Recently I\u2019ve been asked, \u201cHow do I <\/span>BECOME a certified coach<\/span><\/a>? What\u2019s the path?\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Getting a coaching certification and credentials can be confusing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Understanding why you should be certified (and by whom), the different levels of credentials and how to choose the right program is important both for people who want to become coaches and also for those who want to hire a coach.<\/span><\/p>\n So let\u2019s demystify the process!\u00a0 Along the way, we\u2019re going to talk about what the term \u201ccoach\u201d really means, and how that ties into ethics in coaching.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n In this post, we’re covering the full landscape of ethical coaching practice and what it takes to build a credible career in the field. We’ll start with the foundations: what coaching actually is, the different types of coaches, and what the path to becoming one looks like. From there, we’ll dig into the International Coaching Federation (ICF): what it is, how its certification and credentialing process works, and what the three credential levels (ACC, PCC, and MCC) actually mean. We’ll also look at Continuing Coach Education (CCE) and break down the difference between Level 1, 2, or 3 Paths and the Portfolio Path option, so you have the context you need to make a confident decision about which coach training program is the right fit for you. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n Have you noticed that \u201ccoaches\u201d are coming out of the woodwork these days?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n I don’t know about you but every time I look at one of my social media channels I see someone else promoting coaching services or coach training services.<\/span><\/p>\n All too often when I look at their profile to find out more about their coach qualifications, I find out they are not offering coaching services at all but rather consulting, training, workshops or a mix of the three.<\/span><\/p>\n When it comes to coach training specifically, there are way too many people out there that have very little credibility and make empty promises about establishing lucrative coaching businesses.<\/span><\/p>\n Coaching and ethical practice go hand in hand.\u00a0 Behaving in an ethical way is foundational and essential if you are presenting yourself as a coach or offering coach training courses.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n Ethical practice is part of a coach\u2019s professional foundation and certified coaches sign off on these practices when we enter the profession.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Professional coaches pledge to be honest about their qualifications, credentials and experience.<\/span><\/p>\n Professional coaches know the distinctions between coaching, consulting, training, psychotherapy and other support modalities so we know how to avoid entering conversations that we are not qualified to deal with.<\/span><\/p>\n We know how and when to reinforce boundaries when needed, and refer clients to other support professionals as appropriate.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n \t\t\t\t Coaching is working through a thinking process. Being a coach means partnering with another person in a thought-provoking and creative conversation that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential, which is particularly important in today\u2019s uncertain and complex environment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Coaches honour the other person as the expert in his or her life and their work, and believe that they are creative, resourceful, and whole.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Standing on this foundation, the coach\u2019s responsibility is to discover, clarify, and align with what the person wants to achieve, encourage self-discovery, elicit solutions and strategies generated by the other person (not the coach), and hold the person responsible and accountable.<\/span><\/p>\n This process helps people dramatically improve their thinking and outlook on work and life while drawing out their skills and unlocking their potential.<\/span><\/p>\n Let\u2019s help define what coaching IS by clarifying a few things that it is NOT.\u00a0 <\/span> Consulting and Advising:<\/strong> A person engaged to provide professional information, recommendation and direction.<\/span><\/p>\n Teaching:<\/strong> To cause someone to know something by providing new information.<\/span><\/p>\n Therapy, or psychotherapy:<\/strong>\u00a0 The treatment of a mental or emotional disorder. Read: When To Refer A Client To Therapy here<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Telling:<\/strong> To reveal, disclose, divulge, tell, betray, to make known what has been concealed.<\/span><\/p>\n Directing:<\/strong> To cause to turn, move, or follow a course.<\/span><\/p>\n Ministering<\/strong>: Religious context, aid or support.<\/span><\/p>\n Mentoring:<\/strong> Sharing insights from personal experience.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n The Limits of AI Coaching: The human skills that will define the next decade of leadership<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n What is ICF ACC Certification?<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Leadership Coach Certification: Everything you need to know about becoming a leadership coach<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n There are many ways that you can serve as a coach:<\/span><\/p>\n This is a coach who is in private practice and works with clients on a contract basis.<\/span><\/p>\n This is an employed person, where coaching is part of their job description and they conduct coaching sessions with other employees who are not their direct reports.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n These are leaders who prefer and will favour the coaching approach over directing, telling and using a command and control style.<\/span><\/p>\n You will notice that I did not list niches like:\u00a0 business coach, marketing coach, life coach, financial coach, sales coach, etc.<\/span><\/p>\n This is because these are sub-specialties that imply a subject matter expertise.<\/span><\/p>\n You need to hire a subject matter expert when you have little or no knowledge or experience with a problem that needs a solution so the expert comes in to tell you how to solve the problem or solve it for you.<\/span><\/p>\n Or, you might hire a trainer who will come in and teach you the steps you need to take to solve the problem in the future.<\/span><\/p>\n In the purest sense, coaches do not need subject matter expertise to coach because we are not consulting or teaching.<\/span><\/p>\n That being said, many professional coaches have a specialty and that is perfectly ethical if the coach is qualified in the subspecialty.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In this instance, the professional will primarily be a coach or a consultant and will clearly communicate to the client where the boundaries between the two are.<\/span><\/p>\n Often a professional coach with subject matter expertise will share their knowledge with the client but is comfortable letting the client stay in the driver\u2019s seat when it comes to what they want to do with the information.<\/span><\/p>\n What is not ethical is when a subject matter expert uses the title \u2018coach\u2019 when they have no coach specific training.<\/span><\/p>\n In this case, you would be getting advice, consulting, training or a mix of the three \u2014 but not coaching.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n While consulting and training are much needed services on the market, if the professional does not have coach training, you will not be getting coaching.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n Coaches become coaches by earning the title through study, practice, ongoing self-improvement and ongoing credentialing.<\/span><\/p>\n In its simplest form, to become a coach an individual must get certified coach training through a school or program like <\/span>The Coaching Academy for Leaders<\/span><\/a>, and then they are eligible to earn a credential through the <\/span>International Coach Federation<\/span><\/a> (the ICF).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Credentialing<\/span><\/a> is the process of obtaining, verifying, and assessing the qualifications of a practitioner. Credentials are documented evidence of education, training, and experience.<\/span><\/p>\n This is important to know if you are interested in <\/span>hiring coaches to work with your employees<\/span><\/a> or if you are thinking about becoming a coach.<\/span><\/p>\n If you are responsible for hiring coaches to come in and work with your employees, it is essential that they have an ICF credential or, at the very least, are actively in the pursuit of earning one. In fact, the <\/span>2025 ICF Global Coaching Study<\/span><\/a> found that <\/span>73% of coaches globally say that clients expect their coaches to be certified or credentialed.<\/b><\/p>\n If your candidate does not have a credential or is not working on one, they are simply not a coach but rather a consultant, advisor, or trainer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If you or one of your employees has coaching in their job description, then coach specific training is essential for them to be able to fill that function of their role.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n The International Coaching Federation (the ICF) itself does not provide training but it does oversee the standards of training programs.<\/span><\/p>\n A quick visit over to the<\/span> ICF Website<\/span><\/a> provides a great overview of what they do:<\/span><\/p>\n We\u2019re a force for transformation. Inspiring current and future generations to become their best selves so that they can champion a thriving society.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n We shape the coaching landscape. For 30 years, we have empowered coaches, set the gold standard in coaching practice, and served as the hub for all things coaching.<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n We lead through innovation, collaboration, and forward-thinking.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Specifically, the ICF is recognized worldwide by coaching professionals and the industry as a whole for their work in:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n ICF Credential-holders are part of a self-regulating group of elite coaches who provide accountability to clients and the coaching profession as a whole. They pursue and complete rigorous education and practice requirements that provide unquestioned legitimacy to their commitment to excellence in coaching.<\/span><\/p>\n As of 2025, the ICF has a membership of <\/span>more than 62,000 trained coaches in over 150 countries.<\/b><\/p>\n But many people take one look at the journey and they see that it is quite a commitment, so they opt-out of the process. All too many continue to use the coach title anyway.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Let\u2019s look at the 3 levels of credentials available in the coaching profession, ACC, PCC and MCC.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n To become an <\/span>Associate Certified Coach<\/span><\/a> (ACC) you start out by completing at least 60 hours of coach-specific training through an <\/span>Accredited Coach Training Program<\/span><\/a>. If you have prior coach education, you may qualify to earn a credential via the ICF\u2019s <\/span>portfolio path instead. <\/span><\/a>\u00a0You can learn more about the difference below.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In addition, you must have 10 hours of <\/span>Mentor Coaching<\/span><\/a> over a minimum of three months. The Mentor Coach must be an ACC who has completed a full cycle of the credential through renewal, or is a PCC or MCC in good standing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The student records coaching sessions with their actual clients, sends the recordings to the mentor who then listens to the recording with the aim of highlighting where the coach was able to demonstrate the competencies and how to strengthen their skills.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n To be recognized as an ACC, the coach needs to submit a log that proves that they have completed a minimum of 100 hours of coaching experience with at least eight clients following the start of their coach-specific training. At least 75 of these hours must be paid, and at least 25 of these hours must occur within 18 months of the application date.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You must also undergo a performance evaluation. This will be part of your accredited coach training program, or if you are going through the Portfolio Pathway, you must submit a recorded coaching session with a transcript.<\/span><\/p>\n Finally, you must write the ICF ACC exam and receive a passing score.<\/span><\/p>\n To become a <\/span>Professional Certified Coach<\/span><\/a>, PCC, you build on the work that you did as an ACC. To obtain this certification you must have:<\/span><\/p>\nWhat’s Inside<\/span><\/h2>\n
Ethically, who gets to call themselves a coach?<\/span><\/h2>\n
What is ethical practice in coaching?<\/span><\/h2>\n
![\"Corry](\"https:\/\/corryrobertson.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Corry-Robertson-Quote.jpg\" "\\"Corry")
<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\nWhat is the definition of coaching?<\/span><\/h2>\n
Coaching is not training, consulting, advising, or therapy<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/span>Coaching is not:<\/span><\/p>\nYou might also like<\/span><\/h3>\n
What types of coaches are there?<\/span><\/h2>\n
External coach practitioner:\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n
Internal coach practitioner:<\/b><\/h3>\n
Managers who use coaching as a leadership style:\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n
Coaching does not require subject matter expertise<\/span><\/h2>\n
So how do coaches become coaches, ethically?<\/span><\/h2>\n
What is the ICF?<\/span><\/h2>\n
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How to become an ICF Credentialed Coach<\/span><\/h2>\n
Associate Certified Coach, ACC<\/b><\/h3>\n
Professional Certified Coach, PCC<\/b><\/h3>\n