Somatic Bodywork at Universal Spa Training Academy

With only about a dozen graduates tracked, Universal Spa Training Academy's somatic bodywork certificate is too small a sample to draw firm conclusions—but the available numbers suggest this program underperforms other Illinois options. At roughly $20,000 annually, earnings trail the state median by about $2,000, placing this certificate at the 40th percentile among Illinois bodywork programs. Meanwhile, the nearly $7,000 in debt sits higher than 89% of similar programs nationally, an unusually high burden for what's essentially vocational training.

The comparison to other Illinois schools is telling: top performers like Midwest Technical Institute see graduates earning $23,700—nearly $4,000 more than Universal Spa's typical graduate. Even with minimal earnings growth over four years, that's a substantial gap in a field where most practitioners are already earning modest incomes. The high concentration of Pell grant recipients (51%) suggests many students here can least afford to choose a lower-performing program.

For parents considering this path, the math is straightforward but not encouraging: your child would likely earn more and borrow less at several other Illinois massage therapy schools. Unless there are compelling location or scheduling reasons to choose Universal Spa specifically, other established programs in the state offer clearer pathways to steady income in this field.