Become a Senior Level Coach

Overview

As the governing body for soccer in Canada, the Canadian Soccer Association is responsible for training coaches from the grassroots to the national team level through their Canadian Soccer Coaching Programs that have tailored the Coach Education Program to a two-stream education level. The Streams through which a coach may enter and/or advance are:

• Community Coach Stream
• Licensing Stream

Each of these Streams includes a number of courses designed to prepare coaches for working with players in a specific stage of development as outlined in the LTPD Model.

The Community Coach Stream

The Community Sport Stream has four courses based on Stages 1, 2, 3, and 7 of the Long Term Player Development Model. The first three courses, Active Start, FUNdamentals and Learn to Train, deal with soccer training and the importance of physical literacy for players up to 12 years of age. The fourth course in this Stream is called Soccer for Life and focuses attention on working with players between the ages of 13 through to “masters soccer”; which includes a wide array of participants who play for fun and fitness; those who enjoy recreational soccer as well as those who prefer to play competitively but not at the high-performance level.

Coaches wishing to gain training through the Community Sport Stream would do so in the following manner:

• Active Start Course: Completion of a training course totaling 3 hours (Active Start Stage of Development - players U-4/U-6). No prerequisites are required.
   
• FUNdamentals Course: Completion of the training course totaling 7 hours, plus taking the NCCP Make Ethical Decisions Module (Fundamentals Stage of Development - Boys U-6/U-9 and Girls U-6/U-8). No prerequisites are required.
   
• Active Start/FUNdamentals Course: Completion of this combined course totaling 10 hours, plus taking the NCCP Make Ethical Decisions Module (Active Start Stage of Development - players U-4/U-6 and Fundamentals Stage of Development - Boys U-6/U-9 and Girls U-6/U-8). No prerequisites are required.
   
• Learn to Train Course: Completion of the training course totaling 14 hours plus taking the NCCP Make Ethical Decisions Module (Learning to Train Stage of Development - Boys U-9/U-12 and Girls U-8/U-11). No prerequisites are required.

• Soccer for Life Course: Completion of a training course totaling 14 hours, plus taking the NCCP Make Ethical Decisions Module (Soccer for Life Stage of Development - Boys U-13 and Girls U-12 and older). No prerequisites are required.

Note: coaches do not undergo an official evaluation process in the Community Sport Stream, therefore they are not designated on their NCCP transcript as Certified Coach. These courses provide training only in developmental stage-specific areas of coaching. With this in mind coaches taking part in these courses will receive the status of Trained Coach(or will be considered In Training if they have still to complete a module of the particular course they have taken).

Licensing Stream

As Phase 1 delivery of the new Coach Education Program does not include the Licensing Stream, in the interim coaches can still take the existing Licensing courses until Phase 2 launches in 2013. A coach wishing to enter the Licensing Stream must first pass a formal evaluation after attending a B License Pre-Test Course held within his/her Province.

The Licensing Stream is aimed at those who are more serious about their coaching development and requires that coaches reach a minimum standard of competence in a practical coaching environment. Each coach is, therefore, formally evaluated and graded by Staff Evaluators at each stage of the process. This process begins with the B License Program, which involves a total of 60 hours of facilitated learning plus time allocated for formal assessments. It is aimed at coaches working with players in an environment where performance is a critical factor in successful coaching. The A License Program includes a total of 90 hours of facilitated learning, plus formal assessments, and caters to those wishing to make a career of coaching at the highest level.

Coaches wishing to gain training and certification in the Licensing Stream would do so in the following manner:

• B License Pre-Test Course: Completion of a 21-hour training course and an official evaluation (Training to Train Stage of Development). 
  Pre-requisites: Community Coach or Soccer for Life Trained status, or ex-Professional/National Team Player (minimum 3 years experience)
   
• B License-Provincial Course: Completion of the training course totaling 30 hours and an official evaluation process (Training to Train Stage of Development).
  Pre-requisites: Successful completion of B License Pre-Test Course
   
• B License-National Course: Completion of the training course totaling 40 hours and an official evaluation process (Training to Compete Stage of Development).
  Pre-requisites: Successful completion of B License-Provincial Course or Canadian Equivalency
   
• A License Course: Completion of the training course totaling 90 hours and an official evaluation process (Training to Compete Stage of Development).  
  Pre-requisites: Successful completion of the B License-National or Canadian Equivalency

Each of the courses within the program is built with an emphasis placed on the practical application of certain coaching skills, also known as “competencies”. These competencies are expanded upon as the coach progresses through the program and will range from showing an understanding of the rules of small-sided soccer to running an effective practice with players in a high-performance environment.