Hi, I’m wondering about how much other teachers paid to get certified and how long it took. I’m currently trying to decide whether its worth my time and money to get certified, since there is no law stating the you must be certitfied to teach. Any guidance would be great.
-peace
Hi Genoe and welcome to the forum!
I just wanted to let you know that I moved your thread to a different sub-forum that was better suited for it.
Enjoy your time here and I hope you find all the answers to your questions.
Namaste
Hello Gale,
It is true there is currently no legal requisite for yoga teachers. Therefore anyone can do it and needn’t be licensed, accredited, or certified.
Here are a couple of my thoughts regarding certification. I will assume you are well aware that different programs, different disciplines, different lineages have different requirements for their certifications.
Just as Yogafit, for example, requires a weekend of 18 hours to be “certified” to teach yoga there are also programs at the other end of the continuum that require a great deal more. The more you get, the more you would likely pay since you are being trained and the folks doing said training are giving you their time, which has value.
Second is the concept of worthwhile. This depends on you and your intentions. If your intention is to simply get a few teaching assignments at a local fitness center then one only needs what that particular employer requires for the hire.
If however your intentions are to make this yoga thing a part of the rest of your life (your personal practice I mean) and help others through it without leaving an enormous wake then I would think one would want as much training as possible; not for the certificate itself but for the honing of an ability and depth to share with students.
For me the study of yoga is an integral part of who I am. And I thirst to know more whilst knowing full well that yoga is too vast for me to completely know. It is, after all, the wisdom behind the training that is critical, not the paper. The paper is nice but when it is not backed up by training it is hollow.
Welcome Genoa,
There are quite a few threads on this subject already in the General Forum. Some threads include information and opinions on Yoga Alliance registered schools vs non-resisted schools; this may weight into your decision on which program to choose should you go that route.
I recommend searching out these posts for even more info and guidance.
Om Shanti
I would love more than anything to make yoga my lifestlye. I am a ballet dancer and recently became a mother, so yoga feels like a very natural awakening in my body and my mind.
There in only one woman in my city that certifies and her energy doesn’t feel good to me. She certifies in Hatha yoga and it costs a total of $1400 and takes two months. She won’t give me anymore information unless I pay for a $90 consultaton. I would love to do it but I’m get the slight feeling that I’m being ripped off, and I wonder how long it will take just for the cert. to pay for itself.
Thanks for all your help, this is such a wonderful resorce.
Namaste
Hello Gale,
I don’t know the person to whom you are referring and I don’t know where you live and perhaps it is better that way on both fronts 
If an energetic doesn’t feel good to us, AND we’ve examined it internally to make certain it is not our own block, then we honor that sense/feeling/intuition. So I would advise my student coming to me with this same issue to search themselves first and make sure they were not in their own way. Then, once that was cleared from the radar what is left must be true (for them).
There is little hope of getting great benefit from a training of any sort when the student enters with a tingling like the one you are sharing in the text of your post.
Without knowing how many hours you are training and without knowing what the curiculum would be, how could you be expected to make a soung (no, YOGIC) decision about your life path? To me it sounds out of integrity. However there may be a very sound reason for such a position.
I personally would not pay money to be allowed to pay money.
For the amount you are mentioning I would expect between 80-90 contact hours of training in the two months.
You are more than welcome to come and study with us for a week here in Seattle (Bellevue)Nov 12 - Nov 17 for the Beginning Teacher Training. I am sure there are other such programs and you can read more about this one here. You will get more than your money’s worth, more than you expect, and almost anyone will tell you more about it
Thanks for the affirmation that things are are out of balance in this situaton. Perhaps I will just spend the money on taking classes and study on my own. Schools I’ve looked at sound so forfilling, but for now I’m stuck in Tallahasse.
I’m going to a aryuvedic cooking class of the woman I spoke of before, so mabey meeting her will change the whole feeling I’m having.
Agian that you so much for helping me organize my thoughts.
Deva Premal, a Kripalu yoga teacher, has a wonderful school in St. Augustine Florida. She is affiliated with Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Lenox. Her website is:
If you study with her you will learn to teach well. She has an excellent reputation.
I did yoga for sometime before enrolling in the Teacher Training program at Kripalu. It was there that I learned how to teach safely… all the ins and outs that as a student I was never aware of. If you want to teach I recommend you attend a good, solid, teacher program that is registered with Yoga Alliance.
Hope this helps.
Cathy
This is not the Deva Premal that is the singer. I have no idea why the website did not transfer so lets try again…
www.discoveryyoga.com
Wishing you well,
C
It surely has been a LONG LONG day… The woman’s name is Deva Parnell, tuition is $1950 for the program. It is held weekends. And is located in St. Augustine.
I don’t blame you for not wanting to enroll in a program where someone demands $90 just for a consultation. Doesn’t sound like someplace or someone I would want to be around.
I’m in the UK, and tired from working in the garden on the first sunny day in a week! So please forgive my errors…
Cathy
That’s definatly worth looking into. Thanks for your help, have a woderful time in your garden. Here in Florida there’s big drought, be thankful for each drop. May your crops flourish.
Genoa
Thanks, thats definatly worth looking into. Have a wonderful time in your garden. There’s a big drought in Florida right now so be thankful for every drop.
May your crops flourish.
Genoa