Out of state therapist needing license in Washington

Have any of you fellow therapists moved to Washington state and successfully gotten licensed? I am licensed in Maryland and DC, but unfortunately do not meet criteria for applying for a license (ie attending an approved school, coming from an approved jurisdiction) without further paperwork. Can anyone give me advice on how to speed this process? Also - has anyone been able to get through to the Board of Massage? I get an automated message stating "due to overwhelming call volume, we cannot take your call..." ANY suggestions are appreciated!!

Hi Jennifer,
I am not sure if you have found the information you need, but I thought that I would try to help. I moved to Washington state from California and have found it to be quite a task getting licensed here. If you have not received training from an approved school, that will be the most unfortunate part. You will have to basically go back to school. Cortiva Seattle will work with you in tranferring credit from your previous schools. National Certification is another requirement (NCBTMB) for all Washington state applicants, as well as American Red Cross CPR and First Aid courses, and a 4-hour AIDS awareness course which I did online at healthinfonetwork.org The Washington State Dept. of Health can be reached at (360)236-4700 you generally have to wait a few minutes to get through, but you should be able to. They can answer any other questions you may have. I wish you well on your new path.

I moved here 4 years ago from Boston and unfortunately it took me about 8 months to get my license! In addition to the time t cost me a total of 1000.00 dollars. In order to become licensed here I went through the Brenneke school of massage and did an equivalency test, which cost me a grand. It was not easy but if you went a comprehensive school you will do fine. You will also need to be NCBTMB certified, first aid/cpr certified and you will need to take the 4 hour AIDS awarneness course. There are other school who can give you the equivalency test but I found Brenneke to be the most reputable school in the area.
Good luck!

Meagan in Seattle, Washington said: As someone who was licensed here in 1995, I can tell you we have the toughest standards in the U.S. You will need to get additional education. Contact the state boards for help.

That's absurd. You may be able to push your book all day long inappropriately on this forum, but I won't let you get away with flat out LYING. What a scammer you are.

Washington has very average requirements and is not difficult to become licensed. I moved here with a Florida license, paid $50 and got one right away. New York requires triple the education hours and doesn't accept any other state license for reciprocation. Many other states are the same, including Nebraska (1,000 hours) and even Mississippi (700).

The best way to find out the CORRECT information is to contact the state board. Here is Washington's:

www.doh.wa.gov/hsqa/professions/Massage_Therapy/default.htm

I handled all of my Washington correspondence through e-mail, not by phone. Forget the phone! They don't answer. They are prompt and helpful through e-mail, though. Click on "Submit an Inquiry" on this page for the e-mail address:

www.doh.wa.gov/hsqa/professions/Massage_Therapy/education.htm

See what I did there? I was just helpful without shoving a product down anyone's throat. I was helpful with helpfulness as the goal in itself.