NCCA
The ACSM certification is NCCA accredited and very well respected in the industry. And because of that, it costs a bit to earn…but you could have guessed that anyway, right?
But let’s look at that later, how about we start with the certifications offered by the ACSM Certified Organization.
Certifications Available
Health Fitness Certifications
Certified Personal Trainer
Health / Fitness Instructor
Exam
True to the reputation as a leading certification organization, the ACSM certification exam is a tough one. They will try and slip you up with the dreaded “pick the best answer” from a bunch of correct answers. Also, the material is pretty thorough and will requite a good 4-6 months of study for a novice in the exercise science world.
The exam is about 120-150 questions and you have 150 minutes to take it. Even if you know your stuff, the ACSM certification exam is pretty tough. If you try and wing it, you’re in for a rough afternoon!
ACSM’s Personal Trainer certification is attractive to fitness professionals because the exam, for all its faults in not having a practical component, cannot be passed by a sub-standard trainer. This is why ACSM is so well respected…and also the reason the ACSM certification should be seriously considered for your personal training career.
Eligibility
This is the easy one, all you need are two things:
– A high school diploma or equivalent (like a GED) and be at least 18 years of age
– Currently have an adult CPR certification that has a practical skills examination component (such as the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross).
Cost
If you’re interested in attending one of their Personal Trainer Certificate Workshop Sessions, the cost is:
Three-Day Workshop $375
One-Day Workshop $129
Exam Costs
ACSM has a ‘membership’ that you can purchase that costs in a range from $50 (for a student) to $210 (for a ‘professional). The membership gives you discounts on the exam. So, for prices…
ACSM Certification Exam (ACSM Alliance or Regular Member) $219
ACSM Certification Exam (nonmember) $279
Retest $150
Don’t forget to add about $40-$60 for review courses that they offer for the exam. And about $150+ for the books they recommend. I looked on Amazon.com for them and found them much cheaper than the list price from ACSM.
ACSM is one of the more costly study-at-home certifications. It can run about $700-$900 when all is said and done. A lot? I guess. Are you doing this for one year, or on a whim? Then it would be costly, wouldn’t it? If it’s the start of your career, think of it as a lot cheaper than spending $85,000 on an Exercise Science degree.
Continuing Education Credits
ACSM also has continuing education credits to keep you good and current with their programs. (and to get more money out of you, of course!)
Luckily, ACSM’s validity period is three years, instead of two, like with ACE. (It use to be four years…)
An ACSM Certified Personal Trainer needs 45 credits for recertification and must pay a $30 fee.
That’s pretty steep in terms of CEC time, about 7-8 days worth of work in three years. Other certifications are less, however that doesn’t necessarily make ACSM bad or the others better.
ACSM let’s you earn CEC’s through participation in a whole bunch of ACSM workshops and classes. Here are a few:
– ACSM National Meetings
– ACSM Regional Chapter Meetings
– ACSM Endorsed Programs
– ACSM Self-Tests
They also certify a number of organizations a year to provide ‘interest areas’ that then can be used as CEC’s. Please see ACSM’s website for the most up to date CEC’s that are valid.
As I said, the ACSM Personal Trainer Certification has a 3 year validity period. The rest of the qualifications are pretty simple, in fact:
1. The candidate accumulates the required number of Continuing Education Credits (CEC’s) and/or the equivalent.
2. The candidate maintains a current CPR Certification.
3. The candidate pays the required recertification fee.
Summary
ACSM has many more ‘cool’ certifications than those above to let you go beyond just being a ACSM Personal Trainer. So if you’re interested in advancing your career with more education, ACSM has the ability to advance with you!
ACSM is really one of the top certifications, it’s hard to go wrong if you just say “I want ACSM’s Personal Training Certification” and then start your career.
Just make sure you study hard and keep on those CEC’s through the years!
Leslie Smith is a Certified Personal Trainer and owner of Fun-2B-Fit, LLC. She has published a book on “How to Become a Certified Personal Trainer” to assist aspiring trainers with their goals of becoming certified fitness professionals.
For more information about becoming a Personal Trainer, please visit [http://www.TrainingFragments.com].
