RRCA Coaching Certification

At the conclusion of the Level I Coaching Certification course, information about accessing the 100-question online exam will be emailed to participants. Each participant must independently complete the online exam within 30 days of the course and pass with a score of 85% or higher to qualify for certification.

The exam is administered through a professional online testing platform that tracks individual responses, progress, IP address, and testing duration.

Participants are not permitted to work together on the test and submit answers. However, individual participants may reference their personal notes and course book while answering questions.

Before finalizing the test, participants will be asked to affirmatively agree to abide by the RRCA Coaching Code of Ethics .

Upon completion of the online exam, participants will receive an instant score, which is also emailed to the Director of Coaching Education. Answers to test questions are not provided to any participant following completion of the exam due to certification testing integrity.

If your score is 84% or lower, you have not passed the exam and will receive an email from the Director of Coaching Education detailing the re-testing process and associated fee. You must pass the exam to finalize the certification process.

Anyone that cannot pass the online exam in two attempts will not be certified as an RRCA Level I Coach and will not be granted a refund. Participants that do not pass the online exam on the second attempt may be granted the opportunity to take the Level I Coaching Certification course again, but will be required to pay the full course fee.

There is a six-month window from the course date to complete all steps (passing the exam and submitting valid CPR/FA certifications) in the Level I Coaching Certification process.

Participants must submit valid CPR and First Aid certifications within 60-days of the Level I Coaching Certification course.  

We accept both CPR and First Aid courses that are completed online, in-person, or as a combination of online and in-person learning. We have no preferred providers for these courses, though many prospective coaches choose to take courses through the American Red Cross or American Heart Association. Electronic submissions via email are required, either as PDFs or image files of the certification documents. Faxed copies will not be accepted. Instructions for submitting certification proof will be included in post-course emails.

CPR and First Aid certifications are usually valid for two years. You will be required to maintain CPR and First Aid certifications to remain an RRCA Level I Certified Coach in Good Standing and use the RRCA Level I Certified Coach credential. Coaches must update their CPR and First Aid expiration dates and upload their new documents to their profiles before they expire to maintain their Good Standing.

Once a participant has completed all requirements for becoming an RRCA Level I Certified Coach (course attendance, pass the exam, submitted proof of CPR/FA certifications), the RRCA will confirm completion and send a congratulatory email via the SimpleCert platform. This email will contain a link to download the coach’s Level I Certificate.

The coach’s RRCA profile will be updated with their Level I credential, adding their name to the public Find a Coach listing. This will also grant access to the Certified Coaches Portal.

All RRCA Certified Coaches in Good Standing are listed on the Find a Coach list. This list pulls data from your individual profile in our membership system. Your Directory Address must be validated in our membership system to ensure your listing is sorted correctly by city and state. We encourage all coaches to include their photo, a brief bio, services offered, and social media accounts in their profiles.

To remain in Good Standing as an RRCA Level I Certified Coach following the initial certification process, a coach must maintain current CPR and First Aid certifications and join the RRCA as an Individual Coach. At this time there are no “re-qualification” or CEU requirements. 

If a coach does not update their CPR and First Aid expiration dates and upload their new documents to their RRCA profile in advance of the expiration dates, their status as a coach will change to Not in Good Standing, their name will be removed from the public Find a Coach list, and they will lose access to the Certified Coaches Portal. Coaches will be reinstated by updating their First Aid and CPR expiration dates and document uploads on their profiles.

To update your profile with your new CPR and First Aid certifications and coaching services information:

1. Visit RRCA.org > Membership System Login.
2. Log in with your email address and password. If you have forgotten your password, utilize the links below to reset your password.*
3. Click the My Profile button to enter the membership system.
4. Click the small circle in the upper right corner and click My Profile.
5. Click the blue pencil in the upper right to make the fields editable. Review your information and make any needed updates. We encourage you to add a profile photo/logo, information about your coaching services, etc. This will be included in your public listing.
6. Add/update and validate your Directory Address. Our website uses your city and state to populate the Find a Coach list. While you must provide a full street address, only your city and state will be visible to the public. Completing this step will activate the Update button at the bottom of your profile.
7. Update BOTH of your CPR and First Aid expiration dates, then upload your new certification documents for BOTH PDF fields even if they are the same document.
8. Click Update at the bottom of your profile to save your edits.

When updating your CPR and First Aid information, you must enter your new expiration dates AND upload your certification documents. This information will transfer automatically to your Coaching Certification record(s) to maintain or restore your Good Standing status.

Please allow up to an hour for your updates to be reflected on our website. The systems have to validate and pull information before making updates live.

Individual Coach Membership Dues are $25 annually

• Help fund ongoing administrative needs for the Coaching Certification Program including technical support for Certified Coaches, oversight of the RRCA Certified Coaches online networking group, Find a Coach marketing and promotion, and more.
• Help us invest in continued improvements and enhancements of the program for both new and existing coaches.
• Ensure RRCA Certified Coaches in Good Standing have an ongoing relationship with the organization following initial certification and grant individual coaches the ongoing use of the RRCA Certified Coach logo and name for promotional purposes.

Your certification must be in Good Standing to purchase the Individual Coach membership through your profile. Once you confirm that the CPR and First Aid information on your profile is current,

1. Click the small circle in the upper right corner and click Join RRCA as an Individual. (If you have previously purchased an RRCA membership, you will click the small bell-shaped icon in the upper right corner and click “Renew.”)
2. Select the Individual Coach membership type and click “Next.”  If you do not see this option, your CPR/FA is expired and MUST be updated to return to Good Standing before proceeding.
3. Acknowledge the Safe Sport, group run, and insurance guidelines and click “Next.”
4. As needed, add the Certified Coach Liability Insurance policy on the following screen if desired. (Click “Next”) Detailed information about the policy is outlined in the Certified Coaches Portal, which is accessible to all RRCA-certified coaches in Good Standing.
5. Review the fee(s) and click “Add to Cart.”
6. Click “Checkout.”
7. Enter your payment information or select your saved payment method.  Your billing address MUST match your credit card information or the processing will fail. Click “Checkout.” You will receive a payment confirmation in your email.