ISFTA FAQ's

Is this course easy?
Earning your certification as a personal trainer through ISFTA is not an easy task. There are several requirements that put our certification among the most respected in the industry. Upon completion of all the requirements, you will know that you have truly accomplished something.

What do the training materials and exam cover?
Our training materials are very comprehensive and technically descriptive but also easy to read and understand. Our approach is to provide the information in a manner which facilitates learning. The exam is very comprehensive; with 100 multiple choice questions covering everything from initial client contact to complete program development.

How does the cost of this course compare to others in the industry? The cost of our course is very reasonable, and below most others in the industry. Most importantly, one cost covers everything. ISFTA does not charge a testing fee, certificate fee, or any other fees for the initial certification.

What is the process to becoming certified?

UPDATE - ALL CERTIFICATIONS ARE ONLY DONE THROUGH ISFTA CERTIFIED INSTRUCTORS.

The first step is to register online. Upon successful registration, we will ship you all of the training materials. You will them be contacted by ISFTA corporate who will provide you witht he names and contact information for the 3 closest instructors to your home. All instructors have been trained by ISFTA corporate to provide consistency in our training. You will arrange your study time with your instructor and complete your certification through them. Although there is no time limit to complete the certification, we recommend that you complete all requirements within one month from receiving the materials. If you are unable to complete the registration online, you may call ISFTA and we will advise you of the process to register by mail.

How does ISFTA help me with the certification process and career development once I am certified?
ISFTA offers unlimited e-mail support during the certification process, as well as professional phone support. If you choose, you may attend any weekend training workshop either before or after you become certified. You may also choose to study for a day with an ISFTA instructor in Sarasota, FL. (Extra fee applies for personal instruction.) After certification, you will have access to view, print, and use forms, advertising templates, and other business materials available only to ISFTA certified trainers. Additionally, ISFTA has a wide variety of continuing education courses available to enhance your marketability, as well as our quarterly e-newsletter which is full of tips and ideas to grow your business. We are also in the process of developing an annual trainer retreat in which you will be able to get all of your CEU’s in one weekend. This retreat will consist of workshops, instruction form fitness professionals, and additional business development tools. ISFTA wants all of its members to succeed!

How often do I have to renew my certification and what are the requirements to renew?
Your ISFTA certification is good for a period of two years. During this period, you must accumulate a total of 20 hours of continuing education. Of these 20 hours, 8 must be through ISFTA continuing education classes, and the remaining 12 hours can come from college courses, or other approved continuing education sources. You will receive more information on approved sources in your initial certification package that you will receive upon passing the certification exam. Once you have reached the level of ISFTA Master Level Trainer, you may accumulate the 20 hours of continuing education from any of the sources listed on the continuing education page, with no further requirement to take 8 hours of ISFTA courses. The renewal fee is $89.00 for two years.

What forms of payment can I use to sign up?
ISFTA accepts Visa, Mastercard, and American Express through our paypal account. You do not have to join paypal to make a payment. Cashier’s checks and money orders are also accepted. Due to a recent increase of returned checks, ISFTA can no longer accept personal checks.

What is ISFTA's Refund Policy?
ISFTA requires all courses to be paid in full prior to the course date. Many of our courses require advanced study materials that are sent prior to the actual course date. Also, we bear considerable expense to advertise, book locations for courses and must prepay many of our meeting spaces. We also have to give total counts for classes for food and beverage. For all of these reasons, we require at least 15 days notice that you wish to cancel your registration and receive a refund. We will only issue a refund after all study materials have been returned in new condition. At that time, the refund will be issued for the registration fee minus our shipping costs. Refunds are done electronically and are credited back to the credit or debit card used to register. In the event that you paid by check, we will issue a refund check within 7 business days.