Frequently Asked Questions

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It lasts 2 years from the day you pass your exam. To renew, complete 2.0 CECs and pay the renewal fee before it expires. Our team handles the process with you.

It’s no longer active, which could affect your job if your gym requires a current certification. If it lapses, you’ll need to go through reinstatement instead of a simple renewal, so it helps to track your expiry date and start early.

180 days from when you enroll, that covers both your coursework and your exam when redeemed. Most people finish in 3 to 6 months.

The proctored exam has 120 questions and takes 2 hours. It’s NCCA-accredited and already set up for you. The non-proctored exam has 100 questions and takes 3 hours and it’s open book. It’s not NCCA-accredited, and you have to email us to request it before redeeming your keys.

No, once you activate an exam in your account, that choice is final. If you’re not sure, email us first.

No experience needed. Our students range from teenagers to people in their 50s changing careers. You just need to be 18 or older, have a high school diploma, and hold a current CPR/AED certification.

The numbers speak for themselves: 1.9 million+ trainers certified worldwide, more than any other provider. Every NFL, NBA, and MLS team employs NASM-certified coaches. In 2025 alone, 19,338 people passed the exam. 86% of graduates felt ready to work right away. And it holds a 4.9-star rating, without asking for reviews. It’s a reputation that’s been earned, not bought.

Because it means you’re supported by a local team who understands the Canadian job market, not a call center overseas. Your certificate still comes fully from NASM. NPTA™ just makes sure you have real support, real experience, and real help finding work here at home.

Finish your certification and apprenticeship hours, and we’ll actively help you land your first role or keep working with you until you do. Ask your advisor for full details on how it works. If you don’t find a job within 90 days, we’ll refund 5% of your enrollment fee from your Apprenticeship Program.

A Certified Nutrition Coach helps clients improve their eating habits, build healthier lifestyles, and achieve nutrition-related goals through education, accountability, and behaviour change coaching.

No. Registered Dietitians diagnose and treat medical nutrition conditions. Nutrition Coaches educate and support healthy individuals through evidence-based coaching while working within their professional scope.

Absolutely. No previous nutrition education is required.

Yes. The entire course is completed online, allowing you to study whenever it fits your schedule.

You have 365 days from activation to complete your course.

Yes. Many graduates add nutrition coaching to their existing services or begin coaching clients after completing the certification.

Yes. NASM is one of the most respected names in fitness and wellness education worldwide. NPTA™ is proud to be NASM’s Official Partner in Canada, providing Canadian students with local support while delivering the official NASM certification.

Your certification is the same NASM certification. The difference is the experience. With NPTA™, you receive Canadian advisors, local student support, continuing education opportunities, and guidance from a team that understands the Canadian fitness and wellness industry.

It’s a 40-hour, in-person, hands-on training program at NPTA’s downtown Vancouver academy where new personal trainers run real sessions with real clients, under the direct mentorship of a working team, before training clients on their own or entering the job market.

Yes. NPTA™ is the only fitness education provider in Canada offering a real-client, in-person apprenticeship program of this kind, most trainers elsewhere build this experience on their own, over months or years, without structured mentorship, and often after they’ve already been passed over for jobs.

Yes. Employers hiring personal trainers are choosing between candidates who are certified and candidates who are certified and have real, documented client experience. The apprenticeship gives you the latter, 40 hours of real sessions, a Letter of Recommendation from mentors who watched you train, and the composure that comes from having already done the job, not just studied it.

It’s built for newly certified personal trainers who want real-client experience before working independently or applying for jobs, and for trainers who’ve been certified for a while but never got the hands-on reps to feel confident running a full session on their own.

Your certification proves you know the science, anatomy, program design, assessment theory. The apprenticeship proves you can apply it, live, with a real person in front of you, while a mentor is there to catch what you miss. One gets you certified; the other gets you hired.

40 hours total, delivered in flexible 4-hour blocks. How long it takes depends entirely on how often you come in, once a week, three times a week, or anywhere in between.

The Academy is in downtown Vancouver, 856 Homer St, Suite 110. The program is currently in-person only; an online version is coming soon.

You’ll run real first appointments, perform live assessments, deliver assisted stretching, build nutrition conversations into sessions, and design full programs, all with real clients of different ages and injury histories, under mentor supervision.

It’s one-on-one mentorship with Jesse Benson, who has delivered more than 50,000+ training sessions and mentors trainers across Canada and the Philippines. Sessions cover exam help, career advice, industry contacts, and tools and resources.

Jesse started working at Executive Lifestyle, Vancouver’s first-ever premium personal training studio as a cleaner in 2006, and has since delivered more than 50,000+ training sessions. He’s now Founder and CEO of NPTA™ and Fit Integrated Wellness (FITIN), a fitness entrepreneur with over two decades in the industry, creator of the 10 Pillars™ Framework, and host of the Built by Benson podcast. NPTA™ has expanded beyond Canada into the Philippines, and Jesse personally mentors trainers globally.

Trainers at any stage, whether you’re still studying for your exam, handling your first few clients, or an established trainer figuring out your next career move.

Anything stuck in your way right now, exam prep, your first clients, career paths you may not know about like online training, working abroad, corporate wellness, or opening your own gym, plus direct introductions to NPTA’s gym partners.

Use the “Book a Mentorship Session with Jesse” button, or speak to an advisor about mentorship packages if you’re looking for ongoing mentorship rather than a single session.

Learn Now, Pay Later is an NPTA™ Canada financing option powered by Elective that lets you begin your certification immediately and then pay it down in fixed monthly installments.

Pay As You Learn is an NPTA™ Canada financing option powered by Elective, built for students with no credit, poor credit, or who have been declined for regular financing. It’s available on 3 or 6 month plans at zero interest. Conditions apply.

Learn Now, Pay Later is subject to financing approval and a credit check. Pay As You Learn is designed for students who don’t have credit, have poor credit, or have been declined for traditional financing.

With Learn Now, Pay Later, you get immediate access. With Pay As You Learn, course content unlocks once your 2nd payment is received or you can request your 1st and 2nd payments be processed right away for immediate access.

For Pay As You Learn, exam keys are released once your plan is paid in full.

Financing is available on eligible NPTA certifications, including CPT, CNC, and bundle packages.

Yes, you can pay off your plan early at any time.