Gwinnett College – Sandy Springs

400 SE College Way, Newport, OR

Gwinnett College - Sandy Springs (GCSS), formerly known as the Rising Spirit Institute of Natural Health, is located in Sandy Springs, Georgia. Founded in 1994 as the New Life Institute, it originally focuses on neuromuscular therapy program under the broader massage therapy umbrella. In 2008, along with the final name change, came the addition of the Medical Office Administration and Medical Assisting courses.

The college is approved to operate by the Georgia Nonpublic Postsecondary Education Commission; it is also accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges and approved by the U.S. Department of Education.

There are 126 undergraduate students enrolled as of last count, with 86% receiving financial aid – lower than the average for 2-year non degree-granting colleges. Tuition is listed as $11,995 per year. The core massage therapy program is of 750 hours duration, and is offered on the main campus as well as the satellite campus in Marietta.

The college strives to educate its graduates to a proficiency level that will allow them to successfully apply for entry level positions in medical and chiropractic environments such as therapy clinics, spa resorts, etc. In addition, massage therapy graduates are eligible to sit for the NCBTMB and FSMTB national exams. The school is also a member of the American Massage Therapy Association.

GCSS also reaches out to the community’s therapy workers through continuing education programs in massage therapy that it announces and conducts every year.