Considering a Yoga Teacher Training? Confused about how to select the right one? It can be difficult to make the right decision. From one month intensives to weekend courses, from travelling trips to at home studios, from hotels to ashrams… The options available today are numerous.
Here are a few tips and points to think about which may make choosing the bestYoga Teacher Trainingprogram for you easier.
1. First look at your time availability – Are you able to take off a month from your daily life for a one-month intensive course? If yes, you may want to consider this option, as it will allow you to completely submerge yourself in a yoga lifestyle for one month. In this way your body and mind become stronger faster. If not, the weekend option may work best as long as you can commit to being in one location for the duration of all the weekends, which could be up to 4 months. If you are able to dedicate yourself to the practice and written or reading work, this option may give you more time to study and review in between lessons. Most importantly to note, in whichever timeframe you complete it, the international standard to become a fully certified instructor is 200 hours of training.
2. Do you want to do the course in your home country or in an exotic location? – Usually when doing the course in an exotic location, you will need time, as these often tend to be the long duration courses of a month. Being in a new location can help you to focus primarily on your yoga lifestyle. If staying in your hometown you may split your time between socializing, going out, stress from work, which all can be counterintuitive to reaching your goal of becoming a yoga instructor.
3. Once you've decided what timeframe you have for the course and whether you want to do it at home or abroad, finding an organizer and teacher is the next step – Select an organizer that is noteworthy and known within your direct community or within the larger Yoga community. You find this out by asking around. A school with real expertise will have certified more than 1000 yoga teachers and been doing it for more than 10 years. In terms of a teacher, select one that is licensed to certify yoga teachers. This license generally comes from Yoga Alliance and states that the teacher has met the minimum qualifications to teach yoga. These qualifications state that they should have taught a minimum of 1000 yoga classes and have taken 500 hours of yoga training courses.
4. Gather information! – Before fully committing to a teacher training program find out what kind of support they provide and whether there is structure to their program. Can they answer all your questions? Do they send you documents with descriptions to help you feel more comfortable? Can they explain in what format the course will proceed? Being able to answer these kinds of questions and provide you with documentation shows preparedness and their commitment to delivering a nurturing learning environment for their students.
5. Think ahead! What happens when you finish the program and want to start teaching? - The best way is to join a teacher training program where the organizers will facilitate you in beginning your teaching path once receiving your teaching diploma. It is best if the program offers an internship program for students to join at their studio, as well as offer a network of studios around the world that students can later teach at. This will provide support for gaining experience as well as help you to get visibility around the world.
By keeping these points in mind you will be able to select the right teacher training program which will help you to attain your goal of becoming a yoga instructor in the way which makes you feel most comfortable.
