COVID-related testing information:

Visit our COVID-19 information page (Opens in new window) for the latest information regarding health and safety practices and any location-specific impacts.

International Coaching Federation Credentials & Standards

Take your exam from home. Simply choose 'Online at my home or office' when presented with exam options. Learn more about OnVUE.

Welcome to the International Coaching Federation (ICF) certification exam delivered by Pearson VUE.

ICF Credentials and Standards is dedicated to advancing the coaching profession by setting high professional and ethical standards, providing independent certification for coach practitioners, and building a worldwide network of credentialed coaches across a variety of coaching disciplines. Serving 35,000 credentialed coaches in more than 130 countries and territories, ICF Credentials and Standards is the largest globally recognized certification body for professional coaches. We elevate the coaching profession as the Global Gold Standard by setting the highest standards for professional and ethical practice, recognizing the professional achievements of coaches who meet these high standards across their journey, and assuring clients that they’re working with high-quality coaches.

ICF Credentials and Standards offers credentialing services for coach practitioners who meet rigorous education and practice requirements and who demonstrate knowledge and skills application through assessment. The ICF Credentialing program, including its certification exam, is founded in the ICF Core Competencies, a set of research-based competencies that articulate the essential knowledge, skills and approaches used within the coaching profession. ICF Credentials and Standards offers credentialing at the Associate, Professional and Master Certified Coach levels, each with a distinct set of requirements for education, experience and assessment.

ICF Credentials and Standards is pleased to deliver the ICF Coach Knowledge Assessment to credential candidates in partnership with Pearson VUE. The Coach Knowledge Assessment (CKA) is a tool that can be used to measure coaches’ understanding of the knowledge and skills important in the practice of coaching. The CKA tests coaches on their understanding of the body of knowledge that includes the ICF definition of coaching, Core Competencies and Code of Ethics.

Requirements

To be eligible to complete the ICF Coach Knowledge Assessment, candidates must first:

  1. Submit an online application for an ICF Credential at the Associate Certified Coach (ACC), Professional Certified Coach (PCC), or Master Certified Coach (MCC) level and pay the application fee.
  2. Following review of the application materials, receive an invitation from ICF notifying you that you are now eligible to complete the exam and providing instructions to access the exam through the Pearson VUE online platform.

Exam Delivery Methods

ICF Credentials and Standards currently supports on-demand delivery of the ICF Coach Knowledge Assessment to eligible candidates through the Pearson VUE online platform.

Exam Security and Candidate Agreement

ICF Credentials and Standards takes the security of its certification exam seriously and requires all candidates to accept the terms of a Candidate Agreement. By accepting these agreements, candidates agree to the terms and conditions of ICF Credentials and Standards, by maintaining the confidentiality of the content of all exams.

Score Report

Candidates will receive an immediate pass/fail score upon completion of an exam attempt. The score report will display the percentage of items in each section that a candidate answered correctly for the exam. Candidates can obtain a copy of the score report at any time by logging into their Pearson VUE account or by logging into the candidate’s ICF Profile and accessing their Credential application information under “My Open Applications.”

Coach Knowledge Assessment Language Availability

ICF Credentials and Standards is pleased to provide the Coach Knowledge Assessment in multiple languages to serve the global community of professional coaches.

The CKA is offered in the following languages:

  • Arabic
  • Bulgarian
  • Chinese
  • Czech
  • Danish
  • English
  • Finnish
  • French
  • German
  • Hungarian
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • Korean
  • Polish
  • Portuguese
  • Russian
  • Spanish
  • Swedish
  • Thai
  • Turkish

Welcome E-mail, Credential Access, Digital Badge

Candidates who pass the exam and meet all requirements for an ICF Credential will receive a separate e-mail from ICF awarding the new Credential and providing additional information about the ICF Credential digital badge and logos.

ICF Credentialing Beta Exam

Select candidates may be invited to participate in the Beta of an updated ICF Credentialing exam, delivered in Pearson VUE testing centers worldwide. Participants in the Beta ICF Credentialing exam will receive an examination authorization to test (ATT) email providing instructions for scheduling the exam.

Participants can schedule an exam appointment 24/7 through their online Pearson VUE account. Once the exam is scheduled, Pearson VUE will send a confirmation email listing the exam date, appointment time, address of the exam center, and directions to the exam center.

Reschedule Policy

Participants in the Beta ICF Credentialing exam who need to reschedule their exam appointment must do so by contacting Pearson VUE customer service or accessing their online Pearson VUE account a minimum of 48 hours prior to your appointment. Exams cannot be rescheduled less than 48 hours prior to the appointment. Failure to reschedule in time or failure to appear for the appointment will result in the forfeiture of the exam fee.

Cancellation Policy

Participants in the Beta ICF Credentialing exam must cancel the exam at least 48 hours prior to the appointment through the online Pearson VUE account or Pearson VUE customer service. Exams cannot be cancelled less than 48 hours prior to the appointment. Failure to cancel in time or failure to appear for the appointment will result in the forfeiture of the exam fee.

Contacts

For questions concerning the ICF Credentialing program and application process, please contact the ICF Credentialing Support team:

Website: The Gold Standard in Coaching | ICF - ICF Credential (coachingfederation.org)
Email: support@coachingfederation.org
Phone: 888.423.3131 (toll-free); +1.859.219.3580

Office hours: 8 am to 5 pm (U.S. Eastern/New York) Monday through Friday

Last updated 2023-01-30