How to Apply for ICF Accreditation

At ICF, it’s our job to ensure high standards in the coaching profession. Those high standards start with our accredited providers. We believe the better the education offerings are, the better the coaches will be.

ICF Coaching Education provides accredited providers with a competitive edge both in their content and stature. Coaches worldwide recognize ICF as an industry leader and turn to us for information about initial and continuing education. ICF accreditation will give your program unquestioned credibility and the ability to expose your services to a wider network of coaches.

Though there are many steps in the accreditation process, ICF is here to help you navigate it. Get started with the steps below. At the bottom of the page, there are several video tutorials that will walk you through the application paths and the credential process.

NOTE: The ICF Accreditation levels are currently in transition. To learn more about these changes and enhancements, please visit the Evolution of Accreditation page.

Introducing the ICF Accreditation Portal

The ICF Accreditation portal is a new tool to simplify and enhance your accreditation experience so that you can spend more time focused on your students and the education you provide. This portal streamlines all accreditation needs into one place where you can:

Submit accreditation applications and renewals.
Check the status of your applications in real time.
Communicate directly with ICF Coaching Education staff.
And more!

To help familiarize you with the platform, we have created several resources, including detailed, comprehensive user guides and video tutorials. Access the resources for your needs below.

For New Accreditation Applications

If you are applying for accreditation for the first time, we’ve created a guide to walk you through using the ICF Accreditation Portal to apply. To get started, review the Accreditation Portal User Guide for new applicants. You can also access video tutorials to help guide you further.

Download the User Guide for New Applicants

For Existing ICF Accredited Organizations and Providers

For coaching education organizations that have already been accredited by ICF, we’ve created a user guide just for you, including directions on how to link individual profiles to your organization and complete transition applications in the ICF Accreditation Portal (plus more). You can also access video tutorials to help guide you further.

Download the User Guide for Existing ICF Accredited Providers

Video Tutorials: Using the ICF Accreditation Portal

In addition to the comprehensive user guides, we have also created video tutorials to walk you through various aspects of the ICF Accreditation Portal. Select a video below to watch it on our Vimeo channel.