Questions and answers about the new National Boards for fitness professionals

American Fitness, Nov-Dec, 2004

What is the National Board of Fitness Examiners (NBFE) and How Does It Work?

The NBFE was founded in 2003 as a non-profit organization for two principal purposes. First, the NBFE will address and define a series of prescribed "scopes of practice" for all fitness professionals. Second, the NBFE will determine the "standards of practice" for various fitness professionals, including floor instructors, group exercise instructors, general personal trainers, specialists in areas such as youth and senior fitness, and medical exercise specialists.

"Standards of practice" are a set of skills and a body of knowledge that a fitness professional is expected to master in order to meet the highest standards of the field. The first formal standards of practice to be issued by the NBFE will focus on personal fitness trainers. Based on these standards of practice, the NBFE will go on to generate standardized national examinations for personal fitness trainers in collaboration with a leading international testing organization starting in March or April 2005.

A "standardized" national exam is one that measures the same body of knowledge, skill and competence in the same way for all test-takers. Thus, everyone who successfully completes a National Board exam has proven that he or she meets the same national standard of excellence, regardless of where he or she lives or which courses he or she has taken.

The first exam will be titled "The NBFE Personal Fitness Trainer Examination." By passing the exam, a fitness professional will be permitted to use the title "NBFE Registered PFT" (National Board of Fitness Examiners Registered Personal Fitness Trainer) and will enjoy the prestige and confidence that will come with being registered with the NBFE.

Standards of practice and standardized exams for other areas of fitness instruction will be addressed toward the end of 2005.

Bear in mind that the NBFE is not a certifying organization in itself, and will not take the place of any certifying organization like AFAA. Rather, the NBFE will set national standards of excellence in the fitness industry and provide tools to test whether a fitness professional has met those standards. Individual personal fitness trainers must successfully complete a personal training certification program from an approved NBFE Affiliate or meet other qualifications prior to taking the NBFE exam. (See below for more information about NBFE Affiliates.)

Today, most organizations that certify fitness professionals rely on their own standards and their own tests in making certification decisions. Consequently, the standards for becoming a personal trainer vary from organization to organization, and so do the tests and ultimately, the skills of those receiving certifications. The NBFE will establish one national standard of excellence that every certifying organization and college is free to adopt and use. This also provides a means of achieving standardization for all certifying organizations. In a sense, one might say that the NBFE "standardizes" the various certification organizations. In this way, the fitness industry and the consumer will be confident that every fitness professional who has passed the National Boards has met the same high standards.

What are the advantages of taking and passing the "National Boards"?

The examinations to be generated by the NBFE will permit fitness professionals to demonstrate their knowledge, skill and competence by successfully completing nationally standardized exams.

Fitness professionals who have passed the national boards will be registered with the NBFE. Employers, clients, the medical and allied health professions, insurance companies and the public can readily verify that a particular individual has achieved the distinction of passing the National Boards.

The NBFE has been approached by at least one state that is actively considering a program for the licensing of fitness professionals for the purpose of determining whether or not NBFE examinations might be used for licensing purposes. If state licensing comes into existence, it is likely that the National Boards would be adopted by various states as a standard exam that fitness professionals would need to pass in order to be licensed. (See below for more information on licensing.)

What "National Boards" are available?

The NBFE is presently working on several specialized versions of the National Boards. The first one to be developed will be a Personal Fitness Trainer National Board Examination. Additional exams in other areas of specialization for fitness professionals will be issued in the future.

Once a fitness professional has passed the Personal Fitness Trainer National Board Examination, he or she will be entitled to use the designation "NBFE Registered PFT," that is, "National Board of Fitness Examiners Registered Personal Fitness Trainer."

How long does registration last?

Once a fitness professional has passed the required National Boards and has been registered with the NBFE, the registration will remain in effect for two years.