Coaching Certification Programs

That’s the question we hear most often! Here’s the overview.

CYWC
Generally a good fit for internal staff serving tweens, teens, or emerging adults who have no interest in professional coaching as a career path. They just want to add coaching skills to their current work. This is the path most often selected by leaders within youth-serving organizations and agencies (e.g., schools, non-profits, colleges, universities, juvenile justice, healthcare, etc.) who are seeking professional development for their internal staff.

CYRC (ICF-Accredited and CCE BCC Approved Training Path)
Generally a good fit for aspiring professional coaches, those in leadership roles over coaching staff, small business owners serving adolescents, or those who would like to pursue a private coaching practice as a side gig or career pivot.

CYHC
Generally a good fit for those who serve or hope to serve tweens, teens, or emerging adults within a behavioral health, mental health, public health, health and wellness, or health system role. Those roles may be behavior intervention specialist, community health worker, health education specialist, mental health professional, case manager, juvenile probation officer, juvenile detention officer, peer recovery coach, etc.

All training, supervision, and practicum are completed 100% virtually and available internationally via live Zoom webinar and/or telephone conference call.

Candidates must be 18 years old or older.

Our training programs are ideal for professionals working directly with tweens, teens, and/or emerging adults, professionals leading organizations serving these populations, or those who aim to serve this audience in some capacity.

Coaching is a helping profession focused on learning and growth. Thus, it is a wonderful skillset addition for those in or interested in a career path within helping professions or education (e.g., human resources, counseling, social work, human services, leadership, nursing, teaching, public health, etc.)

Trainees who complete our programs most often apply their skills in the following ways:

• Coaching as a side gig for access to deep, meaningful work and extra income around a full-time job
• Coaching as a professional career path
• Adding coaching skills to enhance their work with tweens, teens, or young adults
• Coaching in a volunteer or mentoring capacity

Trainees may opt to complete individual courses for continuing education hours or the series of courses required to earn a certification through YCI. We offer three certifications with each one building to the next.

Trainees who complete courses 1-3 earn our Certified Youth Well-being Coach designation. This option is generally a good fit for youth-serving professionals, such as teachers or caseworkers, who want to add coaching skills to enhance their current work.

Trainees who complete courses 1-8 earn our Certified Youth Resilience Coach designation. This is our ICF Level 1 accredited and CCE-approved coach training program. This option is generally a good fit for aspiring professional coaches, those in leadership roles over coaching staff, or those who would like to pursue a private coaching practice as a side gig or career pivot.

Trainees who complete courses 1-9 earn our Certified Youth Health Coach designation. This option is generally a good fit for professional coaches who support youth through mental or health and wellness organizations offering full continuum of care services.

Yes! You can earn your first certification and come back to complete additional courses for next level certifications when you’re ready. Just purchase each next course or set of courses as you’re ready.

Just click the CYWC, CYRC, or CYHC Full Package button to add the full program of your choice to the cart. Be sure to note which of the live schedules you want for the live courses included in your package upon checkout.

Our Certified Youth Well-being Coach and Certified Youth Resilience Coach training programs have an 80% live attendance requirement.

All live classes are recorded so that those who have an allowed absence are able to watch the recording to submit a missed class makeup summary to earn credit.

If you were scheduled to coach the day of your absence, you would also need to complete a makeup practice coaching session outside of class.

Life happens! Your well-being is our priority. If you need to pause your training, you can transfer to a later cohort to complete your training up to one year from the date of your withdrawal from your current cohort.

Absolutely not. Your basic coaching skills are generally applicable to any coaching-appropriate audience – tweens, teens, and adults of all ages.

The behavioral science knowledge you’ll gain is also generally applicable. You are practicing coaching peer trainees who are adults of all ages with various backgrounds, experiences, and cultures during your in-class training. This means that you’re learning to coach adults of all ages through this program.

Because your training with us is approved by the International Coaching Federation, you also qualify to obtain a higher credential through the ICF upon successful completion with us. The ICF’s designations are general professional coaching designations accepted in most coaching-related roles.

Yes, our internal payment plans can be accessed via the “Explore Payment Options” buttons on the Courses Overview page above, or directly on each class’s checkout page.

You can also add the full certification package to the cart to review external payment plan options offered by our payment processors at checkout before making a decision. Trainees may access lower monthly payment plans by using the Buy Now, Pay Later options offered through our external credit providers. 

Self-Study Courses: All tuition paid for self-study courses is non-refundable upon release of course access to the buyer.
Live Meeting Courses: Registrants can cancel or withdraw participation at any time within 14 days prior to the first scheduled live meeting date for their enrolled group for a full refund of paid tuition. Registrants can cancel within 7 days following the first live meeting date for the enrolled group for a 50% refund of paid tuition. If registrants cancel or withdraw from training more than 7 days following the first live meeting date for the enrolled group they are not entitled to any refund or any reductions in tuition owed, as they must cover the cost of the lost seat.

We intentionally keep our tuition rates below the standard market rates for comparable accredited programs to promote access for public and social servants. 

Many trainees secure professional development funding through their employer to cover the cost of training for our Certified Youth Well-being Coach program.

Some also secure training or professional development grants through their state or regional workforce development programs or vocational rehabilitation programs. Here is a proposal that you can share with your employer or potential funder. 

Coaching is currently considered an avocational skillset in the United States, as most coaches do not secure full-time gainful employment solely through coaching skills or certifications. Most professional coaches are employed in other professions full-time and either 1) use coaching skills to enhance their full-time work, 2) coach on the side as an outlet for passion work while preparing a career pivot, or 3) add coaching to other relevant business offerings for their audience.

According to the International Coaching Federation’s most recent Global Coaching Study (2020), coach practitioners include external and internal coach practitioners, human resources/talent development manager/or director who uses coaching skills, and manager/leader who uses coaching skills.
This same study found 94% of coach practitioners offer services in addition to coaching, including consulting (60%), training (60%), and/or facilitation services (54%).

Most of our coach trainees are employed in youth serving roles (e.g., teacher, non-profit worker, juvenile justice worker, caseworker, therapist, etc.), are parents of adolescents, or caring community members who pursue our training for additional skills to better engage and support the adolescents in their networks.

Most full-time, salaried, youth-serving coaching roles can be found within schools, colleges, universities, and non-profits. Examples are:
Academic Coach
Learning Coach
Student Success Coach
Career Coach
Leadership Coach

These roles typically require at least a Bachelor’s degree and 2-4 years of experience serving youth. Those who are in other full-time roles and lack the years of experience needed to qualify may complete our programs to begin building that experience on the side while preparing to pivot.

Absolutely! Here are two free lectures that provide insight into what our knowledge-based content is like in the self-study modules.

Click this link to watch a 42-minute lesson – Introduction to Coaching.
Learn what coaching is and what it’s not, the differences between coaching, therapy, and other support services, and how we get to make a difference through coaching.

Click this link to watch a 30-minute lesson on Academic Coaching & Learning Science.
Learn about the research that supports why academic coaching is a vital resource to promote school engagement and protect against school burnout.

If you’re interested in our programs, but want to be sure our content is a fit for you before signing up for a full certification, you can complete a single course, Course 1: Basic Coaching Skills and Adolescent Well-being Science. Just go back to the home page, scroll down to that course highlight, and click Enroll.