Do I need to register with Fitness Australia to work as a PT in Sydney?

[dorcey]

So I just arrived in the country. My qualifications from Ireland are recognized over here. I've got a Letter of Portability from REPS to show this. Now, my qualification is just slightly over 2 years old. So Fitness Australia wouldn't allow me to register unless I can show 20 CEC points over the last 2 years. I've done a lot of workshops and seminars but I don't think any of them contributed towards CEC points.

Do I even need to bother registering with Fitness Australia? It's very costly and it seems like a time consuming process. I can get insurance from an independent company, from what I heard.

I'm looking to work in any gym that will employ me, pretty much, as long as the equipment is half decent. I have about 8 months experience in the industry. I also have S and C certifications as well as Kettlebells, Box Fit and a few other things.

Would being registered with Fitness Australia help my employment prospects much?

[KyleAaron]

The REPS system is one to recognise qualifications, not registrations. It's so that when an Aussie goes to Ireland or a South African to the UAE, when the locals hear that you did Course X, though they won't know what the hell it is, they know it's equivalent to Course Y in their own country, and then they know what level to put you in when registered. You can see the equivalancies here.

Knowing which qualification is equivalent to which lets you register with the local body at the appropriate level. If I go to Ireland, I can't just show my FA registration, I have to register with REPS Ireland.

In theory you could apply for jobs, then when you get them, register. In practice no gym manager will have heard of this system, nor will insurance companies, so the gyms will look at your resume and bin it. You can wait on them to sort things out and recognise it, but it'll mean the gym job goes to someone local instead - I've seen a very good candidate from NZ get rejected by a manager who wouldn't listen to me - and it'll take months to get insurance. So register straight away, don't wait to get a job and then register. You can read about it here.

Expensive? Registration is $110 a year or something. Even in the YMCA where I worked, people were paying at least $70 an hour for personal training, and casual gym instructor shifts were $25/hr. You get one client and it pays for itself in a week or two.

[rdferguson]

Officially, you don't need FA (or equivalent) registration to work as a trainer in Australia. However, the big chain gym franchises won't hire you without it, nor will a large portion of privately owned businesses. So I'd highly recommend getting the paperwork ASAP. It won't make you look like a "better" candidate so much as it will make you look like a "candidate," period.

If you go on the FA website, there are plenty of CEC courses that give large amounts of points. I did a single course last year that was 19 CEC's. A lot of courses fall in the 8-15 CEC range, so 2-3 of those will get you all the credits you need. If in doubt, do more courses in the areas you love to specialise in. So if you love kettlebells or strength and conditioning (which I get the impression of from your OP), do some more kettlebell and S/C courses -- you can never be too specialised in your specialist area, you'll enjoy the course, and while most clients won't seek information about your background (you need to present them with that in a way that demonstrates that you can use your background to help them), if you've got multiple courses under your belt in a specific area, it shows that you're actually dedicated to being good with that niche rather than having done a weekend once upon a time to be vaguely passable at it.

[dorcey]

Thanks for the replies guys. I sent them a mail with all of my certs and stuff today. According to that Global Portability Matrix that KyleAaron linked, I might have to undertake some business CEC's before my qualification is recognised. Hopefully this might slip under the radar!

Anyway, unfortunately, the Fitness Australia offices are closed for the week for staff training. I'll have to wait. Anyway, I'll call into some gyms and tell them the story. Can either of ya recommend a gym in Sydney to PT out of? I'm a member of Snap Fitness at the mo. Simply cos it was cheap and didn't require a lock in contract. I personally prefer the more hardcore style training facilities though. Any ideas?

Thanks again bros.

[hdfitnessau]

A great gym in Sydney I would say is fitness playground. Go talk to my mate Darius Alligan, tell him I sent you along, he'll look after you. If you need cecs I have a kettlebell cert you can do via distance as well.

Jason

[dorcey]

A great gym in Sydney I would say is fitness playground. Go talk to my mate Darius Alligan, tell him I sent you along, he'll look after you. If you need cecs I have a kettlebell cert you can do via distance as well.

Jason

That place looks amazing! Definitely more like the type of place I'd enjoy working in, as opposed to one of the big chain gyms. I actually really need to get my shoulder sorted before I start working though. Injured it months ago doing a handstand on an unstable surface. Tried to train through it for months, then gave it a months rest whilst getting physio but it's still hurting me. I'm sure I've done something to the rotator cuff. Think I'll try find a physio here in Sydney and see if they can fix me up.

I'll get back to you about the online Kettlebell CEC course. Might be perfect cos it's definitely unwise for me to swing a kettlebell in real life with my bad shoulder.

Thanks again.

[rdferguson]

I don't know Sydney very well at all (I think I've spent a total of about 8 hours in Sydney throughout my entire life), but to the best of my knowledge there's a PTC there, and PTC's are about as hardcore as gyms get. Again, to the best of my knowledge, the owners of PTC's don't look for FA (or equivalent) registration -- I remember talking to the owner of PTC Brisbane and he claimed FA and the like are scams (you get much cheaper insurance through them, though). But the standards of any given owner will be different, so I make no promises there.

[hdfitnessau]

You're welcome. Go talk to Darius he might be able to help the shoulder out. He's got some great rehab knowledge