"How to become an ontological coach" is one of the most common searches around this discipline, and also one that finds the worst information: a lot of course advertising, little honest explanation of what you actually study and what to expect. This article is that explanation. It doesn't sell a program —below I describe how ICO Tandil's works, but the current cohort has already started and there's no plan to open another one for now—. The point is to help you reach the decision with real criteria.
Is it a "degree"? What you get when you finish
In Argentina, coaching is not a regulated profession: there's no national law, no mandatory license, and no official licensing degree like a psychologist's or a lawyer's. What you get when you finish a program is a certification issued by the institute, and its weight depends on two things: which association backs it —in Argentina, AACOP (Argentine Association of Professional Ontological Coaching) or FICOP; internationally, the ICF or AEAPro— and the reputation of that institute. Some institutions have also gotten the Ministry of Education to recognize the program as a tertiary-level degree, making the title official. Most have not.
Translated: accreditation matters, but it's not the only thing. A certificate with no real practice behind it doesn't make you a coach, whatever seal it carries.
What you actually study
The theoretical base is the Ontology of Language, a body of ideas built on Humberto Maturana's biology of cognition and developed by Rafael Echeverría and Fernando Flores. From it come the core concepts of the work: that we don't see the world as it is but as we are; that automatic judgments open and close actions; that speaking is acting (requests, promises, declarations).
But a serious program is not a philosophy course. At least half the time is supervised practice: coaching real people —classmates at first, external people later— with a trainer listening to the session and giving you feedback on what worked and what didn't. You train to tell a fact from a judgment, to hear what the other person isn't saying, to ask the question that opens rather than the one that closes, to carry a conversation from a complaint to a design of actions. You don't learn that by reading: you learn it by doing it badly many times with someone who corrects you.
A program without supervised practice doesn't train coaches, it trains people who can talk about coaching.
How long it takes and what formats exist
Depending on the institute, training runs from 10 months to 2 years. One-year programs usually cover personal coaching (life coaching); two-year ones add a second year of organizational or team coaching, which is a different thing: requests and promises, coordination, culture, leadership. Some programs are 100% live online, others in person, and many are hybrid. The usual requirement is completed secondary school or being over 21 or 24; you don't need a university degree or a background in psychology, and in fact people come from very different fields: HR, education, health, retail, trades.
How to choose: what to check before you enroll
Four questions worth asking any program before you pay:
1. How many hours of supervised practice does it have, and who supervises? This is the number that best predicts whether you'll come out knowing how to coach. If the answer is vague, that's a signal.
2. Who teaches the classes? Not the name of the institute: the actual trainers. Do they have real practice as coaches, or do they only teach?
3. What accreditation does it have, and what does that accreditation mean? A logo from an association nobody knows says nothing. AACOP, FICOP, ICF and AEAPro are recognized references.
4. Do they promise an "express certification" in a weekend? Run. It doesn't exist.
Training as a coach and doing a coaching process are different things. If what you want is to work through a breakdown of your own —a decision, a pattern, a relationship—, you don't need a two-year program: you need sessions. Training is for people who want to support others as a profession.
The case of ICO Tandil
To be transparent about where I'm writing from: I'm Academic Director of the Instituto de Coaching y Oratoria (ICO), Tandil. The program is two years —Year 1 Life Coach, Year 2 Organizational Coach— with dual international accreditation (ICO + AICM) and a strong focus on supervised practice from the first months. The current cohort has already started and there's no plan to open a new one for now. If you want to stay in touch for when the next one opens, message me and I'll let you know; no commitment.
Thinking about training as a coach and want me to walk you through the path?
Message on WhatsApp I'm looking for a coaching process for myselfFrequently asked questions
There's no national law regulating the profession and no mandatory license. There's no official "licensing degree": what you get is a certification issued by the training institute, backed —in serious programs— by associations such as AACOP or FICOP, and by international bodies. Some institutions have also obtained Ministry of Education recognition as a tertiary-level program.
Most programs require completed secondary school or a minimum age (usually 21 or 24). You don't need a prior university degree or experience in psychology: people come from very different fields —HR, education, health, retail, trades—.
Yes. Many programs are 100% live online or combine online sessions with in-person instances. What can't be skipped, whether in person or online, is supervised practice: coaching real people with a trainer observing and correcting. A program without that part does not train coaches.
Depending on the institute, between 10 months and 2 years. One-year programs usually cover personal coaching; two-year ones add a second year of organizational or team coaching. Duration matters less than the amount of supervised practice and who supervises it.
Comments