Exam fee - urgent

[Clarabel]

I am doing my Assistant coach soon, I just got the pack and this is the first indication that there is another fee to pay for the exam! I am going to lose my deposit (not to mention upset people in the area) if I don't go on the course but I can only just afford the course.

How much is the exam fee?

I hope I can afford to pay it.

[Lucy]

For the courses I've been on the exam fee has been included in the overall cost of the course. Phone the organiser and check if you're worried.

[Clarabel]

For the courses I've been on the exam fee has been included in the overall cost of the course. Phone the organiser and check if you're worried.



I can't phone them till Tuesday and I have to pay the balance by Monday which is really why I am worried. The course info says the application for the exam is to be on the correct form with the correct fee - does this sound familiar? Maybe it is just an old book...

[Lucy]

I would pay the course fee as asked tommorow and then phone on Tuesday to make sure that it covers everything

[Sue]

In our region the exam fee is included as part of the course fee. I think it is £20.

Our County Gymnastics Association helps with payment of coaching course fees and our County Council also has a scheme as part of their sports development program to pay part of the cost of coaching courses. (Both of these refund part of the cost after you have taken the exam, which means you still have to find the money initially but knowing that you will get some back is a help). Some regional gymnastics associations will also help. Ask around and find out if there is anywhere in your area that you can get a grant to help pay the cost of the course.

[Lucy]

Clarabel, did it turn out OK?

[BritCheer]

Hey,
I payed Paul Hockwart of British Gymnastics the sum of Twenty Pound for my Assitant MAG Qualification Course... did i ever hear from him or BG after my course? No! I am very annoyed actually and you only reminded me! Might have to give Paul a ring, he owes me 20 Pounds! Just thought i'd let you know, that BG like to mess you around.

[Gingerheid]

I expect you'll hear from BG eventually, unfortunately they have a habit of keeping you waiting.

[Clarabel]

Yeah, turns out that the exam fee is included but the book still has the sentence in it about paying the exam fee. I nearly died!!

Everything does always seem to take ages to come through but the club is waiting on my coaching qualification to be able to restart after the holidays.

[BritCheer]

Hey,
Forgot to mention i've been waiting since January 2004!! Thats when i took my course! Thats like almost 18 months! How long does it normally take?

[Sue]

Have you taken the exam or are you still waiting for a date? If so, I would assume that something has got lost in the system somewhere and I think you need to follow it up. BGA does not go around just making people wait for the sake of it! Courses are run by tutors who do not get paid a great deal to do it! They usually have to fit them in amongst the rest of their lives - many are coaches as well and also have other jobs. The course co-ordinators are usually volunteers who spend hours trying to sort out dates, venues, tutors, examiners, paperwork, external funding etc - it shouldn't be surprising if paperwork sometimes goes astray but if you don't chase it up, no one will realise that there is a problem.

Exams are usually a few weeks after the courses to give people time to get their required hours done but in our area there are difficulties getting venues and examiners as well. My son did his MAG assistant course last summer, after some problems with dates the exam was in December and his certificate came through in January - that all seemed perfectly reasonable to me.

(please excuse the rant - I don't organise coaching courses myself but I have been involved in some of the organisation plus organise many other things to do with gymnastics and these things don't just happen - lots of people have to put in a lot of effort and to blame "BGA" is to forget that it is people at the club, county and regional level who actually do this organisation and that it is not a full time job for them - they have many other things to do as well).