Accredited Coach Training Program (ACTP)

The ACTP is a start to finish coach-training program that includes comprehensive instruction around the ICF Core Competencies, Code of Ethics, and the ICF definition of coaching. ACTP also includes Mentor Coaching, observed coaching sessions, resource development content, and a comprehensive final exam that evaluates a student’s coaching competency. Graduates of an ACTP may apply for an individual ICF Credential using the “ACTP path.” The MMS ACTP Coach Training is the training required for the level of PCC credential.

Approved Coach Specific Training Hours (ACSTH)

ACSTH programs are accredited on an hour-by-hour basis and may or may not be a full coach training program depending on the number of student contact hours in the classroom. Students who complete all of their training hours through an ACSTH may apply for an ICF Credential via the ACSTH path. The MMS ACSTH Coach Training is the training required for the level of ACC credential.

ACC = Associate Certified Coach, PCC = Professional Certified Coach, and MCC = Master Certified Coach

Continuing Coach Education (CCE) credits

ICF requires 40 CCEs of continuing coach education every three years for credential renewal:  minimum 24 Core Competency units (CCU), including 3 on Ethics and Standards of Ethical Conduct, and a maximum of 16 Resource Development (RD).

You can apply for any level credential as long as you meet all requirements for that level. Most applicants start off with the ACC credential because they do not have the number of coaching hours to go straight to the PCC level, and it is a definite accomplishment to officially get on the coach credentialed roster.

You may submit your credential application once you have met all the requirements of the credential for which you are applying. This includes: classroom hours, homework, 10 hours of mentoring by an ICF PCC or MCC, completing the 100 coaching hours, and both the verbal and written feedbacks individually and in the group setting. 

500 hours are required. At least 50 of those hours must occur within 18 months prior to submitting the credentialing process. 450 hours must be paid, and the other 50 can be pro bono and a minimum of 25 clients.

The ACTP course (125 training hours) provides you with the training required to secure your PCC as stipulated by ICF since we are an accredited school. The ACSTH provides the 60 training hours required for the level of ACC.

MMS ACTP and MMS ACSTH are both accredited and approved training by ICF. Since MMS training is ICF accredited, they are sufficient training to launch your coaching career.

Since MMS is the original coach training founded in 1974, by Dr. Chérie Carter-Scott, MCC, the MMS model is what MMS Worldwide Institute (Motivation Management Service) training uses. We call this approach “Pure Coaching” since the mindset is “Ask, Listen, and Empower!”

Use “Audio Memo” which records MP3 and you can email it directly to your Mentor-Coach Feed-backer.

You offer a complimentary session to your family, then friends, then colleagues, then acquaintances, and friends of friends. You present it like this, “I am learning to coach. In order to develop myself as a coach, I need to practice. I am offering coaching sessions with me at a minimal rate for the purpose of offering value and practicing my skills at the same time. Would you be interested in having a coaching session with me? In order to do so, we will schedule a complementary chemistry session. Are you interested in doing this?” Participants also connect with potential clients through LinkedIn or Facebook.

There is a template form that you will be given. You follow the instructions exactly as presented.

Yes if they are not your direct reports. ICF is very clear that coaching your direct reports can create a conflict of interest and as such is not permissible to include on your log. 

No, you can never use a coach session with a coach for your Feedback, unless he/she is a regular client. Yes, you can coach your peers in Feedback sessions. For the Final Performance Evaluation (# 7), you need to coach a client, not a coach.

Internal Coaching

Internal coaching is coaching conducted as part of the applicant’s employment. In order to count as client coaching hours internal coaching must be verified by a supervisor as part of their duties performed. 

NOTE: Coaching of direct reports (employees for whom the coach is an immediate supervisor) does not count as client coaching hours.

Third-Party Coaching

• Third-party coaching is coaching in which either:
• The coach receives payment from an organization specifically for coaching the client, or
• The coach volunteers to coach the client on behalf of an organization that receives payment from a client. 

NOTE: Payment for sessions may be in any esteemed amount, and this also includes the barter of goods and/or services.

Internal and Third-Party Clients

Internal and third-party clients should be logged the same as other individual or group clients unless there is an organizational confidentiality policy that prevents you from disclosing the client’s information. If so, you must provide a reference letter from a contact person at the organization who is familiar with your work. Keep the letter on file, in case you are audited by ICF. The reference letter must include:

• The name and contact information for the contact person
• A description of the role of the contact person in the organization
• A description of your role in the organization
• Confirmation of the organization’s confidentiality policy
• Confirmation of the information that you have logged for confidential clients

For internal or third-party confidential clients, you must also log:

• An alias for each confidential client (for example, “Confidential Client 1”)
• The email address of the contact person at the organization
• The start and end date of the coaching relationship with each client
• The number of paid hours that you coached each client

Yes, you can, as long as coaching includes your job description and you are not coaching direct reports. This is considered internal coaching. 

That depends on the amount of time and energy you devote to completing your training and the 100 hours that need to be logged in order to proceed to the next step.

Yes, you certainly may receive feedback from your friend who is an ACC, however it will not count as one of your official feedback sessions for your requirement stipulated by ICF.

You discuss the availability of your facilitators and schedule your Mentor-Coaching at a mutually agreeable time. You also review your objectives for the program and then make a list of questions that have not been answered in the training or in this FAQ.

Review your notes, review the definition of coaching, review “Foundation,” review all of the ICF Core Competencies, get rest and manage all the “Clothespins” on your mind. Make sure that you will have no interruptions or distractions during the 3-hour exam.

Absolutely, ten hours are included in your ACTP (7 in group, and 3 individually). If you really want more private mentoring, you can contract privately with your mentor and compensate him/her privately.

In Mentor-Coaching a student is being coached on their coaching skills rather than on practice building, life balance, or other topics unrelated to the development of a student’s coaching skill. Mentoring is intended to serve as a developmental process for the student that takes place in a repetitive cycle of receiving feedback regarding student coaching, reflecting on this feedback, and practicing new skills. The focus must be on the development of skills using the ICF Core Competencies to build effective coaching.

Each MMS Virtual Training is between five minutes and 38 minutes followed by short multiple choice Q and A to determine how present you were during the online training.

You need to do your MMSVT every week to maintain progress. If you procrastinate on the VT it will definitely create unnecessary stress.

The questions are all multiple-choice and relate to the content of the recently viewed module. The purpose of the MMS Virtual Training is to introduce you to coaching to see if it is something that you want to pursue through our “Live” online interactive course, and if you are already enrolled in our TECC (Transformational Executive Coach Certification) Course then reinforcing and augmenting your MMS training content will help you focus 100% of your attention for short periods of time.

You email the MMS Coach “Gatekeeper” and inform them of your challenges.

It is a one-page, double-spaced A4 with the following headings: Highlights, Lowlights, Insights, and Breakthroughs (and lessons if you like). The purpose of the weekly report is to help you establish the discipline of reflecting, which is a critical skill in the coaching process.

Yes, each week you will have reading assignments posted in the LMS (Learning Management System) that parallel the content you have been studying or on the content you will be studying. Reading is very important so that you can have many of your questions answered from merely reading the books.

The first weekly report is due within the first week. It is geared to get you started reflecting immediately since this is such an important part of the training to become a professional coach.

Yes, we have a series of videos that demonstrate the different competencies. In addition, the classroom sessions are available to you to watch again and again to sharpen your skills.

Yes, we have a syllabus, weekly assignments, peer coaching, and recommendations for how to succeed in the MMS Coach Training. You can go here for the assignments. If I have questions on the content of the books, when do I ask them during the MMS Coach Training?

At the beginning of each MMS Coach Training session, there is time to connect, to share, and to ask questions about the homework. Make note of your comments and questions and seize the opportunity.

At the beginning of each MMS Coach Training session, there is time to connect, to share, and to ask questions about the homework. Make note of your comments and questions and seize the opportunity.

Yes you will graduate without completion of all VT modules. The virtual training is not a requirement of ICF. We include the virtual training in our program to ensure that you learn how to focus and dedicate your attention 100%.

No liability insurance is necessary for a Life Coach because it is not our business to give advice. Coaches primarily listen and ask powerful questions. It is up to the client to discover his or her own insights/answers as a natural outcome of the coaching relationship.

You are not required to take notes during a coaching session. If you have an excellent memory, after the session is over you can then document what happened during the session for reference in the future, especially if this is a series.

At MMS we have the belief that the more you see mastery level coaching sessions the more you will aspire to that level of excellence. We are committed to training the very best coaches on Earth so this is one of the added benefits you get with MMS coaching…you get the opportunity to be coached by an MCC in the classroom. You will learn coaching in several ways: theory, observation, posing questions, techniques, and actually conducting your coaching sessions. At MMS we offer you different levels of coaching opportunities: with your family, friends, your peers, friends of peers, coaching strangers, and then finally coaching paying clients, on Zoom, over the Internet, and in-person!

You learn from observing demo sessions, asking questions, from learning the theory, absorbing the ICF Core Competencies, practicing coaching with your peer coaching sessions, receiving individual feedback, in mentor coaching sessions, learning how to live the process, in short, observation, listening, reading, writing, practicing, reflecting, and implementing everything you have been learning.

As an organization, we have sent out the updated competencies to our team of trainers with the official dates when we are authorized to publish the new Core Competencies.   All of our trainers have been informed and briefed about the differences and the significance. We have updated the core competencies in all our PPTX slide decks that are used in our ACTP and ACSTH programs.

We speak out and incorporate the importance of (the client’s identity, environment, experiences, values, and beliefs) to our clients. We clearly illustrate the differences between the “What” and the “Who” in coaching sessions. We also demonstrate what is meant in our trainer (and student) demonstrations and then call it out in our “Mentor Coaching” discussions.

The first few slides of our ACTP and ACSTH training present these exact words and we, (the trainers), demonstrate this ongoing practice throughout our training.

To strengthen the coaching muscles on a regular consistent basis.

Yes. You can choose people in your personal and professional networks, ideally, those  who are not already coaches. You can do both: coaching with classmates, and coaching with non-classmates.

It is easier to pair up with classmates. Especially when you start your coaching journey.

When you pair up:

• You are working on the same thing with the same rules, recording permission is easily obtained from your peer.
• You have the opportunity to both coach and to be coached on your goals.
• Connections among group members will be forged along the way for the trust and safety in the class. This helps create the coaching community. If you only have coaching sessions with people outside the class, then you will be missing an important component of the MMS Coaching Community.

• Principle: Ensure at least once a week your role is “coach.”
• If you pair-up, you can either “coach” first and then change to “client” in a time frame. (i.e. First you coach for 30 minutes, then you coach with your partner for another 30 minutes). Don’t forget to allow time to provide your peers with relevant and meaningful feedback.
• You might conduct coaching sessions several times a week. It is recommended to record all sessions so that no brilliant sessions will be missed (this is to acknowledge and celebrate you). Select one recorded session to submit for mentor coaching feedback then email the recording. The desired dates will be provided.

Absolutely, you may choose to be the “client” for Dr. Chérie in the demo session next class,  which will allow you to experience our coaching style. Before that session, you will have a “Chemistry Session” to set you up for success.

Weekly Schedule: For the ACTP, (100 Online classroom hours + 25 hours Resource Development  hours/homework). You need to attend 34 (3-hour and 15 minute) Modules.  If you miss any of the modules, you go to: “courses.mmsworldwideinstitute.com and watch each missed module, then submit a one-page summary of your reflections, insights, and learnings so you will not miss any of the classroom hours.

• Home assignments: weekly peer to peer coaching = count the weeks, Daily journaling approximately: 15 minutes, weekly report: 20 minutes; if you do your daily journal, read Dr. Cherie’s books: Transformational Life Coaching, 1 chapter per week, plus: If Life is a Game, Negaholics, Become One, The New Species, and If Success is a Game;  watch Dr. Chérie’s MMSVT = Virtual Training coaching videos 15 minutes per week. The reading and writing are very personal, so that is your challenging to estimate. Some read faster than others, some write faster than others, and some reflect slower than others.
• During the program, you will record 6 MP3 coaching sessions, (2 each month) and have them reviewed by our certified MMS mentor coaches to deliver feedback verbally in Bootcamp, on the mentoring form (ACC or PCC) or in RaeNotes. Towards the end of the program, you will send in your final (#7) coaching session which will be recorded demonstrating your PCC coaching capabilities. #7 could be considered your final exam  in order to fulfill all of your ICF graduation requirements. You will be credentialed as MMS coach, ACC level, or PCC level depending on what you demonstrate to your Mentor-Coach. 
• During the course, you will also receive 10 hours of mentoring: this includes Seven (7) hours in our virtual group classroom Module, with the Mentor-Coach discussing the coaching right after the session; The remaining 3 one-on-one mentoring hours can be with any of the MMS adjunct faculty.

Our course curriculum is on: https://courses.mmsworldwideinstitute.com with our course E-Books and AudioBookSeries.   If you prefer the hardcover books, we have 4 locations worldwide: USA, The Netherlands, China, Thailand, and University of Dubai. Any of our fulfillment offices can connect with you and support you ordering the books you wish to order.  

You will be signed up for our http://www.mmsvt.com/ (a private online subscription program) with coaching modules available 24/7 for your convenience. There is also a multiple-choice test after each module. If you choose to continue after the training is complete, the coaching section will be an investment of $1.00/day ($30/month) You can have and share your subscription with family and friends. If an associate or colleague at work wants to have a subscription, that is an option. Offer them the our http://www.mmsvt.com/ to sign up to determine if they want to pursue coaching certification in our TECC course online. 

Are you a complete beginner, or have you some experiences that you want to build on?

• Some programs are delivered in intensive Modules of zoom learning, Some trainings use a blended learning approach.

• Like any educational pursuit, coach training takes time, focus, and money.

There are 3 credentialing paths that an individual can seek through the International Coach Federation (ICF):

• ACTP Path (Accredited Coach Training Program)
• ACSTH Path (Approved Coach Specific Training Hours)
• Portfolio Path

If the coach training program has an ACTP or ACTSH accreditation the pathway is more direct. See the www.coachfederation.org website for more information.

If the coach training program is not accredited by ICF, you will apply via the Portfolio Path as the program may still be recognised. You will be required to show robust documentation, i.e., You must provide a concise class outline or syllabus that summarizes the names of classes/modules to ensure the program provides coach specific training.

MMS Coaching is accredited by The International Coach Federation (ICF) who defines coaching as “partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.” 

The purpose of the Chemistry Session is to explain the MMS Coaching Process to a prospective

client so that they are clear about expectations and may determine if there is good chemistry

between the two individuals.

“Welcome, my name is_____________. Won’t you sit down? Would you like some water, or do you need to visit the restroom? I would like to know a little about you, tell you some information about MMS Coaching, and then answer any questions you may have. Then we can determine if the MMS Coaching style, and my personal coaching style is the right match for you at this time in your growth process. Is that agreeable? Okay. So if you don’t mind, here is a pad and a pen so that if a comment or a question emerges, write it down, and I will address it when I am complete. Okay? Before I tell you about Coaching, tell me a little bit about you, your situation, and why you are considering coaching. (The Coach listens to the client, and while responding weaves in the information when and where appropriate.)

MMS Coaching is accredited by The International Coach Federation (ICF) who defines coaching

as “partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to

maximize their personal and professional potential.” A coaching session is a highly focused 30-

60 minute conversation between two people focusing on a specific concern, issue, or challenge.

Next, I want to address the types of issues about which people get coached.

Accreditation by an industry body such as the International Coach Federation (ICF) is an indication that the training meets global standards for coach training.

The next phase of our work will be the development of updated assessments aligned with the updated Core Competencies, including performance assessment. This will be explored as part of this important work. 

ICF Accredited Coach Training Programs will be required to integrate the updated Core Competencies into their training curricula by 2021, as part of the incremental renewal process. Training programs that are applying for ICF accreditation will be required to reflect the updated ICF Core Competencies in training curricula beginning January 2021.

Questions about the updated Core Competencies can be asked in class, or emailed to Support@coachfederation.org.

The updated Core Competencies are intended to illustrate the work of coaching, that is, the behaviors of a successful coach. It is also meant to show the characteristics of a successful coach, that is, the worker. By definition, the updated model does not involve artificial intelligence (AI). It is our view that artificial intelligence will be a complement to human-human coaching, and will not necessarily replace human-human coaching.

The next phase of the ICF’s work will be the development of new assessment processes that are in alignment with the updated Core Competencies. During this work, we will be using best practices for assessment development to determine how to assign scoring weights to the different competency areas.

Programs applying for CCE accreditation in 2020 should use the existing, original Core Competencies.

A new version of the CKA is under development with an expected launch in early 2021. This new version of the exam will align with the updated Core Competencies. Those who hold an ICF credential will not be required to complete this new version of the exam. However, individuals who choose to pursue a new ICF credential may be required to take a new version of the exam.

Sample coaching agreements can be found on the ICF website at the following link: https://coachfederation.org/profile/member-toolkit.

The updated Core Competencies expanded the idea of coaching agreements to potentially include agreements with organizations, agreements for the overall client engagement, and agreements for each coaching session. While ICF does not mandate a specific set of agreements, coaches may wish to revise the agreements that they are currently using to take into consideration the updated Core Competencies.

While it is impossible to fully understand or account for the many ways in which culture and context can impact an individual and their relationship with others, Competency 2 assumes that a coach has a general awareness of and openness to the influence that culture and contexts can have in shaping us as individuals.

While we have anecdotal evidence that some coaches use somatic techniques in their practice, this element did not emerge to a significant enough extent in our data to be included.

This will be explored as we develop new assessments to align with the updated Core Competencies. Admittedly, this may be an area that is difficult to assess using our current performance evaluation process, but may be easier to test as part of a knowledge exam. The data we collected from coaches clearly showed that a coaching mindset was an important element that needed to be included in the updated Core Competencies.

While similar, the word “goals” is used rather than “objectives” as a higher-level, less prescriptive word to describe what a client may wish to accomplish through coaching.

The updated Core Competencies expanded the idea of coaching agreements to potentially include agreements with organizations, agreements for the overall client engagement, and agreements for each coaching session. Agreements that occur within a coaching session can be assessed using our current assessment process. As the ICF develops new assessments, we will explore how we might assess the broader agreements that take place outside of each coaching session.

The updated Core Competencies expanded the idea of coaching agreements to potentially include agreements with organizations, agreements for the overall client engagement, and agreements for each coaching session. Additionally, the word “maintains” was added to the name of this competency to acknowledge the importance of revisiting and reconfirming agreements throughout the coaching engagement.

The difference between “establishing trust and intimacy with the client” and “cultivates trust and safety” came about through the concern that the word “intimacy” had some unintended or misunderstood meanings in some languages. The use of the word “cultivates” was selected as a way of highlighting that creating a safe, supportive environment is an ongoing process that needs to be attended to throughout the coaching engagement.

A strong partnership between the coach and client is an important foundation of all the updated Core Competencies. From our analysis of the data collected from practitioners, the most relevant and useful places to include references to partnership were in competencies 3 (Establishes and Maintains Agreements), 4 (Cultivates Trust and Safety), and 8 (Facilitates Client Growth).

The personal state of the coach is certainly an important element of maintaining presence. We believe that the language in the definition for this competency “Is fully conscious and present with the client, employing a style that is open, flexible, grounded and confident” along with the sub-competencies relating to empathy, curiosity, and managing one emotions, directly relates to the personal state of the coach. The personal state of the coach is also addressed in some of the elements of competency 2, Embodies a Coaching Mindset.

The coach is managing their own emotions, which is known as “self-regulation.” You can learn more about this concept in the research paper on reflective practice here.

This is about the coach not knowing. The “not knowing” could be about many things, such as what to do next or what might happen next. The coach remaining present and confident in the client can be very important.

It is meant to be an example.

While Competencies 9, 10 and 11 in the original model have been combined into a single competency in the updated Core Competencies, virtually all the same concepts and behaviors are still reflected in the updated competency.

Yes, the ICF intends to provide a variety of documents to compare the current model to the updated version. During the webinars, a high level crosswalk document was shown and more detailed versions of this will be provided.

Each coaching relationship is unique and the levels of confidentiality may vary depending on the specific relationship and the agreements between each coach and client. What is critical, however, is that a coach has a clear, transparent agreement with a client on what–if any–information may be shared, with whom and how it will be shared, and that this agreement is consistent with any applicable confidentiality or privacy laws. More information about confidentiality and client data protection is available in the ICF Ethics FAQs here.

Yes, slides from this webinar, including the summary points of the updated Core Competencies, are available for download at www.coachfederation.org/core-competencies. 

Those who are currently seeking an ICF credential prior to 2021 will be assessed using existing Credentialing assessments, which reflect the original Core Competencies.

The collection of critical incidents is a tool used in job analyses to find key moments and worker behaviors for successful performance of a given job. In our case we asked coaches to provide the context of each incident, the mental processes they were using, the actions of the coach, outcomes, an effectiveness rating of the incident, what was learned, and the modality used (face-face, telephone, video connection, etc.).

Intersectionality certainly could be an important part of a client’s experience. This was discussed during the development of the updated Core Competencies and is part of the reason sub-competency 2.4 was written.

Culture and context naturally impacts the way coaching is delivered, and the global nature of our community of coaches–and the array of cultures and contexts they represent–is one of the factors that makes ICF such a strong association of professional coaches. The input and influence of such a diverse array of coaches and volunteers strengthen the programming and services that ICF offers and the collective understanding of the important cultural nuances of coaching across the globe. Through the Job Analysis research and Core Competency Update project, ICF included subject matter expert volunteers from every region of the world, and received input from professional coaches representing more than 80 countries. ICF remains committed to leveraging the input, insights and contributions from coaches and subject matter experts from around the world as we continue our work in assessment development for ICF Credentialing.

ICF does not have plans to change the definition at this time. However, from time-to-time ICF may review the definition of coaching and could make a change if a compelling reason emerges.

During our work to develop new assessments we will be using best practices for the establishment of passing standards. This work will include an evaluation of the current assessments and will carefully consider how to equate the new assessments to those that are currently used.

From the data we collected from coach practitioners, direct communication did not show up as a standalone competency, but rather was woven into all competencies. Concepts related to effective communication shows up in the updated Core Competencies integrated into the sub competencies.

Admittedly, a coach’s integrity will be difficult to assess in a coaching conversation unless the coach exhibits behavior that is clearly demonstrating a lack of integrity. During our work to develop new assessments we will be exploring ways to assure that coaches have a strong understanding of the ICF code of ethics and ethical practice including the importance of integrity and honesty through updated assessments, including performance and knowledge-based assessment.

The ICF Code of Ethics is based on the ICF Core Values (https://coachfederation.org/about) and the actions that flow from them. All values are equally important and support one another. These values are aspirational and should be used as a way to understand and interpret the standards. All ICF Professionals are expected to showcase and propagate these Values in all their interactions.