Certification of Skating Instructors

In the US, there is no "certification" required for skating instructors. Within reasonable limits, anyone who decides they want to teach, and who can find other skaters willing to take lessons from them can call themselves a "skating pro". The Professional Skater's Association (PSA), in cooperation with the USFSA and the ISI has established a voluntary "ratings" system which provides certification for skating professionals.

Although neither PSA membership nor rating is required to become a coach, all coaches taking students to USFSA Qualifying competitions (Regionals and up) must be members of PSA (USFSA rule #3032). Most serious skating instructors are members of the PSA and many participate in the ratings program. AAll skaters looking for qualified instructors should consider PSA rating of their candidate instructors as a part of their evaluation process.

What is a Rating?

A rating is a certification that a professional is qualified to teach at a certain level in a specified discipline. Just like skaters "test" to different levels to prove their skating abilities, pros can "test" to demonstrate their teaching abilities at various levels. The testing program for instructors is administered by the PSA.

To obtain a Rating, all candidates must pass a one-time written exam, in combination with an oral exam for each separate level or rating desired. Additional requirements include documented teaching experience for certain periods of time for each level, and the documented passing of appropriate level/discipline skating tests by students they have taught. Additionally, a candidate instructor must have personally passed skating tests at levels appropriate to the level at which they seek certification.

What Ratings are Available?

At the time of this writing, PSA ratings are offered in the following categories. The available rating levels for each category are indicated following the category name (the "lowest" rating is first in each list). Specific requirements needed to earn each level of Rating are indicated on the PSA website.

Continuing Education

Rated instructors are required to pursue an aggressive program of "continuing education" in order to maintain their ratings. Credit is received from participation in workshops, training programs, seminars, training camps, etc, which are approved or run by the PSA. This requirement helps instructors to remain "current", and provides skaters with an assurance that their instructors are up-to-date with the latest techniques and requirements.

To Learn More

Professionals interested in becoming PSA members or earning PSA ratings should contact the PSA directly for specific and up-to-date information on requirements.

The PSA offers study guides for each rating. It also offers a "Coaches Manual" for member instructors. Additionally it offers an excellent training video for Moves in the Field (this is available to the public).

More information about the PSA is available on their website at www.skatepsa.com