Escalating cost of martial art training

[BudoTiger]

if the schools didn't worry about making a profit they wouldn't stay in business very long. thats where you have the ones that are open one day and disappear the next. and trust me you CAN worry about making a profit AND teach quality material. i seen it every day for 4 years.

people seem to want to bad mouth successful people all the time.

i dont know if its jealousy or what, but it's not just in the martial arts world. people do not go into ANY business to not make a profit. even if its a part time school it STILL needs to make a profit to stay in business.

as far as people that teach out of their homes or parks or what ever thats fine, but me personally i don't want to take lessons that way. too many things can happen. i would rather train with someone who either runs a program through the city such as i am doing now or a successful school that has been open for a number of years and i know isn't going any where any time soon.

people can think what they want, but bottom line is it takes money to run a business. to make money you have to worry about money. its a never ending circle. like yin and yang. cant have one without the other.

[bushido_man96]

That is a pretty good summation, Budo Tiger.

[bushido_man96]

So, if your students are not good because they are lazy, you could make them wait for their belts, or give them the material, acknowledge them as inheritors of the material(even if they havent mastered it), because they PAID for it.

In my experience, the main money making aspect of teaching Martial Arts classes is through monthy tuition payments; not so much from testing payments.

At our school, students don't test if they are not ready. Other schools can do this, too. Most students (adults, anyways) that sign up for a school are looking to improve themselves physically, and some mentally and spritually. They realize that they do this by working hard, and testing when they are ready. Not because the cycle has ended.

Sometimes, when it appears that someone is getting bummed out about their lack of movement in ranks, you just have to have a talk with them, and tell them the reason, and what really is important, even if they don't realize it yet.

[Kajukenbopr]

if the schools didn't worry about making a profit they wouldn't stay in business very long. thats where you have the ones that are open one day and disappear the next. and trust me you CAN worry about making a profit AND teach quality material. i seen it every day for 4 years.

people seem to want to bad mouth successful people all the time.

i dont know if its jealousy or what, but it's not just in the martial arts world. people do not go into ANY business to not make a profit. even if its a part time school it STILL needs to make a profit to stay in business.

as far as people that teach out of their homes or parks or what ever thats fine, but me personally i don't want to take lessons that way. too many things can happen. i would rather train with someone who either runs a program through the city such as i am doing now or a successful school that has been open for a number of years and i know isn't going any where any time soon.

people can think what they want, but bottom line is it takes money to run a business. to make money you have to worry about money. its a never ending circle. like yin and yang. cant have one without the other.

Exactly, to make money, you worry about money.

If your school needs an average of 40 students but you only have 20, you have to tell them the school is closing, you cant teach them because you dont have the physical school? or you make them pay twice to cover the place's cost and your salary.

Teaching in a school as your main income is not a bad plan, however, it doesnt really work to the students advantage, some can afford it, others cant- doesnt mean the ones that cant wouldnt be as good as the ones that can pay. However, if you are good, and you want to make a living out of it, instead of taking money off of your students, you could just get sponsors and maybe even programs from the city or the state to keep the school running without your student having to pay so much for what, 2- 3 , two-hour classes a week?

[Kajukenbopr]

So, if your students are not good because they are lazy, you could make them wait for their belts, or give them the material, acknowledge them as inheritors of the material(even if they havent mastered it), because they PAID for it.

In my experience, the main money making aspect of teaching Martial Arts classes is through monthy tuition payments; not so much from testing payments.

At our school, students don't test if they are not ready. Other schools can do this, too. Most students (adults, anyways) that sign up for a school are looking to improve themselves physically, and some mentally and spritually. They realize that they do this by working hard, and testing when they are ready. Not because the cycle has ended.

Sometimes, when it appears that someone is getting bummed out about their lack of movement in ranks, you just have to have a talk with them, and tell them the reason, and what really is important, even if they don't realize it yet.

I dont have a problem with people paying for being taught martial arts, Excessive costs though, is not right. even if it is to maintain a school.

I dont have a problem with making a profit, but the cost of education shouldnt be the main reason why you stay away from martial arts.

YES, I am fully aware that a lot of people can afford the extra 100, or even 200, maybe more, for monthly classes. Not everyone can though.

[DWx]

I think profit and good teaching need to both be present, like Budo Tiger said, its a yin and yang relationship. But the need for profit can sometimes mean better teaching, especially if there are a lot of MA schools in the area that you need to stand out against. To make money you have to offer a top quality product, in ths case good teaching and standards. Consumers are more willing to pay higher prices for things that are better quality and sometimes people actually prefer to pay more because they think that they will get a better service. The saying "you pay for what you get" comes to mind. But then if you are too concerned with the profit aspect over the what services you are offering, people are eventually going to realise that they are getting their dollars worth. Instructors have the right to charge whatever they like for this service they are provding for you but they should be offering you the best teaching in return.

As for testing I think instructors should recommend that you don't test if you are not ready but should not stop you altogether. If you are willing to pay out money to have a go at the exam then you should be allowed that chance. You never know, the student may end up surprising you.

[Kajukenbopr]

So, go ahead and charge more only if you will teach to the very best of your abilities.

Isnt that the point of being a teacher? to teach a student the most effective way to attain the knowledge and abilities u have?

[BudoTiger]

if the student doesn't know the material then he shouldnt test. that is one thing i dont like about having a set test schedule where you test everyone in the dojo every 8 weeks or what ever.

you watch your students. when you have enough to test, say about 10, you INVITE those 10 (or how ever many) to test. testing is a privelege earned NOT a right. too many people in todays society want things handed to them.

if the student is lazy and doesnt wanna work for it then they dont test its that simple. if they want to go some where else where they will be tested then thats fine, BUT they are the ones that will know whether or not they EARNED that belt around their waist.

[catalysis]

Thanks for the great discussion, it is good to have experienced opinions. I definitely want to pick a school where I will get good value for my money and be confident training with them for the long term.

The school I am looking at charges $100/mo, then after you get your green belt it goes up to $135/mo, then a little higher after black belt. This is for about 2-3 1h classes per week.

I am also looking at things like whether or not they have weight equipment and so forth. This is important because I won't be able to afford my gym membership once I start.

I totally understand they need to make money to stay in business, but from my perspective it's a pretty hefty cost for most people, right up there with a car payment. There are other places in the area that charge about $80/mo for much more class time, however I don't like their syllabus as much. I guess I will just have to weigh my options.

Like I said though, the one thing that really has me hesitating is the fact that the cost increases as you go up in rank. This seems like a scheme to get people in the door then basically give them the option of quitting or paying the higher price after they invest their time.

[BudoTiger]

that part sounds kinda hinky to me. unless it means more classes, i.e. advanced classes in addition to the beginning classes, then i could possibly see that.

like i said if you enjoy doing it and can afford it go for it. as far as gym membership you will probably get just as much if not more of a work out than at the gym depending on the class.