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An apprenticeship may be a viable alternative to the current fitness trainer qualifications that involve completing an 8 week course with minimal practical experience.

I find it very strange why a personal trainer or a fitness trainer is not viewed as a trade, there are numerous professions that involve attending a trade school over a 2 -3 year period in conjunction with practical work experience.

Yesterday I spoke with Joe, the Administrative Officer at the School of Hairdressing at Victoria University about the current hairdressing course, curriculum requirements and how this relates to the hairdressing apprenticeship.

Currently the students must complete 17 subjects of study that equates to 80 days over a 3 year period, the student determines the frequency of attendance, typically they may elect to attend 1 day at the University per week over the three-year period from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM or 6.5 contact hours per day. To satisfactory pass the course, the student must reach a level of competency for each of the 17 units.

The practical component of the course is the apprenticeship which the student attends on either a full-time or part-time capacity. The underlining criteria is that the student gains the underpinning knowledge of their craft together with a level of competency based on their school attendance. As with most trades, the practical component reinforces any knowledge and experience gained from their curriculum, so immediately after learning a new skill or piece of information, they have immediate opportunity to put this into a practical application.

The students must complete a total of 300 hours of practical and course attendance, the fundamental idea behind the apprenticeship is that the student hasn’t achieved the status of being a qualified hairdresser until they have completed both the practical and course requirements. This provides a nurturing and conducive environment in providing a fully qualified and work ready hairdresser by receiving the necessary guidance and on-the-job skill training from their employer in gaining real-life experience executing their knowledge.

Unfortunately this Australian government has taken resources away from the apprenticeship system, whereby most trades are experiencing a decline in the uptake of apprentices due to lack of funding to the employers to provide the necessary training and guidance during the apprenticeship. During this period of training, the employer needs to allocate the necessary resources in terms of staff to satisfactorily train the apprentice as the apprentice is gaining the necessary skills and applying them in a supervised environment.

One very impressive initiatives being undertaken next year is monitoring the application of the curriculum to every hairdressing student. A representative from the University/school will attend the workplace of the student to manage their on-site training. This would involve discussions with their employer and other work colleagues about the student’s competency, the application of the information learned, assessment of their on-the-job performance and ensuring that the apprenticeship arrangement is working well for both parties. This will take place four times per year and this practice will reinforce the students practical knowledge and application of skills.

The fitness industry needs to adopt a similar approach to provide a work ready fitness trainer into the workforce, rather than an eight week course where I they receive a free iPod upon signing up and upon completion of the course they can potentially injure the participant.

If the allied health industry is to take fitness trainers/fitness professionals seriously then there needs to be a radical rethink of the current academic and practical application of the current curriculum. Condensing anatomy, human movement, kinesiology, injury management and the practical component of the courses into such a short period cannot possibly produce the best outcome.

Why would a carpenter, plumber or hairdresser be required to complete a three-year apprenticeship rather than pack it all into an eight week course with no on-the-job training if this was a viable option.

After going to a spin class yesterday due to the heavy down pours we were experiencing in Melbourne I was surprised at the lack of screening before undertaking the class.

It’s a bit worrying that a person can potentially walk in off the street, be overweight, have high blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, a family history of cardiovascular disease, over 40 with pre-existing injuries and hop onto a bike and potentially injure themselves or worse still have a heart attack.

Similarly if you won’t to participate in an adrenaline based sport such as bungy jumping or parachuting, there is a little more screening but far from adequate, if you weight over 95kg or have any concerns the operators recommend that see your Doctor and that you must have average fitness, flexibility and not bepregnant.

Currently the fitness industry is regulated by requiring that a fitness trainer have either a Cert III or CertIV in fitness to satisfy the requirements of applying for public liability and personal indemnity insurance otherwise you are free to start a business as a personal trainer without any restrictions.
This is slowly changing as councils are requiring permits to conduct exercise programs in parks, gardens and reserves which in turn means having insurance.

Fitness qualifications in Australia are regulated by each State’s or Territory’s Training Organisation that gives accreditation for courses and registers RTO or Registered Training Organisations for vocational education and training (VET).

Vocational learning means Tertiary level courses from certificate II to certificate IV, and diploma and advanced diploma.

With most professions, be it a trade such as an electrician or hairdresser, you must complete an apprenticeship while studying part/full time.

To become a hairdresser, you must complete a full time 12 month Certificate III in Hairdressing that usually comprises of attending 7 hours per day from Monday to Thursday and a work experience day on Friday.

So currently a RTO can provide an eight week Certificate course in Fitness, (Cert III and Cert IV) provided that it conforms to the Certification guidelines of the relevant state based Training Organisations.
Upon completion you can conduct unsupervised exercise prescription.

To raise the profile of the fitness industry and the standard of education either the duration of the course needs to be raised to 12 months in conjunction with industry based experience.

Ideally a Diploma in Fitness would raise the depth of knowledge of the fitness professional and remove the entrepreneurial approach currently taken by some RTO’s.

Based on the Australian Government’s Higher educational Guidelines, a Diploma requires 1 or 2 years of full-time study. It is a dual-sector qualification, offered in both the higher education and vocational education and training sectors.

In the higher education sector, Diplomas are based on an academic program with an applied focus, providing general or specialised training for employment at the para-professional level. Diplomas can articulate to Advanced Diploma programs. Diplomas can also provide advanced standing or credit transfer (usually 1 year) into a Bachelor Degree program

While there is a lot of rhetoric about employers needing to employ only those candidates whom possess higher qualifications, then it begs the question why are these courses acceptable by the Government Training Organisations?

If these short courses are deemed deficient and the industry can not confidently rely on them, why haven’t the guidelines been revised?

Surely it is the responsibility of the State based training organisations to address these issues?

While I appreciate that people need to take responsibility for their own actions there is a duty of care by the provider of a fitness based exercise or activity to take responsibility to ensure that the participant passes the necessary medical clearances before undertaking the activity.

Last night on Insight on SBS there was a debate about the competence of personal trainers and the fees that are charged.

The fitness industry like other industries such as the health supplements industry requires more in depth regulation and educational requirements other than completing an 8 week vocational learning course.

A fitness professional is given the responsibility to provide fitness services in a safe environment without causing harm or injury to their clients.

I spent time with a personal training studio that had degree qualified staff that was invaluable in furthering my basic knowledge. Unfortunately undertaking an 8 week course does not prepare you adequately to immediately start to give unsupervised instruction or have a sound understanding of the basic principles of human movement.

Health screening is conducted prior to any clients undertaking our bootcamps. If a prospective client has specific medical conditions or injuries they are referred to the appropriate practitioner. At no point do we give advice on any conditions or injuries.
With our sessions, our trainers are not standing around giving instruction only, we are constantly monitoring and correcting poor exercise technique.

The government needs to take a more active role in regulating the industry. Ultimately the fitness industry is about increasing physical activity. With obesity related deaths set to overtake smoking related deaths, the fitness industry needs to be acknowledged and supported by medical practitioners, insurance companies and the allied health services. This requires confidence in the fitness industry which starts with being more regulated and extending the curriculum to a diploma rather than an eight week certificate.

Like any industry, there are rogue operators that can skew the public’s perception away from the great work performed by the industry.

If anyone would like a career in the Fitness industry and would like any help deciding which direction for education, contact me via my online form under “contact us”

I have spent a considerable amount of time investigating the best options available.

After contacting Australian Fitness Academy this morning, they directed me to their website for a statement in response to the Age’s article.

“The Australian Fitness Academy (AFA) confirms that its courses comply with industry standards and its graduates are all properly qualified.

Since appointing new management in September 2006, the AFA has conducted a full audit of its operations, which confirmed that at no stage has the facility failed to operate in accordance with the standards required as a Registered Training Organisation (RTO). These results were confirmed during a recent external audit of the organisation conducted by the Office of Training and Tertiary Education(OTTE).

“I can confidently state that the Australian Fitness Academy has consistently fulfilled all of its obligations as a Registered Training Organisation and its ongoing status as a RTO is testament to that fact,” Australian Fitness Academy Director, Zac Hawes, said.”

“We’ve left no stone unturned since assuming management of the AFA to ensure that we’re providing our students with a quality service and we’ll continue to strive to improve our courses and facilities.”

“Since coming on board late last year, we’ve spent a lot of time assessing our processes, talking to our students and developing training programs that will lead the way in our industry.

“We’re not resting on our laurels here simply because we’ve proven that we’re already doing what’s required of us as an RTO.”

“Instead, we’re working to develop a facility that will provide the most sought after fitness professionals in the country and the best possible support procedures for our students, both past and present.”

According to Hawes, the AFA is well on its way to setting the benchmark in fitness industry training in Australia.