The United States Tennis Association, the governing body of tennis, offers three different coaching training programs, leading to recognition as either a recreational or elite tennis coach. Depending on how you define "certification," you may want to join one of the teaching professional trade associations to get a more formal certification.
Recreational QuickStart Tennis Workshop
The USTA's Recreational QuickStart Tennis Workshop helps both novice and advanced instructors learn how to run the recently developed QuickStart tennis format. QuickStart uses smaller rackets, foam balls, smaller courts and a simplified scoring system to introduce the game to children age 10 and under. In 2010, the International Tennis Federation mandated that all sanctioned junior tournaments for players under the age of 10 use their new short-court format, which was based, in part, on the USTA QuickStart format. The USTA workshop covers the rules of QuickStart tennis, practice plans and suggestions for organizing and running team matches. The 3.5 hour workshop comes with a manual and practice plans.
Recreational Coaching Workshop
The USTA's Recreational Coaching Workshop helps tennis enthusiasts learn basic coaching skills to instruct all ages. The workshop helps coaches organize classes, run drills, demonstrate basic stroke mechanics and run practices. At the end of the six-hour course, you receive a certificate denoting your participation. This workshop is appropriate for high school coaches, park district instructors, camp counselors, those who work with seniors and other recreational coaches.
High Performance Coaching Program
To help those coaches who work with nationally ranked, collegiate and professional players, the USTA developed an intensive, one-week coaching program that emphasizes an understanding of the sport sciences as they apply to tennis. The curriculum covers biomechanics, physiology, nutrition, physics, psychology, pedagogy and motor learning, as well as strategy and tactics. You must pre-qualify to participate in this program, such as having five years of experience coaching high-performance players, coaching players to national rankings and other demonstrable qualifications.
Other Certifications
Depending on which USTA workshop you attend, you will have the opportunity to obtain certification with the Professional Tennis Registry or United States Professional Tennis Associations. These are two of the tennis coaching trade associations, along with the online certifying agency, the National Tennis Academy. Upon completion of the two recreational USTA workshops, you may receive recreational certification from the PTR or USPTA. Upon completion of the High Performance Coaching Program, the PTR or USPTA certify your status as a high performance coach, depending on which organization you belong to. None of the USTA programs leads to full certification by the PTR and USPTA -- only the specific certifications associated with your USTA program.
References
- USTA: Recreational On-Court Training
- USTA: Which Workshop is Right for You?
- USTA: USTA High Performance Coaching Program
- Professional Tennis Registry: PTR Certification Process
- United States National Tennis Academy: United States National Tennis Academy
- United State Professional Tennis Association: Membership in USPTA
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