Using the filter of ICF Level 2 Accredited Program helps but what does that mean exactly? Even if that criteria is used there are still too many options. What to do when

Here is a map to aid your navigation.

As a baseline it is helpful to understand the difference between the PCC credential and a Level 2 program. The credential is what you, as a coach, earn through the ICF. It is a way to demonstrate in the market that you coach with a level of competency that at least meets what ICF determines as “professional” standards.

A Level 2 Accreditation is awarded to a program and school. The program meets or exceeds the ICF standards for teaching future coaches what they need to earn their PCC credential thereby automatically checking off several boxes the ICF has established for those wishing to earn their PCC credential.

The first of these is about you as a coach. The second is the school you’re choosing and how it supports your coaching path.

The Professional Certified Coach (PCC) is the International Coaching Federation’s mid-level credential — above the Associate Certified Coach (ACC) and below the Master Certified Coach (MCC). It is the most widely recognized professional coaching credential worldwide and is often a standard threshold for coaching firms and organizational coaching contracts at the senior level.

To earn the PCC, a coach must:

In practice, a PCC-level coach attends to the how of what a client brings, moving past the presenting problem to what sits just underneath it and what action becomes possible from there. This is meaningful work. It does not, however, necessarily address unconscious motivations or bring forward the identity shifts that produce more lasting change.

At the MCC level, where our program operates, coaching addresses the who: the very source from which possibility and action arise.

ICF-accredited programs now fall into two tiers:

Level 1 programs (60+ hours) are designed to develop foundational coaching competence and support pursuit of the ACC credential. They are appropriate for people adding coaching skills to an existing role or beginning a coaching practice.

Level 2 programs (125+ hours) are designed to develop advanced coaching competence and support pursuit of the PCC credential. They require more supervised coaching practice, more rigorous faculty standards, and a more comprehensive curriculum.

The field of coaching is rapidly evolving and becoming more commonplace. In our view a Level 2 program is an essential starting place to enter. Clients of coaching have a greater understanding of what coaching can be and it is important to begin your journey with solid footing.

Additionally, in our Level 2 program we support your own development which translates across all aspects of your life. For example, when conflict arises you not only have the skills for effective communication, you also remain present to what you’re feeling and sensing in the moment. It is expanded capacity and enhanced skill.

All ICF accredited coaching programs at Level 2 lead to the same credential eligibility. They do not produce the same coach. This is important.

ICF accreditation is a floor — it guarantees minimum standards of curriculum hours, faculty qualifications, and supervised practice. It does not guarantee the depth of the developmental experience, the quality of the theoretical foundation, masterful faculty or the degree to which the training actually changes the coach as a person.

We often hear from people that had they known about New Ventures West at the time they would have enrolled in our program instead of where they went. Why? They experienced the limitation of intellectual knowing and can now see the importance of including the heart, the body, and relationships.

Said simply: coaching comes from who you are, not what techniques you know. Graduates commence our yearlong program fundamentally different and many speak about their lives as divided into before and after. It is a milestone moment in each of their lives. This translates into not only potent coaching but an essential shift in all of their lives.

Beyond the accreditation, evaluate programs on these questions:

How the program orients and interprets the ICF definition of coaching informs how they design their classes, teach, and importantly support their client. As one recent NVW graduate stated: “Not all coaching is the same or equal. As someone who hires coaches for my organization, I can say Integral Coaching is at an entirely different level.”

What does the program believe about human development? Is change a matter of insight and goal-setting? Behavioral habit formation? Developmental stages? Identity transformation? The answer shapes the entire curriculum. Ask directly, and listen for specificity.

How many hours are spent coaching real clients under supervision vs. attending lectures or completing readings? A program that delivers most of its hours through content instruction produces a very different coach than one built around coaching practice with feedback.

Are the faculty active coaches with deep practices of their own, or primarily academics and trainers? The best coach training is transmitted through coaches who are genuinely developed — not just credentialed. Ask who teaches, how long they’ve been coaching, and whether they are themselves in ongoing development.

The cohort is part of the development. You are with the same group for the entire program. This creates a profound container for learning. Coaches who train alongside people from diverse professional backgrounds — therapists, executives, OD practitioners, educators — develop differently than those in homogeneous groups. Ask about cohort composition and size.

The PCC is a credential, not a destination — and a program that treats graduation as the endpoint may be training coaches who do not go on to further grow in their capacity to support their clients.

Our graduate community is central to who we are. As a school we offer several pathways to stay connected in community through quarterly salons, graduate learning labs, advanced learning (eg. classes on Trauma and Coaching), and a broader ecosystem of support.

New Ventures West has offered ICF-accredited coach training for over 40 years. The Professional Coaching Course is a 12-month ICF Level 2 program that develops coaches through the Integral Coaching methodology — an approach that attends to the full person: intrapersonal, interpersonal, and what we call the metapersonal dimension.

Your Year at a Glance

The Professional Coaching Course unfolds across four immersive sessions over 12 months, with sustained practice, mentoring, and community between each one. Each day includes a morning and afternoon session with generous breaks throughout and an extended midday pause for lunch, reflection, and rest.

Here’s what each session develops in you.

Session One: Attending to the Soil (4 days, virtual)

Before you learn a single coaching technique, you become more consciously aware of your gift, strengths, and narratives that limit what is possible. Through our transformation model, you’ll explore the patterns that keep you — and your future clients — stuck. You’ll discover your own blind spots through the Enneagram, begin cultivating wisdom and compassion as living capacities, and leave with a personalized development plan designed specifically for you by faculty. All the while forming a rich learning community.

Session Two: Planting the Seeds (5 days, in-person)

This is where you learn the Integral Coaching methodology — three interconnected models for understanding clients, the structure and art of the coaching conversation, and a full day devoted to somatic intelligence. You’ll watch experienced coaches demonstrate the method, practice intake conversations with your peers, and close with a compassion process. After Session Two, you begin coaching your own clients.

Session Three: Sprouting (4 days, virtual)

You’ve been coaching real clients for months. Now you deepen through practice and direct feedback. One day is spent coaching a fresh client, and on another, experienced Integral Coaches observe your work. These two days consistently become turning points.

Session Four: Bearing Fruit (4 days, in-person)

A culminating session where the previous 11+ months afford a uniquely transformative experience. You’ll participate in a certification process that feels more like a rite of passage than a final exam. The session closes with appreciation and celebration of the transformation you and your cohort have shared.

In-Between Sessions (virtual)

Between sessions, you meet with your learning pod, receive mentor coaching, engage in daily practices, read across traditions, and — after Session Two — coach real clients. Expect 5-10 hours per week. This sustained work is where transformation takes root.

The clearest way to understand whether NVW’s approach is right for you is experiencing it first hand. Join a Meet the Leader call — a free hour with NVW faculty. No pitch. Come with questions about the program, the methodology, or whether this is the right moment for you.

If you’d like to explore the program in depth first: