I want to be a coach or/& choreographer...were to go?

Hi

I was reading the other tread of "What are your goals in skating" and I started to think about my owns... I´m 18 and I going to graduate from high school next year and now I´m suposed to know what I´m going to study...I discovered that I don´t want to be an engineer, doctor, lawyer or any other normal profetions...I love Figure skating and I´ve love it forever...I´ve been skating for 5 years and I know I´m never going to be at Olympics (as a competitor) but maybe I could as a coach or choreographer... so my dream now is to become a figure skating coach and dedicate my life to that but I have no idea where to go..I found an University of sports in Russia http://www.sportedu.ru/
that seems to be great but I don´t know russian and it is very far from here so what I´m asking for is if you know about any school whether in USA or Europe where I can go an study to become a coach or choreographer..

I don´t know if you understand me but if you do and know anything about it please tell me I will appreciet it a lot.

If you want to do choreography, a degree in dance would be very valuable. Some of the coaches in my area have training in physical therapy or kinetics.

If you want to coach in Mexico, you should check with your federation to see if there are any requirements, and what they are. In the U.S., there is an organization that offers education/seminars for coaches, and also there is heavy emphasis on your own skating accomplishments (test level, competition experience) that give you qualifications as a coach.

Coaching

It's good to have goals. A lot of coaches are skaters that have reached very high levels before they decide to go into coaching. Everyone else has to start at the bottom and work their way up.

Here's what you would have to do in the US, I'm hoping that there are similar organizations in Mexico.

Do you have a local club? Go to them and see if you can start coaching Basic Skills (the very beginning skaters). You may have to volunteer your first season before you can actually get on staff, it depends on how high level the available coaches are.

Then you should go directly to the Professional Skaters Association (skatepsa.com) and start going to seminars and get your ratings going. Many clubs won't even hire you unless you are a PSA member and coaches cannot even get credentials at qualifying comps unless they are PSA members.

PSA has a mentoring program that is quite good, plus they have Sports Medicine training and many others things.

You didn't say what your skating levels are, but you could continue to work on those if you need to, help with a Synchro team, take ice dancing lessons, etc. All those things will help make you a more rounded and valuable coach.

Hope this helps!

NC

It would be wonderful if some of you give it a try on this thread - insert pleading emoticon - we have not received 12 judges scores and would love to get a few more.

Judging the Ladies

anyone know anything about canadian coaching?

.x.iceprincess.x. said:

anyone know anything about canadian coaching?

Click to expand...

To coach in Canada it is getting more and more complicated everyday. Very briefly, first you must attend and pass a couple of Skate Canada Theory and Technical seminars and successfully complete a couple of rather lengthy written homework manuals/assignments which include at one stage cutting a CanSkate CD and later a Junior Bronze Freeskate Program. Attend and pass either the Skate Canada version or your local community college NCCP Program re: Coaching Competitors (Phase 1), you'll need Phase 2 later on if you continue to pursue your credentials. Take and pass a First-Aid course. Have a formal Police background check completed. Then register as a coach ($150.00 or so) with Skate Canada. Now you can begin to coach at a Skate Canada Sanctioned Club, here you will have to complete 50 hours of coaching. Don't get all excited though you haven't completed the process until at some point during your 50 hours you make 3 different videos of yourself teaching 3 different Preliminary StarSkate lessons ... the lesson types are your choice: jumps, spins, stroking, skills, dance, interpretive, syncro, or pairs, and submit the videos to Skate Canada along with your signed-off (by a Club Official) practical coaching record. S.C. will review your submissions/file, and if all goes well, you will then be certified NCCP Level 1.

Most people who go through the process say the entire process from start to finish takes quite a while to complete. The Skate Canada courses are available on a periodic basis throughout the year, and there is quite a bit of work required to successfully complete the homework assignments etc. Unfortunately, there is also a growing cost factor to the process. Last I heard, between the various Skate Canada seminar fees, material costs, community college fee, First Aid fee, police background check, S.C. coaching registration fee etc., the cost to you will add up to more than $1000.00, and that does not include your travel or accomodation costs if you have to travel to get to any of the courses.

If you are interested in coaching in the Skate Canada system, the Central Ontario website has a very good step-by-step process for both "how to become a CanSkate coach" and "how to become a Certified Level 1 Coach" (which is not the same thing). Here is a link, click on "coaches," next screen click on "NCCP/CBET" and that will tell you all about getting certified to coach the CanSkate program. If you go back to the coaches page, you can click on "Steps to Becoming a Coach" and that will tell you what you need to do to teach other than the CanSkate and Powerskate programs:
http://www.skatecanada-centralontario.com/Coaches/COScoaches page.htm