 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi guys,
Ive been contemplating doing a ski instructors course in 08/09 and started gathering a bit of info, mainly from the London ski show, as im also "relatively" new to the sport i think u would be ALOT more in the know than i would, i have info on a course in Kicking Horse run by a company called Powder trip, who have been running for a couple of seasons now and seem very focused on personal attention and then then one in Whistler run by Base camp who are alot more established, any suggestions on any other academies or on these two ive mentioned, any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated....hope u all have a good season and hope to come on one of the trips...Brendan
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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brendan88, Where are you based?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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im in london....
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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You don't need an all-in course if you want to get basic Canadian ski instructor qualifications as they will accept anyone on CSIA courses.
However if you want the all-in deal, feel you'll need significant coaching to get up to standard, want a bunch of mates and your accomodation laid on a plate for you then most of these courses hit the mark. Really teh differentiating features are probably resort, accomodation standard, how many days structured coaching you get & extras lke cat skiing. Price things & work out what works best for you or if, like some candidates, mummy & daddy are paying just choose the most expensive  Try not to behave to much like a sheep though, I've been places where the Brit Instructor course kids are really obvious. Don't expect to earn back your course costs in the short to medium term.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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My wife did an 11 week course with Nonstopski http://www.nonstopski.com in Fernie, BC.
The whole thing was a great success - and now that she's in the CSIA scheme she can continue training and gaining more qualifcations by doing CSIA courses in Europe - she did a 2 week course in Zermatt last month. There are also CSIA courses in Andorra.
Basically you need to choose one of the academies, then expect to continue your learning by doing further training and refreshers. You have to do refreshers every 3 years anyway - so you might as well do a further qualfication at the same time.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Im off to Whistler with Nonstop in January, cant wait!
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the_fatadder, 
brendan88, You should think about whether you just want to do a course or whether you actually want to pursue ski teaching as a career. If the former, it probably doesn't matter which one you go for. If the latter you need to think seriously about where you will want to work before committing lots of money. Not all qualifications are accepted everywhere. You probably wouldn't be able to work in most of Europe until at last CSIA 3 for instance, whereas if you went on a European course that might not be the case. OTOH you might not be able to work in Canada or the States ..... Give it some serious thought. I asked where you were based because you seemed only to be considering course over the pond.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Thank you for all tour responses,
ill try and respond to all in one message, i dont expect to regain the course costs any time soon to be honest as im doing this as complete career change and with a long term goal of doing something ive found a true passion for,basically lifestyle is more important to me than a big bank balance...lol..my intial goal is level2 with lvl3asap, from what i understood with a level 2 gained in Canada you would be eligible to work in most places in Europe, exept France who apparntly require a level 3, is this correct or would i need to do a specific European qualification, i ask as i would prefer not to close any doors for future prospects and have the option of working in both Canada/US as well as Europe, i looked at the nonstop website and it looks like a well established professional company....mmmmm...decisions decisions
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Yes.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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brendan88, CSIA Level 3 is ISIA. The top level qualifications required in Europe are ISTD that is one level up, or CSIA level 4. Britain, France, Italy and Austria are now known as the 'Eurozone' and have top qualifications that are equivalent to each other ISTD. You can normally get a job in Europe as a trainee with an ISIA but not before. (There's been a long and complicated thread about this). USA full cert is only ISIA. Therefore your supposition that it's only in France that difficulties arise is not correct. You would only be able to work in Italy for a short period of time. In Austia you can sometimes get jobs with lesser qualifications, but you would be paid very peanuts! Switzerland is not in Europe of course. To my knowledge Spain and Germany are trying to get included in the Eurozone, and are working to that end.
This is the point: if you want to make ski teaching your career then that's great, but you must be prepared for the long haul (more than 4 years and lots of money), and you need to consider where you would want to work until you get your ISTD. Once you have that you can go anywhere. You should carefully consider living costs while training and transport costs to training venues etc. before making your decision.
Do you have a second language? You will need one, so for instance, if choosing CSIA it would probably be better to be on the East Coast when you can learn some (rather odd) French, rather than the totally English speaking west coast - sorry veeeight,  .
Lots for you to consider. Don't rush into it but think long and hard. Of course lifestyle is a very big part of being a professional ski teacher, but (not to put you off) it is likely to beggar you to get qualified and you'll never be rich!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Thanks guys...
It all seems a bit daunting to be honest, and there seems to be alot of conflicting opinions (im sure not AS daunting as it seems tho), i think my best bet would be to sit and chat to someone who has been there and done, DOING that so i have a clear picture and understanding of the full process and what u can and cant do, i was thinking of approaching one of the academies that offer these courses to try and have more of an informal chat but i feel they might just focus on selling me their package as opposed to giving me all the RIGHT info i require, any suggestions on anyone in the London area that would be willing to let me pick their brain a bit and give me all the pros and cons per say..
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You know it makes sense.
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brendan88, ring nonstopski and ask to speak to Rupert. He has his reputation to think about and he will not lie to you, plus he will be able to tell you factually which ex-nonstopski graduates are working in which resort.
I have no connection with nonstopski other than knowing Rupert personally, and that they are coming to Whistler for the first time this season.
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