The Ultimate Guide to Professional Ayurveda Certification Options
Navigating the multitude of options for Ayurveda Certifications can feel complex and overwhelming. This article will help simplify and help you digest your options and considerations.
Between 300 million to 2 billion people worldwide are practicing Yoga, and Ayurveda is a natural next step on this path.
Ayurveda is becoming an increasingly recognized field of study as people all over the world discover its wisdom and practical healing tools. Trained Ayurvedic Professionals are now found in many areas of healthcare including ND, MD, RN, NP, LMT, LAc, PT, PTA, DC, RDN, Nutritional Therapy, Psychotherapy, Counseling, Skin Care, Wellness Spas, Pancha Karma clinics, Yoga Teachers, Fitness Coaches, School Teachers, Wellness Coaches, Holistic Health Coaches, Life Coaching, Herbalists, Professional Chefs & Caterers.
What should I consider when choosing a program?
New students will want to weigh all the factors of their educational choice, as there are many different factors to consider.
1. Certification You will receive:
It’s really confusing (even for those within the industry!) to understand all the different certification options. Below, we comprehensively break down all the different certifying bodies and professional designations. Keep reading for more.
2. Budget
Programs range in cost from a couple of thousand dollars (typically these programs are not certified through NAMA), all the way up to 3-year master’s programs for $30,000+ dollars. You’ll want to find a program that fits your current budget.
3. Time and Schedule of the program
Because it’s an unregulated field, there’s a huge variety of curriculums and schedules available. Most programs have moved online during COVID, making it more accessible for people all over the world to study Ayurveda. Many schools require you to be in class for 15-20 hours a week, which may not be practical if you are working a full time job.
4. Live-online classes or Pre-recorded video classes
You will want to ask what percentage of class time is a pre-recorded video as some schools provide more than 50% of their content from a pre-recorded video. Some schools are only live-online classes. What works best for your learning style?
We designed our Foundations of Ayurveda program to be a middle ground between a big university masters program, and a smaller more intimate school. Like a major university program, you’ll be able to apply all your hours towards a NAMA & IAYT certification, with the flexibility and intimacy of a smaller program. Also, the Sarasvati Institute classes are 95% LIVE-Online classes. We believe in the power of the group as a healing vehicle so prefer to keep classes live, not pre-recorded videos.
The most important thing to understand about Ayurveda Certification Options:
The most important thing to understand about Ayurvedic Certifications is that there is currently not any legal requirement to practice Ayurveda. This surprises many people when they first learn this. Like teaching Yoga, Ayurveda is a largely unregulated field that fits outside of the current legal landscape in most countries. Organizations like the Yoga Alliance and the National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA) are professional organizations (not legal) that may issue professional diplomas and certificates of completion or degrees. There are currently no established legal requirements for Ayurvedic professionals, providers of educational status, or standards.
That doesn’t mean it’s not valuable or worthwhile to get a certification. Professional certification is typically what qualifies you for most jobs and gives you the essential knowledge you need to practice Ayurveda.
Professional certifications will no doubt help, but they certainly will not buy you into a career as an Ayurvedic Practitioner, like a medical license. As an Ayurvedic Professional, you must pave your own path in building qualifications, trust, and credibility in the eyes of clients and potential employers. Many who study Ayurveda are already practicing in wellness, yoga and/or healthcare, and using Ayurveda to supplement their careers. Frankly, there are not loads of Ayurveda-specific jobs available on the market.
Because it’s not a legal requirement, that means when choosing your option for certification, you should choose the certification that you personally resonate with the most. It’s more important that you set yourself up for a long-term career and select a program you feel you will connect with the most.
In a moment, we’ll discuss how we’ve used an innovative design for our Foundations of Ayurveda course to make sure you’re setting yourself up for the best possible future in Ayurveda.
What are the different certifying bodies in Ayurveda?
Understanding the various organizations of certification can be confusing because each organization uses different terminology to designate their certification levels, and those terms often conflict!
National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA):
The current standard-setting organization in the US is the National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA) https://www.ayurvedanama.org/ At this time, NAMA is the only established Ayurvedic Professional organization that provides widely recognized board certification through proctored exams. This is overseen by the National Ayurvedic Medical Association Certification Board, https://www.namacb.org/
NAMACB has designated and set educational requirements for four levels of Ayurvedic professionals, in order of increasing educational requirements and scope of practice. They are: Ayurvedic Health Counselor (AHC), Ayurvedic Yoga Therapist (AYT), Ayurvedic Practitioner (AP), and Ayurvedic Doctor (AD). Each designation has a different scope of practice and board exam. For more information about NAMA-defined professional levels, educational requirements, or requirements, please consult https://www.ayurvedanama.org/professional-educational-requirements/.
All classroom hours in Sarasvati Institute programs can apply towards your certificate of completion for NAMA certification.
What am I allowed to call myself after Receiving my Certificates of Completion?
The four Ayurvedic designations through NAMA are:
Ayurvedic Health Counselor: Applicants must undergo a minimum of 600 hours of training at a NAMA recognized school. Co-requisite: 4 credits of college level anatomy & physiology or equivalent.
Ayurvedic Yoga Therapist: Applicant must undergo a minimum of 800 hours of Yoga Therapy training and 600 hours of Ayurvedic training, both at a NAMA recognized school to ensure the student truly understands how to integrate these two sister sciences. Co-requisite: 4 credits of college level anatomy & physiology or equivalent.
Ayurvedic Practitioner: Applicants must undergo a minimum of 1500 hours of training at a NAMA recognized school. Co-requisite: 6 credits of college level anatomy & physiology or equivalent.
Ayurvedic Doctor: Applicants must undergo a minimum of 4000 hours of training at a NAMA recognized school. Co-requisite: six credits of college level anatomy & physiology or equivalent.
Please check the NAMA website listed above for any changes or updates.
The challenge for most new students of Ayurveda is that 600-1500 hours is a long and expensive undertaking that typically takes 2-3 years and 10’s of thousands of dollars. Most new students simply want a foundational understanding of Ayurveda to decide if it’s something they want to pursue long-term.
That’s why we designed our 300 hour Foundations of Ayurveda & Ayurvedic Yoga course, which is a year-long, and will leave you with a certificate of completion as an “Ayurvedic Wellness Lifestyle Advisor” through the Sarasvati Institute, as well as with a Yoga Alliance 300-hour RYT certificate of completion.
If you decide to go onto further study, all hours can be applied to your NAMA certificate of completion hours to become an Ayurvedic Health Counselor and Ayurvedic Yoga Therapist at the Sarasvati Institute.
After taking our Foundations of Ayurveda course, if you decide you want to go further into study, our 3-year Advanced Ayurveda study program will leave you with a certificate of completion as an Ayurveda Yoga Therapist through NAMA and a Certified Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT) through IAYT (NAMA requires passing of the AHC board exam for the Ayurvedic Health Counselor designation).
The Yoga Alliance:
You will find many Ayurveda programs that are certified under the Yoga Alliance. This can be a bit deceiving for a couple of reasons:
The Yoga Alliance is designed for introductory Yoga education, which is fundamentally different from Ayurveda education. Many programs weave Ayurveda into their 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training, and market it to both those seeking Yoga training and those seeking basic Ayurveda training. If you plan to be an Ayurvedic Professional, we often recommend to new students to follow a NAMA certified program, as it is by far the most recognized certifying organization in the world of Ayurveda. In the future, if Ayurveda ever is regulated by law, it will almost certainly happen through NAMA, and not the Yoga Alliance.
A Yoga Alliance certificate is not a certification, but is considered a “registration”. It’s sort of like being a part of a club and directory, more than it is a professional certification. Nonetheless, most Yoga Studios will not hire someone unless they have at least a 500-hour Registered Yoga Teacher recognition through Yoga Alliance. So it does carry value in our industry.
With that said, many students studying Ayurveda come to it from practicing Yoga. We recognize the importance for students to be able to apply their education hours to as many professional certifications as possible. That’s why our Foundations of Ayurveda Training is also registered as a 300-hour advanced training program under the Yoga Alliance. Many of our students in our Foundations of Ayurveda Program take our program rather than doing a traditional 300 Hour Advance Yoga Teacher Training, and it’s a perfectly suitable option for this.
Our Foundations of Ayurveda program is a great alternative for 200 hour yoga teachers who want to get their advanced 300-Hour Yoga Alliance Registration.
International Association of Yoga Therapists
The International Association of Yoga Therapists has established credibility in the yoga world as a more rigorous professional standard for yoga teachers. Teachers who are professionally certified by the IAYT must go through 1,000 hours of education to call themselves a Yoga Therapist. Currently, the IAYT does not regulate Ayurveda at all.
However, the hours from both our Foundations of Ayurveda & Ayurvedic Yoga, and Advanced Ayurveda & Ayurvedic Yoga Therapist Program can all be applied towards your certificate of completion through the IAYT at the Sarasvati Institute.
The Sarasvati Institute is one of the only organizations in the world where all your educational hours can be applied towards your certificate of completion and registration at NAMA, The Yoga Alliance, and the IAYT.
So when you do your Foundations of Ayurveda training, you’ll be able to get a feel for Ayurveda at a relatively smaller investment. You’ll also be well on your way by applying your knowledge gained to any professional certification you’d like to receive in the future.
What is the difference between small Ayurveda programs, and Major University Style programs?
Large university programs are typically all registered through NAMA, making them a credible option for study. If in the future Ayurveda becomes regulated and certification is legally required, you’ll be set up with credible hours towards a legal certification.
Things to consider when applying for a university program:
Programs tend to be long (2-3 years) and costs range from $25,000-$30,000. It’s a major investment. This should be weighed deeply before committing yourself, especially considering your certification will not guarantee you any sort of a job placement. Ayurveda requires practitioners to be more entrepreneurial, and much like traditional college, after receiving your education you still have to generate your own opportunities in terms of finding a job. There are not always Ayurveda-specific jobs available in every area, and therefore one must create their own opportunities. Most who study Ayurveda are already practicing in wellness, healthcare or Yoga and using Ayurveda to supplement their careers.
Programs tend to be larger at universities. Many universities now have 500+ students moving through their programs at a single time. Universities are often forced to strip Ayurveda of its spiritual roots to make it more acceptable for a state-funded school.
Much of the content in larger universities is recorded (not live) so you’ll spend a lot of time learning on your own, with access to teachers/mentors to help you along.
Are you interested in getting a strong foundation in Ayurveda to apply to your current profession?
We designed our Foundations of Ayurveda course specifically to address many of these challenges for new students of Ayurveda.
All hours can be used towards your certificate of completion with the National Ayurvedic Medical Association, just like any major university program.
All hours can also be applied to become a certified yoga therapist with the IAYT.
Our program meets one weekend per month (Friday-Sunday) online. This allows most busy full-time professionals to complete their initial certificate of completion while working.
If you are a 200 hour yoga teacher, the program will also you to register as a 500 hour RYT with the Yoga Alliance on completion.
Our groups are smaller (40-50 people in each class), and we focus equally on the traditional spiritual roots of Ayurveda, and the modern western integrations with science & nutrition.
You’ll leave with a certificate of completion through the Sarasvati Institute as an Ayurvedic Wellness Lifestyle Advisor.
To learn more about our Foundations of Ayurveda program, click here:
About the Author:
Susan Bass holds a Master of Science of Ayurveda & Integrative Medicine from Maharishi University. She is a board-Certified NAMA Ayurvedic Practitioner, C-IAYT and E-RYT 500. Susan has been training people in Ayurvedic medicine traditions for over 16 years. Susan has taught Ayurveda at the National University of Natural Medicine, University of Portland School of Nursing, OHSU Medical School, Clark College, and at the Institute of Digestive Health. She also studied under Dr. Vasant Lad at the Ayurvedic Institute from 2004-2015. Susan is the founder of the Sarasvati Institute of Ayurveda & Yoga Therapy. https://www.sarasvatiayurveda.com/
Susan left her career at The Wall Street Journal after Ayurveda and Yoga saved her life, as she wanted to share this ancient, sacred knowledge that helped her so much. Susan holds a BA in Mathematics from the University of Mississippi and graduated from the Kripalu School of Ayurveda in 2006.
