Cayce/Reilly School of Massage

Student life is inextricably linked to the clinic and the small campus. The school is located on the "beautiful" ARE (Association for Research and Enlightenment) campus in Virginia Beach. The heart of the student experience is the Student Massage Clinic, which is described as "an integral part of our massage curriculum." Its primary focus is to give students hands-on, practical experience working with clients in a supervised setting. This isn't a campus with dorms, dining halls, or sports teams; the educational and social fabric is woven through the small classes and the clinical work performed in the school's facilities. Life revolves around mastering a craft within a supportive, micro-community of peers and instructors.

Outcomes data paints a picture of a program with high completion rates and modest early-career earnings, typical for the massage therapy field. The school reports a remarkably high graduation rate of 90%, indicating that the vast majority of students who start the program finish it. For earnings, we must use the canonical figures provided: the median earnings for graduates ten years after entry is $19,338. This outcome reflects the earning potential for massage therapists, a field often characterized by independent practice, part-time work, or service-industry wages rather than high corporate salaries. The high completion rate suggests the program effectively prepares and retains students for entry into the profession.

The cost structure is that of a focused trade program. The canonical average net price after aid is $17,312. Students are eligible to apply for various scholarship programs through external organizations, and the average total aid awarded is reported to be around $4,290 per year. The school's catalog indicates that to receive federal financial aid, students must demonstrate financial need and have a high school diploma or GED. It's a program where students pay for specific training, and while aid is available, the financing model is more aligned with career training than with need-blind, no-loan policies seen at some elite liberal arts colleges.

Cayce/Reilly stands out for its radical focus and philosophical specificity. It is not a generic massage therapy school; it is the steward and teacher of the Cayce/Reilly® Massage technique, a method with roots in the holistic health philosophies of Edgar Cayce. This gives the curriculum a distinct point of view, integrating modalities like hydrotherapy and reflexology within a particular therapeutic framework. It combines this niche philosophy with an exceptionally small-scale, almost apprenticeship-style model—cohorts of 24-30 and a total student body you could fit in a large van. The 90% graduation rate suggests this intense focus works for the students it attracts. For someone drawn to this specific healing tradition and wanting an intimate, hands-on education, it is essentially the only game in town. For everyone else, it's a non-factor. Its identity is its singularity.