The Ultimate Guide to Ayurveda certifications.
Navigating the options for Ayurveda certifications can feel complex and overwhelming. This is the explainer Susan wishes she had when she was choosing her own path.
National Ayurvedic Medical Association™ (NAMA), International Association of Yoga Therapists™ (IAYT), the Ayurvedic Accreditation Commission (AAC), Yoga Alliance and American Yoga Council Recognized and Approved Program.
Choosing a program, four lenses.
Every Ayurveda program is structured differently. These are the four questions Susan walks through with every prospective student before recommending any specific path.
The certification you will actually receive.
It is genuinely confusing, even for those inside the industry, to sort the different certification options. Start by understanding what the program will hand you at the end and what that credential actually qualifies you to do.
Budget.
Programs range from a couple thousand dollars for non-NAMA-certified introductions to three-year master’s programs over thirty thousand. Pick a program your budget can sustain through completion.
Time and schedule.
Because Ayurveda is unregulated, schedules vary widely. Most programs are online. Many require fifteen to twenty hours per week, which can conflict with a full-time job. Ask how much weekly time the program will actually need.
Live online or pre-recorded.
Some schools deliver more than half their content as pre-recorded video. Others run almost entirely live. Sarasvati is roughly ninety-five percent live online, because we believe the cohort is itself a healing vehicle.
There is no legal requirement to practice Ayurveda.
NAMA, IAYT, and Yoga Alliance are professional organizations that issue diplomas and certificates. They are not legal requirements. There are currently no established legal standards for Ayurvedic professionals in the United States.
Certification qualifies you for employment and gives you essential knowledge, but it does not guarantee a job. As an Ayurvedic professional, you pave your own path in building qualifications, trust, and credibility. Most of our students already practice in wellness, yoga, or healthcare and use Ayurveda to deepen the work they are already doing.
The National Ayurvedic Medical Association.
NAMA is the only established Ayurvedic professional organization in the United States that provides widely recognized board certification through proctored exams. The NAMACB designates four professional levels.
| Designation | Requirements | Scope |
|---|---|---|
AHC Ayurvedic Health Counselor | 600+ hours at a NAMA-recognized school plus 4 college anatomy and physiology credits. | Entry-level certification. |
AYT Ayurvedic Yoga Therapist | 800+ hours Yoga Therapy plus 600+ hours Ayurvedic training at a NAMA-recognized school plus 4 college anatomy and physiology credits. | Integrates both disciplines. |
AP Ayurvedic Practitioner | 1500+ hours at a NAMA-recognized school plus 6 college anatomy and physiology credits. | Advanced practice scope. |
AAP Advanced Ayurvedic Practitioner | 4000+ hours at a NAMA-recognized school plus 6 college anatomy and physiology credits. | Highest level of practice. |
All classroom hours in Sarasvati programs apply toward your NAMA certificate of completion. Foundations (300 hours) is the first step toward AHC and AYT; the Advanced program completes the path to AYT.
Yoga Alliance and IAYT.
The Yoga Alliance.
Many Ayurveda programs certify under Yoga Alliance, but the Yoga Alliance was designed for introductory Yoga education, which is fundamentally different from Ayurveda education. For Ayurvedic professionals, NAMA certification is the recommendation.
A Yoga Alliance credential is not technically a certification; it is a registration. That said, most yoga studios still require at least the 500-hour RYT recognition. Sarasvati Foundations is registered as a 300-hour advanced training program under Yoga Alliance, which serves as an alternative to a second 300-hour Yoga Teacher Training.
IAYT.
The International Association of Yoga Therapists establishes credibility in yoga therapy through rigorous professional standards. Teachers must complete 1,000 hours to claim the Yoga Therapist designation. IAYT does not regulate Ayurveda directly, but hours from both Sarasvati programs apply toward IAYT certification.
The Sarasvati Institute is one of the only organizations in the world where all your educational hours apply toward your certificate of completion and registration at NAMA, the Yoga Alliance, and the IAYT.
Why we are not a university program.
Major university Ayurveda programs run two to three years and cost twenty-five to thirty thousand dollars. They are NAMA-registered and credible if the field is ever legally regulated. The trade-offs are real, though, and worth weighing.
- Large cohorts of five hundred students or more. Mentorship is hard to come by.
- State-funded programs strip the spiritual roots of Ayurveda to meet accreditation standards.
- Most content is recorded; the program asks you to be self-directed.
- Certification does not guarantee a job. The market for Ayurveda-specific roles is small.
Sarasvati was designed as the middle ground. Smaller cohorts of forty to fifty students. Equal weight on the spiritual roots and the modern western physiology. One weekend per month, live, so you can keep your day job while you study.
What you get with us.
All hours apply.
Every classroom hour in Foundations applies toward your NAMA certificate of completion and toward IAYT Certified Yoga Therapist credentialing.
One weekend a month.
Friday through Sunday, online. Designed so you can keep your full-time work while you study. Twelve months. Three hundred hours.
Forty to fifty students.
Small enough to know each other. Big enough to be a real cohort. Two hundred-hour yoga teachers register as 500-hour RYT on completion.
Certificate of completion: Ayurvedic Wellness Lifestyle Advisor.
Two doors in.
Talk to Susan, or read the program brochure first.