How to take the exam for the Senior Fitness Instructor Certificate

At present, the certificate related to senior fitness instructors that is common in China, eligible for skills improvement subsidies, and officially recognized is the professional skill level certificate for social sports instructors (in the direction of senior fitness) registered with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. There is no unified examination organized by the country. After meeting the application requirements, you can find a third-party organization with corresponding evaluation qualifications to register, and participate in the offline theory + practical assessment. If you score above 60 points in both subjects, you can get the certificate.

Last year, I helped three friends in the community who wanted to work as a charity worker in senior fitness go through the entire registration process. The most intuitive feeling is that the certification itself is not difficult, but the difficult thing is not to fall into the trap of messy certificates. Lao Zhou, who we danced with in the past, was the first to think about the examination. After scrolling through short videos, he came across an advertisement saying that it costs 99 yuan to take the online closed-book exam. After a week of taking the exam, you can get the certificate and still be affiliated. He could make thousands of dollars a year and almost transferred the money. I took him to the Skilled Talent Evaluation Network to check for a long time. Then, This certification agency is not even on the public list of evaluation agencies of the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau. The certificates obtained cannot even be found in the official national skill certificate inquiry portal. Let alone those who receive skills subsidies and work in public welfare positions in the community. Even the chain elderly care institutions at home do not recognize this certificate when recruiting fitness instructors.

Of course, I have also encountered many people who feel that there is no need to insist on the certificate registered with the society. My friend Xiao Song, who runs a senior fitness studio, has 8 years of experience in coaching middle-aged and elderly people to exercise. Last year, he signed up for a training class organized by an industry association and got a training certificate issued by the association. He said that he originally opened his own studio to teach classes, and the certification test was to supplement the knowledge related to exercise rehabilitation and chronic disease intervention for the elderly. As long as the courses are practical enough and the certificate is official or not, it doesn’t matter. In fact, there is no problem in this situation. To put it bluntly, the certificate you choose depends entirely on the purpose of your certification. If you want to enter relevant positions within the system, receive subsidies, and be evaluated for professional titles, you must take the vocational skill level certificate registered with the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau. If you just learn to exercise with the elderly around you, or open your own studio, choosing a training certificate with more useful courses is completely sufficient, and you do not need to blindly follow the trend and take expensive exams.

The three friends around me who signed up all took the junior certificate exam, and the requirements are not high. They must be at least 18 years old, have a junior high school degree or above, and either have relevant training experience, or have led fitness classes for the elderly for one year in total. Basically, it can be satisfied by leaders of square dances and Tai Chi teams. The exam is not as difficult as everyone thinks. The theoretical test covers content that is usually used in teaching, such as the physiological characteristics of the elderly, exercise taboos for common diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure, and emergency treatment methods for sports injuries. You can basically pass it after memorizing it carefully for about a week. Practical exercises are more flexible, that is, a 15-minute fitness program for the elderly will be provided on-site, including Baduanjin, aerobics, and Tai Chi, as well as a simulated assessment of emergencies. Sister Wang, the leader of the square dance team in our community, was not nervous at all during the practical exercises. Zhang, treated the examiners as old sisters who usually take care of her. When reminding her about the movements, she would specifically say, "Sisters with bad knees, don't squat too hard. We will do it according to our ability." She scored higher than the other two young fitness instructors with professional backgrounds. In the end, she scored 87 points in practical exercises.

By the way, if you plan to take the official vocational skill level certificate, before signing up, you must first go to the Skills Talent Evaluation Network to check whether the institution you are looking for is on the registration list. Don't listen to salesmen who brag about "guaranteed" and "affiliated to make money." Originally, senior fitness is to deal with the physical health of the elderly. If you really get a certificate that is not recognized, you will have to bear greater responsibility if there are problems with subsequent classes, and the gain will not be worth the loss.