementtherapyeducation.thinkific.com/courses/APformassage

Guided learning hours: 94

Prerequisites 

There are no prerequisites for this course but it is recommended that learners should have achieved a level of education equivalent to five Standard grades/GCSEs/National 5s at grades A-C prior to commencing the Level 3 Diploma in Massage, however exemptions may be made for adult returners with experience of the workplace.

If you already hold an equivalent qualification in Anatomy and physiology be excused from part of the course. Please contact us if you would like to discuss this.

Due to the amount of information covered in the course, home studies (Self research, massage practice and written essays) of approximately five hours per week will be required. 

What to bring; Students are asked to bring;

Award

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be awarded an Level 3 Practitioners Diploma in Therapeutic Massage. You will be a fully qualified massage Therapist who can gain insurance and set up your own business or gain employment.

Progression

After gaining this qualification you will be able to progress onto study further types of specialised and advanced massage. You move into a level 4 or level 5 massage qualification. 

Lymphoedema management 
After successful completion of the Diploma in Therapeutic Body Massage through the Glasgow School of Massage students will be accepted as a prerequisite for Lymphoedema Management for Manual Therapists course at the Lymphoedema Training Academy.

Course Fee

 Total =£1,420

Fee Breakdown
£1,300
£120 Anatomy and Physiology
Payment plan available.

The full cost of this course is £1,420.

A deposit of £250 is required to book your place on this course which is non-refundable.

The cost of the online Anatomy, Physiology and Pathology courses is £120 and must be completed before the final day of this course. 

Once you have gained acceptance onto the course these courses can be bought here.

The remaining £1050 is required one month before the course commences.

PAYMENT PLAN

In Specialist circumstances the cost can be spread over the year paying;

-Deposit of £250 to accept your place.

-The remaining £1050 can be spread over 6 months starting on the 1st of January then the 1st of each month for 6 months  -£175  per month.

£120 Directly to Movement Therapy Education who provide our online Anatomy Physiology and Pathology course. 

This totals to the full course cost of £1,420.