Do you want to become a certified yoga instructor?
These days, it seems like every other person is a certified yoga instructor. You may be wondering how to go about this yourself, or whether it’s even realistic. However, if you’re passionate about the practice and hope to impart its benefits to others, chances are you are a perfect candidate. If you think you don’t want to become a yoga instructor, know that you can still deeply enhance your practice and knowledge by enrolling in a training course: Taking a Yoga Teacher Training When You Don’t Plan to Teach?
Career Requirements for Yoga Instructor
| Education Required | Completion of the teacher training program |
| Certification or Registration | Optional registration may be preferred by some employers |
| Key Skills | Physical fitness; strong speaking and communication skills; motivational skills |
| Additional Requirements | CPR certification |
| Median Salary (2020) | $35,000 (for all yoga instructors)* |
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, *PayScale.com
Now that you’re sure to pursue a certification, let’s talk about how.
There are no official legal requirements for certification anywhere in the world. So this essentially means that to learn to teach yoga, all that’s needed is to pick a program that resonates with you and pursue it passionately! However, you’ll want to pick a program officially recognized by the Yoga Alliance, the internationally recognized education and accreditation organization that has established a system of requirements for teachers and schools. Therefore, there are many different teacher training programs available worldwide, which offer certification in a wide array of yoga styles and traditions.
So how does one go about becoming a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) with Yoga Alliance? A Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) credential is earned by yoga teachers whose training and teaching experience meet Yoga Alliance Standards. So, an RYT must complete training with a Registered Yoga School (RYS®), be confirmed by RYS, and keep current with Continuing Education and their annual fees.
Most people usually start by attending a 200-hour RYS teacher training course.
As previously stated, there are many programs available, depending on the style or tradition of yoga, logistics (part-time, full-time intensive, local or abroad), and cost.
200-hour programs focus on teaching yoga to the general population. This includes:
- Asana and alignment (which also includes how to guide others into the poses and class sequencing)
- Anatomy and Physiology
- Philosophy and Meditation
All 200-hour programs vary in terms of the style of yoga. However, to ensure a well-rounded education, they all adhere to these basic guidelines as outlined by Yoga Alliance.
RYT Benefits
As an RYT, you get all the benefits of a Yoga Alliance membership, like:
- An internationally recognized credential that shows you have met our minimum standards of yoga training.
- Marketing on our RYT directory, where you can list where you teach and tell the world more about who you are as a yoga instructor.
- Access to free live Online Workshops (and a library of their recordings) which allow you to learn from leaders in the yoga community about topics like ethics, marketing, and much more!
- Advocacy alerts when there are local, state, and national government issues facing the yoga community.
- Invitations to community events and meet-ups that Yoga Alliance attends or hosts in your area.
- Insightful publications ranging from our monthly newsletter, Index of Yoga Research, and hundreds of informative articles and videos.
- Discounts on products and services from our partners on everything from liability insurance to yoga clothes to business software.
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