10 Things to Consider when Selecting a Yoga Teacher Training
Are you considering doing a yoga teacher training? If so, read on. You’ll learn how to choose the best program for your goals and budget.
Much like shopping for a diamond, purchasing and doing a yoga teacher training can be symbolic of a lifelong commitment. You’ll find the information organized below into the 4C’s for quick reference:
• Credentials – Items 1, 2 & 3
• Cost – Items 4, & 5
• Clarity & Fit – Items 6, 7 & 8
• Competency – Items 9 & 10
Laurel assisting a student in down dog
CREDENTIALS
#1 — Is the program well established?
In this day and age, yoga studios and teacher trainings are popping up over night. Many of these pop up YTT programs are taught by teachers that have little more than a few months—or if you’re lucky, years—of teaching experience.
Beware of certification programs that are priced well below the market. For example, you may see a listing that says the program consists of two five day immersion periods, each costing $749 with early bird registration. First and foremost, a 200 hour training simply cannot be delivered in 10 days. Read more about this in #9.
Secondly, low pricing is frequently a sign the program is brand new and the owners are looking to make a quick buck, with little or no accountability for the quality of the program they deliver. They are typically inexperienced at delivering the curriculum and simply do not have the skills, time or the knowledge necessary to fully engage and train teachers. The quality of the instruction is questionable. Read more on quality in #5.
These programs are like fast food. Satisfying at first. They fill you up, but only with empty calories. Often they are disorganized and may not even be registered with the Yoga Alliance. Worse, they may allude to Yoga Alliance in their literature, but in fact are not actually registered. Read more on this in #2 below.
#2 — Is the school registered with the Yoga Alliance?
Don’t let someone convince you that you can apply for Yoga Alliance registry on your own after you complete their program. While you can do this, it’s no easy undertaking. Any reputable yoga school should be Yoga Alliance registered. Keep in mind, there are two levels of registry: 200 Hour and 500 Hour.
To check the school you’re interested in for registry, click here. Be sure to search by typing in the city and state. Don’t just type in the name of the studio or you’ll often get bogus search results. I’ve searched for my own school (and others) this way and come up dry. The Yoga Alliance is working towards upgrading their search engine in fall 2013. Stay tuned.
Last–but definitely not least— check to see if the school is registered at the 500 Hour level. Schools registered at both the 200 and 500 hour levels tend to have more experienced faculty and have been in existence for a number of years.
While older isn’t always better, in this case it probably is. Here’s why. Like anything in life, practice makes perfect. Think about your own yoga practice. How different is it today compared to the first day you started it?
#3 — Is the program taught by qualified Trainers?
Just because a program exists, doesn’t mean it is a quality program. Every yoga teacher training program has a primary teacher of the training—and other non-primary teachers. Investigate the experience of the people leading the teacher training. How many years teaching experience do they have? Individually? Collectively?
As a yoga teacher trainer?
Look for Trainers who have at least 7-10 years teaching experience each. Our three team faculty has a combined experience of 35 years.
I’m not saying experience alone is sufficient; it’s not. But being green isn’t an advantage in this case. You want a Trainer who knows the ropes and who can save you years of struggle by teaching you right now great teaching skills that will help you develop a following and become a successful teacher.
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COST
#4 — Are all the costs of the program/certification itemized up front?
In the world of yoga teacher training, there are many options as far as schedule and format. Some are residential, some not. Some are all-in one, some are module based.
Beware when considering module-based and residential-based programs that you’ve done your math. Sometimes they are designed to have a low advertised rate that doesn’t accurately reflect the true cost of the program.
For example, you may see a listing that says Level 1 Teacher Training $795. The tuition may be listed as a low figure, but once you add in the costs of all the modules, books, certification, and/or residential accommodations & travel, you’ll often end up with a whopping price tag! Do yourself a favor and do the math before you commit.
#5 — What is fair market price for Yoga Teacher Training?
A quick google search and you’ll find a wide variety of data points on this one. The cost of a yoga teacher training depends greatly on what is being offered. Some programs, though they may claim they are Yoga Alliance certified, don’t actually meet for enough hours to fulfill the minimum 200 hours. Other programs far exceed the minimum hours of education required by the Yoga Alliance.
Generally, tuition for a 200-hour yoga teacher training program ranges from $2,800 to $4,000. This is for non-residential programs. If you plan to attend a residential program, plan to add anywhere from $100-$200 per diem for food and lodging.
If you are attending program that has multiple modules, make sure you know exactly which modules you must complete in order to get certified. Add up the costs, or call the school and ask. They should gladly provide this information to you.
Keep in mind that some programs have separate fees for the following:
• Certification testing
• Required workshops or retreats
• Yoga class passes
• Books
A quick word on yoga class passes. While at first this may seem like a bonus, it’s not always the case. A former yoga studio owner, I used to include a free yoga class pass in the price of tuition for the duration of the training. If the training was 10 months, you got a 10 month unlimited pass.
However, over the years I found that many of the trainees wanted to branch out and take classes at a variety of studios, not just mine. So the passes weren’t really appreciated or fully used. Also, for those traveling 30, 50 or 100 miles to attend the training, the passes were useless. Thus, we no longer include the pass in our tuition and have lowered our tuition prices accordingly.
Lastly, ask about supplemental support. Our yoga teacher training program includes online videos and lectures to help trainees navigate the ups and downs of establishing a home practice. While it isn’t a deal breaker if the program doesn’t have it, it’s something to consider as a value-added feature.
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CLARITY & FIT
#6 — Ask about graduation certification requirements – ahead of time.
Many certification programs are merely survey courses. This means all you have to do is show up for the training, and you’re certified.
While this may be appealing on one level, on another level I bet you’re interested in actually learning something, something meaningful that will help & inspire you be a great teacher.
A good program will measure your proficiency at what you’ve learned before certifying you, much like when you were in college or high school. Sometimes this is measured in knowledge via written or oral tests; other times it may be measured in live teaching demonstrations. A good program will measure both.
#7 — Find out the program’s policy about absences —ahead of time.
No matter how well you plan, unforeseen circumstances always seem to crop up at the most inopportune time! Investigate the program’s policy about absences ahead of time. You don’t want to get halfway through the program, have an emergency that causes you to miss 10 or 20 hours, and then lose your option to certify!
And remember—get it in writing. Yoga Teacher Training programs are often delivered by those passionate about yoga, not paper work. A good program will have their attendance policy clearly explained in writing.
#8 — Enroll in a program taught by teachers you know or whose teaching style resonates with you.
It’s pretty simple. Enrolling in a yoga teacher training program is like dating. You don’t want to get into a relationship with someone that you don’t like. And you certainly don’t want to learn how to teach like someone who’s teaching style you don’t like. If you aren’t already a student of the primary faculty, be sure to take at least one class with them. Even better, take as many as you can. You have every right to try them out. If it’s a good school, they will share your interest in finding a good match. Matching serves both of you.
One more thing. I have to state the obvious here. Choose a program that teaches a style that reflects your own interest. If you love power yoga, don’t enroll in a gentle hatha yoga teacher training program and vice versa!
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COMPETENCY
#9 — Are the program hours sufficient to adequately cover the curriculum?
While it may be appealing to earn your yoga teaching certificate in a short time frame, in the end you’ll regret not getting the proper training. Beware of programs that are completed in short time frames.
I’m sorry, but two weeks is simply not enough time to complete 200 hours of training, the bare minimum required by the Yoga Alliance to be a registered school.
Do the math. If you attend a residential program with 10 hours of instruction per day, that’s just 70 hours in one week, 140 in two weeks. That’s 60 hours shy of the Yoga Alliance requirements. And that doesn’t even allow for any digestion time!
If you opt for the quickie certification, it’s likely you’ll end up taking another yoga teacher training at a later date and end up paying another chunk of change. About a quarter of the students who enroll in our teacher training graduated previously from another certification programs— but were sorely disappointed in what they learned. They came to us to learn what they didn’t the first time around. A complement to us, but no doubt frustrating for the trainee.
#10 — Where can I teach once I’m certified?
Many yoga teacher training programs are proprietary. This means you will be branded as a teacher by the school’s brand of teacher training. This is especially true of certain brands that have gone national and have begun franchising or even brands developed by well known studios.
The plus side of this is that you’ll have a good chance at getting hired at one of their studios. The down side? Other studios may not want to hire you.
If this matters to you, you may want to consider a yoga teacher training programs that is not franchised or limited by it’s brand identity. For example, in my teacher training program our trainees gain proficiency in the Intelligent Sequencing Method and Authentic Voice Methods. These methodologies empower the teacher to create well designed classes that are original, effective and that transcend brand identities. As a result, we have graduates teaching in all the major studios in Columbus plus major cities like Pittsburgh and New York City.
While the market is growing and more and more places are offering yoga, finding a teaching job is no different than any other job search–it’s competitive. Find out if the program offers any support to their graduates in job placement as we do. About two thirds of our trainees are teaching by the time they graduate.
One last tip. If you’re serious about making the leap to becoming a yoga teacher, invest some time in learning where your favorite teachers were trained. You’ll instantly gain an invaluable insight to where you should go for your training.
Get Info on Yoga Teacher Training with Laurel Hodory & Faculty
“We meet our destiny on our journey to avoid it.”
