Northwest Academy For the Healing Arts

Fool me once, shame on me; fool me once, shame on you?
I went to Northwest Academy for a massage once in January 2013. It was a good massage, it was actually my (student) massage therapist’s first day of clinic, so I was her very first massage client. For a first timer, she was very good, and I could imagine she would only get better. My only critique for her was that she seemed a bit nervous and asked me constantly if this was ok and if that was ok, but I supposed it’s better to check in too frequently than not at all.
As others have mentioned, there was only a curtain separating my table from other clients, so I could hear their conversations quite clearly. (One Unilocaler said «this new location has individual rooms» and that review was dated December 2012, but that wasn’t the case when I was there in January 2013.) The woman getting a massage next to me was a massage therapist herself, so she and her student massage therapist had quite a bit of conversation about the profession, techniques, muscle groups and whatnot.
You really can’t beat the low price of $ 35 for a one hour massage. I don’t live in West Seattle so the location isn’t exactly convenient for me, but I figured the price made up for the trip a little bit.
I had a friend coming out to visit for a long weekend from the East Coast in February, so I made appointments for the two of us so she could have a massage before we went to the airport on her last day in town. I made the appointment online and there was no easy way to mark that I wanted a massage for 2 people, so I logged in, made one appointment, and then made another appointment in my name again. I didn’t give my friend’s name because I figured I was the one handling the schedule for her visit and I wasn’t even planning on telling her until she got out here what we were doing because she was handling a lot at work before flying out here.
A few days before my friend’s visit, someone called me from Northwest Academy for the Healing Arts and asked me if I had meant to make two appointments or if that was an error. I explained that I had made one for me and one for a friend, and she asked my friend’s name and said that she would change the appointment to my friend’s name so that if anyone else looked at the appointment schedule, they wouldn’t have the same confusion. I gave her my friend’s name and spelled it for her and confirmed that we would both be there on Monday.

On the last day of her trip, my friend and I went out to West Seattle for our massages, and when we walked in, the man behind the desk looked instantly confused that there were two of us. I said we had two appointments, and he said «Oh, we figured one was a duplicate in the computer, so we deleted it.» They offered to reschedule us, but as my friend was flying out the same day, I let her take the massage. The man behind the desk offered to give her massage for free and reschedule me for a free massage for my inconvenience. I went to a nearby coffee shop to hang out for an hour while my friend got her massage. When I came back an hour later I asked if I could choose a time for my massage then, and the man replied, no, our computer is down, you’ll have to do it online. In hindsight, I wonder if the same computer system that was «down» was the one that showed the duplicate that they deleted?
A few days later, I went online and made an appointment for myself. I drove out to West Seattle in the morning, and when I went to check in for my massage, a different man was there. «Oh, I tried to call you,» he said, «We had to cancel because our student was sick.» I showed him my phone, that I didn’t have any voicemails, any missed calls, any recent calls that day. Then he said «I emailed you.» I opened my email right there on my phone, updated it, and showed him that I didn’t have any emails either. (Aside from the fact that email isn’t the best way to get in touch with someone with a last minute update — like your appointment for an hour for now is cancelled.) I explained that this was my second time showing up for an appointment just to find it wasn’t happening, and I don’t live nearby, and clearly they have my phone number since they had called me before, and he just kind of said «Oh well, sorry.» I left there annoyed that day and haven’t tried to go back since.
Interestingly, I got an email a few hours LATER that said that the appointment was cancelled. At the same time, I also got an email thanking me for coming in and saying they hope I had a great massage! It’s probably automated, but even so, it doesn’t reflect that they cancelled on me? That takes some nerve.
As I wrote at the beginning of this review, fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. I won’t be going back. The way I figure, $ 35 for a one hour massage might be a good deal, but not when you factor in driving out there two more times for no reason!

they have a new facility now that does feel like a massage place rather than a massage school. at the old location, i had to get massaged in a room with curtains and i could hear other clients near me.
but this new location has individual rooms and i feel like i’m getting a regular massage. so again, it’s a great deal being $ 35 and you can make appointments online.

BIG FAT WASTE OF MONEY. I am a student here, and make a 2 hour commute one way via metro to school every weekday. So I looked into a different school that would fit my schedule and we a way better decision for myself and my well being. Well forget my well being! I am 2 weeks past mid terms, so the PENALTY is paying 50% of tution, even though I have just finished a little over 25%. So that is an ADDITIONAL $ 2200, for classes I haven’t and never would have attended. So I guess for being in the business of well being, the don’t give a rat about it. I guess I get to keep doing everything in me to keep going to this dump of a school, even though I absolutely hate it. If I could give it less than 1 star, I would.

Feel free to read my first review as well. I appreciate that they apologized to me after my ‘bad experience,’ but if I don’t answer your phone calls or emails and don’t call back/​respond, please stop. After the first time, it just turns into harassment.
I’m glad they had 2 other people post directly after me to «balance» out my bad review, since I was the first and now they have an average rating of 4 stars :)
Intimate was a great word to use to describe it… I don’t know if you can tell from the pictures (b/​c they added furniture to one of them), but the kitchen IS the reception desk IS the student lounge IS the study area IS the waiting area. 5 in 1 is impressive. I guess that’s why it smelled like bad food and I could overhear everyone talking about clients while I was sitting in the lobby. My bad for impeding on your space. Ps. there’s a big difference between «educational discussions» and gossip. The person who quoted it as an «educational discussion» was not part of the conversation and I was the one overhearing the GOSSIP.
The bathrooms are directly behind that space… maybe that was source of the rotten smell (sorry, i guess it wasn’t rotten food coming from the kitchen/​reception/​study/​lounge/​waiting area).
Had they not called me and emailed me multiple times AFTER my bad experience, balanced out my bad review, and posted pictures that advertise a 5 in 1 space, I wouldn’t have given this place a second thought.
There are many other schools in the area worth checking out. Afterall, hygiene and professionalism are key components to the massage therapy industry and they failed on both accounts.