Hours in the room don't tell you whether graduates teach. The Trainee Success Score does. Ten published dimensions, scored binary, shown on the directory next to every course listing. Read the score before you pay; the trainer earned it by structuring the course differently.
Post-graduation support · Growth Path access · pre-course assessment · first-paid-class module · network expansion · active course listing · following graduates · trainer-profile followers · members-only offers · milestone celebration. Each scored independently. Read each dimension below.
Read the score Live · Criteria The input architectureHours, contact time, lead-teacher experience, trainee entry standard. The published criteria a course must meet for accreditation. The input architecture; the score below is the output evidence. Both matter; together they describe the whole course.
See the criteria Apply · ATPs For trainers earning the scoreThe standing partnership for training providers. Earning the Trainee Success Score is part of being an ATP — the dimensions are tracked through the partnership, scored automatically where possible, and shown on your directory listing. Apply to the partnership, then earn the score.
See the application Live · Directory Where the score appearsThe directory shows the Trainee Success Score next to every accredited course. Filter by score; sort by score; compare like-for-like across schools, regions, and tiers. The score is visible before the trainee adds anything to a basket.
Browse the directory Live · Trainees For people in training right nowIf you're already enrolled or evaluating courses to enrol on, the wider trainees pillar covers what to look for, how the £25 cover during training works, and how qualification routes to Professional Membership the day you graduate.
See the trainees pillar Live · Graduates For newly qualified teachersFor trainees within 24 months of graduating. The Success Score dimensions show what your training provider should still be doing for you — post-graduation support, network expansion, first-paid-class module, milestone celebration. Hold them to it.
See the graduates pillar Live · Standards The wider contextThe wider standards pillar — what YogaPros measures, why we measure it, who holds the line. The Trainee Success Score is one instrument in a larger set; the standards pillar is the set itself.
See the standardsRoughly one in four newly qualified yoga teachers never teaches a single paid class. The cause isn't usually the teaching they received — it's the absence of structure around what happens after. Post-course support, networks, the first-paid-class moment, the active relationship with the trainer. Two courses with identical hours and identical contact-hour minimums can produce wildly different graduate outcomes; the difference is the architecture below the surface. The Trainee Success Score is the published instrument that measures that architecture, dimension by dimension, and shows it on the directory next to every course listing. Trainees compare like-for-like before they pay; trainers earn the score by structuring the course differently.
Other bodies measure courses. We measure what happens to graduates.
The first eight are below. Dimensions 9 and 10 — special offer for members, and milestone celebration cadence — sit in the Pathways panel further down. Each dimension is scored binary (earned / not earned) and shown on the directory listing.
The score is structural, not subjective. Each dimension runs through the same four-stage lifecycle, end to end. Trainees see the result; trainers earn it through course design, not through paperwork.
Trainer answers the dimension-specific question on the accredited-course form. Post-grad support, pre-course assessment, First Paid Class module, network expansion — each has its own field. The declaration is what gets scored.
The syllabus passes the same criteria-led assessment as the accreditation itself. Where the dimension can be measured behaviourally (followers, follows, listings, milestones) the platform verifies automatically; where it sits in the syllabus, the assessor verifies the declaration.
Each earned dimension shows on the trainer's directory listing as a marked badge. Trainees comparing courses see the score at a glance. Trainees can filter the directory by score, sort by score, or compare specific courses dimension-by-dimension.
Behaviour-based dimensions (active listing, followers, follows, milestones, post-grad tagging) are continuously reviewed; if the trainer drops below the threshold, the dimension goes dim until restored. Syllabus-based dimensions are re-verified on each new cohort. The score reflects current behaviour, not historical declaration.
The scoring system is binary and transparent: each dimension is earned or not, and the criteria for earning each one are public. The trainee sees the score before they pay. The trainer earns the score by structuring the course around graduate outcomes, not by ticking compliance boxes. Where the score drops because behaviour drops, the listing reflects that — no penalty, no shame, just an honest signal that adjusts as the trainer's practice changes.
The score is published, the dimensions are public, and the directory shows the result. The cases below — three from the trainee side, three from the trainer side — show how that plays out at the moments the score matters most.
You're choosing between Course A in Bristol and Course B in Manchester. Same lead-teacher experience, same accreditation badge, same total hours. You can't tell which one is the better investment of two years of your life.
Tap to see how the score answers →You hold the certificate. The training was solid. But the gap between "qualified" and "earning" is real, and your trainer hasn't been in touch since graduation. You're not sure whether to keep waiting or accept the certificate is decorative.
Tap to see what the score predicts →All three meet the Tier 2 criteria — 40+ hours, Senior Yoga Teacher, accredited. Price varies by 30% across them. You want to know which one is actually worth paying more for.
Tap to see how the score answers →Your course is excellent on hours and content. You're losing trainees to lower-priced competitors with stronger scores. You want to move from 2/10 to 8/10 within one cohort cycle.
Tap to see the path →The same trainer, the same care, the same architecture — but the Specialty is much shorter, the cohort is smaller, and the post-course rhythm hasn't been built. You want parity across both tiers.
Tap to see the path →The break was deliberate. You're back. Your historical work is solid. But the dynamic dimensions reflect the gap, and your listing currently shows a lower score than it did before the break.
Tap to see the recovery path →The first eight dimensions sit in the Coverage section above. Dimensions 9 and 10 — and the four pillars they cluster under — sit here, each with its own detail pane.
The ninth dimension is whether the trainer offers a clearly marked special offer to YogaPros members on any of their accredited courses. The offer can be a discount, an extended payment plan, a bonus mentorship session, additional content, early access, or a scholarship seat. Once added to the course form, the offer appears in directory search and trainees can filter by "Special Offers Available." Why it matters: further training is part of every teacher's growth journey, and affordability is often the only barrier between a teacher delaying development and stepping into the next chapter. A thoughtful offer turns "maybe later" into "yes now"; that shift compounds across the trainer's calendar and the wider YogaPros member base.
The tenth dimension covers whether the trainer publicly congratulates at least one graduate for a professional milestone — completing a challenge, publishing a workshop or event, unlocking a specialisation, posting a milestone on their LiveCV — within any rolling 60-day window. The point is automatically awarded when the trainer uses the platform's Congratulate function on at least one graduate inside the rolling window. Why it matters: the gesture is small, but the message is large — "I see you, keep going." Newly qualified teachers easily feel invisible after graduation; a public, dated, named congratulation from the trainer who taught them rebuilds visibility at exactly the moments visibility matters most.
Pillar A clusters the dimensions that govern what the trainee can see, evaluate, and verify before they pay. Dimension 3 (free pre-course assessment) ensures cohort fit is an open conversation rather than a sales-call illusion. Dimension 2 (LiveCV access in the curriculum) gives the trainee a concrete view of what the course will hand them — not just hours and a certificate, but a working professional profile inside YogaPros. Pillar A is what protects the trainee at the moment of decision. A high score here means the trainer has structured honesty into the front door of the course.
Pillar B clusters the dimensions that turn yoga-teaching skill into yoga-teaching career. Dimension 4 (First Paid Class module) directly addresses the most-broken transition in this profession — qualified to earning. Dimension 2 (in-curriculum LiveCV building) puts the trainee inside YogaPros as a working teacher before graduation, so the day after the certificate prints is not the day she starts learning the platform. A high score here means the course is structured to produce teachers who teach — not certificates that decorate.
Pillar C clusters the dimensions that govern the post-graduation period — the window in which the highest attrition happens. Dimension 1 (90-day post-graduation support) is the structural commitment. Dimension 5 (public graduation tagging) is the visibility moment that compounds the next year's work. Dimension 10 (rolling milestone celebration) is the standing rhythm that keeps the relationship live. A high score on Pillar C means the trainer treats the graduate's first 90 days as part of the course architecture, not as someone else's problem.
Pillar D clusters the dimensions that measure whether the trainer is actively present inside YogaPros and inside the relationship with their graduate community. Dimension 6 (active course listing) — currently enrolling, not legacy. Dimension 7 (following 5+ graduates) — staying connected through notifications. Dimension 8 (10+ followers on the trainer profile) — the trainer's brand has its own audience. Dimension 9 (members-only special offer) — affordability bridge for graduates returning for next-tier training. A high score on Pillar D means the trainer is operating inside the standing field every week, not just in the cohort weeks.
Every accredited course on the YogaPros directory shows the Trainee Success Score as part of the listing. The score is shown as N/10 with a per-dimension breakdown available on click — trainees can see exactly which of the 10 dimensions the trainer has earned and which they haven't. The directory is filterable by score (e.g. "show only courses scoring 7+/10") and sortable (rank by score). For trainees comparing two specific courses head-to-head, a per-dimension comparison view shows where the gaps are. Trainees who use the score filter typically choose differently than trainees who only see hours and price; the score is built so this is the easier choice, not a harder one.
The highest accreditation criteria in the industry. Set by us because the law does not require them. Held by us because credibility is our only product. Audited line-by-line, by name, in writing.
Reads every accreditation file against the criteria above, line by line, week by week of the syllabus. Verifies the lead teacher's experience floor against the documented Senior or Experienced Yoga Teacher rules. If a course falls short, Claire's team writes back with what specifically falls short and what would close the gap — citing the criterion. The verification is documented; the route is auditable.
First point of contact for trainers preparing an application. Walks providers through the criteria above — what each clause requires, why it exists, what counts as evidence. Reads through draft documentation before formal submission so applications arrive in shape. Reachable directly during business hours; books one-to-one calls with prospective ATPs to clarify any criterion before a single document is filed.
Co-founded YogaPros in 2006 with Brian Cooper. 19 years writing, refining, and defending the criteria above. Final ruling on any borderline case the Standards Council escalates. Accountable for the criteria the whole structure sits on. If the criteria need to change to keep up with the profession, Bruce is the one who rules on the change — and the one who answers for it when the change matters.
For applications that sit on the edge of the criteria — non-traditional lead-teacher pathways, hybrid mode structures not yet codified, country-specific qualifications, year-totals just below a tier floor — the Standards Council rules collectively. Composed of senior assessors plus Claire and Bruce. Council decisions are documented and feed back into the criteria above at the next quarterly refinement.
The score is structural; the trainee experience is sequential. Below is how the four pillars land across the trainee's journey — from researching courses through teaching paid classes a year out.
Trainee comparing courses runs the directory filter at score ≥ 7/10. Reviews each candidate's pre-course assessment process (dimension 3) and curriculum LiveCV access (dimension 2). Books the free pre-course assessment to verify cohort fit. Pays only when the architecture matches the trajectory she wants.
Trainee · researchingThe First Paid Class module (dimension 4) runs in the second half of the course. The LiveCV (dimension 2) is built during the course, not after. By graduation week the trainee already has a working YogaPros profile, an outreach pitch, and a clear path to the first booking — all because the course architecture was structured for outcome, not for hours.
Trainee · in trainingTrainer publicly tags the graduating cohort (dimension 5) — the visibility moment that compounds for the year. The 90-day post-graduation support (dimension 1) runs through structured check-ins, follow-up emails, or a private community. The first milestone celebration (dimension 10) lands in the rolling 60-day window. The graduate is teaching real classes by week 8.
Graduate · 0–90 daysTrainer follows the graduate (dimension 7); graduate stays in the trainer's network (dimension 8). When the trainer launches a Specialty Topic, the graduate is automatically notified (dimension 6 active listing). A YogaPros members-only special offer (dimension 9) brings the graduate back for next-tier training. The relationship is alive; it didn't end at the certificate handover.
Graduate · ongoingI have been supported by Yoga Alliance Professionals staff. After working alone as a Yoga Teacher Trainer for so many years it feels good to know I now have a team behind me to support me while I develop new and existing Yoga Teachers through the StretchBodyMind methodology.Victoria Cunningham · Stretch Body Mind · YogaPros Accredited Training Professional
If you're a trainee evaluating courses: filter the directory by score and start there. If you're a trainer evaluating where your course currently sits: book a Discovery Call with Louise and we'll map your present score against the dimensions you could earn within one cohort cycle.
The Trainee Success Score exists because the criteria alone weren't enough. Two courses can meet the criteria — same hours, same lead-teacher floor, same trainee entry standard — and produce wildly different graduate outcomes. The difference is what happens AFTER the contact hours: the post-course support, the public visibility moment at graduation, the year-long network connection, the structural commitment to making the certificate land in real teaching work. We watched this gap for years and decided the only honest answer was to publish a second instrument that measured it. Trainers who structure for outcomes earn the score. Trainees who pay for outcomes look it up first. The whole conversation runs on the same architecture, openly, line by line.
A certificate is the start of a career. The architecture around it is what makes the career happen.
— Bruce, co-founder, YogaPros
