Newcastle College Course

RE: Newcastle College Course

Do you mean the life coaching?

RE: Newcastle College Course

Hi there,

Yes the life coaching.

Ian

RE: Newcastle College Course

I became aware of this course because at one point I was receiving about 15 calls a week from Newcastle students wanting me to coach them for free, provide them with free clients, show them my accounts, etc.

Despite the fact that I have a reputable qualification from the Coaching Academy I actually enrolled on the Newcastle course to see what was being taught and discovered that much of the first module was nonsense - which explained the ridiculous questions I was receiving and the number of enquiries I still receive from potential clientswho have previously been coached by Newcastle 'tqualified' coaches who feel that they have been ripped off/used.

Sorry this is not the kind of response you wanted but it is my experience.

RE: Newcastle College Course

Hi there,

Helen, not at all. I wanted some honest thoughts and you certainly did that.

Can you tell me what part was nonsense. Why did you think it nonsense?

I enjoyed the diploma course and my clients received some good coaching I believe.

Many thanks.

Ian

RE: Newcastle College Course

I didn't do much of the course because I was surprised by what I found and I was just doing it to 'check it out'. However, the part I looked out indicated that a coach steers, instructs, directs clients - which is clearly not the case. I also wasn't impressed that one of the first pages instructed students to contact exisiting coaches for help - surely help should be provided by a tutor not people like me who have their phone clogged by such calls!!

I'm not generalising that all Newcastle 'qualified' coaches don't provide a good service - just reporting what contacts have reported to me about their experiences and this concerns me because it gives the whole profession a bad name. I'm guessing that the problem is thatstudents can 'qualify' without havingtheir practical coaching ability assessed (or at least this was the case when I looked in to it).

Ultimately only long-awaited regulation is going to resolve this position.

RE: Newcastle College Course

Hi Helen,

I do not remember being told to ring up coaches for information.

I will have to dig out the manual from the lodt (I have recently moved) and check.

You know I do not think regulation will help one little bit. There will be grandfather rights anyway for existing coaches and regulation could preclude anyone helping anyone else. I am not in favour of regulation unless it is done properly and is able to stand up to scrutiny.

There are too many "new age" accrediting organisations that have no legal standing and I think they should regulate the psychic industry before life coaching.

Just my thoughts.

Just so you know, I am not relying on the Newcastle College award alone. I have other "qualifications" to back it up.

Ian

Suitable training & creditation

Would any life coaches out there be able to recommend what accreditation
they would expect from someone they were getting coached by, or went into a partnership with? I am looking at courses and there are so many options, and quite a few sound dodgy, that I am wondering what people who would potentially do the hiring of life coaches would look for (apart from years of experience).
Thanks

RE: Suitable training & creditation

The key for me is for the accrediting body to be an external body, unrelated to the organisation that is doing the training e.g. the college I trained with is externally accredited/moderated by the Open College Network.

There are quite a few organisations that accredit their own qualifications but I can't see the worth of that.

Froma recruitment perspective, I receive many CVs buttend to only consider those that haveboth an academic perspectiveand evidence of true coaching work.

RE: Newcastle College Course

I think this is the part of the course literature that is causing Helen to receive all those calls:

"Although not a mandatory part of the Certificate, we would like to encourage you to explore and engage a life coach of your own, or even just to discuss life coaching with a practising coach. There are many good coaches operating so you should easily be able to identify someone suitable for your needs."

I just signed up for the certificate course, so I am reserving judgement until I finish. My girlfriend took both the certificate and diploma courses before Fiona Harrold was involved and she thought they were really good (hence me being bullied into taking them! ;))

RE: Newcastle College Course

Dear Helen,

As a 'professional Life Coach' (per your signature) I was very suprised to read how negative and superior your comments were to Ian regarding his completion of the Newcastle Life Coaching Certificate and Diploma.

As a former fellow student of Fiona Harrold's course I beg to differ with your comments. I never contacted any Life Coaches myself for advice and I certainly do not think the courses are 'nonsense'. I spent many hours coaching test clients, for which I wrote extensive logs for assessment. My testimonals from these clients is proof enough that my coaching was a success.

I have contacted the coaching academy in the past and since then received many sales calls and literature regarding their course. One of their main selling points is their external accrediting body as you mention below:

"The key for me is for the accrediting body to be an external body, unrelated to the organisation that is doing the training e.g. the college I trained with is externally accredited/moderated by the Open College Network."

So I was not suprised to read this! They always say ther same thing to both me and my friend (also doing Newcastle)...that Newcastle course is no good due to external accrediation and due to the fact no-one listens in on your calls as they do at the Coaching Academy. They also send out clever marketing material that suggests 'free' workshops, when in fact on closer inspection is a big sales scam where you go along to be sold courses! You also pay thousands of pounds for these courses! Having worked in sales for many years I can't help but see the Academy as primarily a profit making business. Maybe I'm wrong - maybe I'm too cynical!

I am not suggesting that this course (courses?) is not a great course to do, as I do not know much about it/them....but as there is NO current regulation for coaching (as you mention) who's to say one is superior to the other (the organisations - (of course) - say so about themselves!!!) I would also like to point out that, as there is no regualtion, anyone can set up a coaching practice - even if they have had NO training - these may well give 'coaching a bad name' surely any training is better than none?

All I know is that I found the Newcastle courses excellent, educational, hard work and rewarding. I was lucky enough to do it all for free (at the time was still government funded). I also greatly admire Fiona Harrold - whom I saw at a (truly free) seminar in London a couple of months ago....she is a real inspiration.

What prompted me to comment on this occassion is your response to Ian. My beliefs and values as a Life Coach is to encourage and support others...Ian may have been showing lack of confidence in his ability and the work he has obvioulsy put in. I feel your repsonse was so harsh that it could have served to hinder his future success. (Sorry Ian if this is not a true reading, I merely suggesting this 'could' have been the case!).

Nevertheless, following my rant, I am wanting to only give love [sm=love-smiley-009.gif] here....I just felt I had to respond on behalf of all of us Newcastle Students out there (past and present) .....I want to say WELL DONE to anyone who has completed the Certificate and/or Diploma as it is a great achievement that you should be proud of, that will hopefully act as a platform you forward onto other great successes! (I, myself am planning to now convert my degree to a psychology degree and eventually practice as a psychologist)

I think the ability for self-development is a very special gift we all have and I admire anyone who has the desire to improve themselves and subsequently go on and help improve others' lives also.

Fiona Harrold's course is very much based on the practices of NLP and encourages you as a facilitator to help people reach their goals. Surely this is not a bad thing?

Best Wishes to Everyone!

Becca 🙂

RE: Newcastle College Course

Becca

I'm sorry that my comments have been interpretted that way.

I did not state any opinon of Ian's coaching ability (only his coachess can tell us that). I believe my original response was based on my experience - I can only speak as I find with regards to the course.

I did not state that all Newcastle students have made contact (although I had about 500 such calls in 2005).

I did not say that there is anything wrong with NLP or being encouraged to facilitate other reaching their goals.

For the record, I agree that the Coaching Academy has become increasingly sales-oriented. Just this morning I was saying to my husband that I'm getting a little tired of the marketing gumf I get from them - so on that point I totally agree with you. I'm not sure which course is the optimum course.

RE: Newcastle College Course

Dear Helen,

Thanks for your response. Like you I am not sure which course is better...I would hope that the Coaching Academy would be based on the cost....

Just felt that for all of us who had put in all the hard work with Newcastle I had to speak out! Perhaps because the course was previously free lots of people enrolled but didn't complete (like yourself - in fact know 2 who also did)...lets hope those that did complete therefore show they have the ability and commitment to become successful life coaches. I believe you now have to pay, so perhaps this will give it more credibility?!

Anyway, No hard feelings, I hope.....I wish you all the best, and I hope your business is going well!

Kind Regards,

Becca

RE: Newcastle College Course

I've followed the messages here with interest and would just like to say that I too am studying with Newcastle College. I am grateful to have received free access to this course and am very much fully committed to my studies.

I considered life coaching at the beginning of the 90's, but at the time the Coaching Academy were one of only few doing courses and I could not afford them, plus the way they sold/presented themselves and their course, I didn't feel I had the confidence at the time to go for it.

I contacted them last year to see if I could compare what and how they taught with what I was being taught via Newcastle College. Since then I too have had emails and mail outs. It does indeed seem very very much sales orientated.

Re Redferns comments about coachees contacting her..............my interpretation of the paragraph in the course material was to actually take up coaching to experience it (which I did) and in terms of contacting coaches, I visited many websites of coaches to find out how they operated etc, etc rather than ring busy people up directly.

Val x

RE: Newcastle College Course

You may be interested in the update on the Coaching Academy I posted here:

[link= http://www.healthypages.net/forum/fb.asp?m=358731 ]http://www.healthypages.net/forum/fb.asp?m=358731[/link]

Holistic

RE: Newcastle College Course

So what courses would people recommend? I was about to sign up for the Certificate in Life Coaching from Ncl, but now I'm not so sure. But I can't find anything else I can afford that seems reputable. Any other courses out there that aren't going to break the bank that will stand me in good stead?

Errrm, hi, I'm new here [sm=wave.gif]

RE: Newcastle College Course

[Hi!

I completed the certificate course last year and last month started BTEC Level 3 which replaces theri previous di[ploma course. I must admit to feeling really cynical about abn open learning coaching course, but I found the experioence really rewarding. As a result of committing to the action plans I made, I lost 31/2 stone and started regular exefrcise - both things I had struggled with for decades. So I personally found the discipline and support really effective.

It's early days for the BTEC course but I am impressed by the materials, the help line is really active and I am feeling really energised!

Skipper

RE: Newcastle College Course

Hi all

Just adding my tuppence here for anyone still looking into training ...

Take your time and do your research - phone all the orgs you're interested in training with, speak with their trainers, their directors, and even some of the coaches they've trained. Also ask about their certification and any diplomas - you might well be surprised at what you find - I was, and that's the reason I opted for CTI (with CoachU a close second). Unfortunately there's plenty of slander behind the scenes, and promises of "we're the biggest and best," and "our course teaches you how to close prospects into becoming clients", etc. Be patient and be courageous enough to ask those damning questions.

Also be clear on your budget, your time frame, and your reasons for becoming a coach coupled with your ambition. If you're in it for the right reasons and carry the right intentions, then you'll attract the right people to connect with.

And one final thing - if you're expecting to make a significant salary in your first year (especially if quitting your job to become a f/t coach), then beware that most (if not all) who achieve this are from a corporate background, and as such use their corporate contacts to win business. Certainly there are ways and means to attract clients and build a healthy living in a short period of time, but please look into how you're going to market yourself and all other areas of business building. If, however, you're happy to coach p/t and work with a handful of clients here and there, then naturally your outlook may be different ... Either way, I wish you all the best

Simon

RE: Newcastle College Course

Hi guys does anyone have the contact details for the Newcastle College life coaching course? If someone could post details of a website or telephone numbers this would very much be appreciated.

RE: Newcastle College Course

Here's a link to the home page of their website:

[link= http://www.ncl-coll.ac.uk/ ]http://www.ncl-coll.ac.uk/[/link]

You'll find a telephone number and email address there. Contact information other than weblinks should not be posted on the forums because of the risk of sp*m.

They seem to be changing over to a new database though, and my search was unsuccessful for current life coaching courses. I may well have more info in my own records, and if I find it I'll either post it or PM you as appropriate.

Holistic

RE: Newcastle College Course

Thank you very much, much appreciated, look forward to more information as it comes.
Keep Smiling!!