So, you’re keen to learn more, great!

Great, You have come to the right place!

ATPCA has assisted thousands of coaches just starting out in the industry, so we are here to help you along your accreditation journey.

Being a Tennis Coach is an enjoyable, dynamic and rewarding career, part time job or hobby. You interact with real people, play and teach the great sport of tennis and are spending most of your time outdoors – win, win! So, whatever your goals or reasons for wanting to get trained and formally qualified, we can accommodate you with the variety of Professional Coach Training Courses we offer and run Australia-wide.

There are numerous benefits of attaining a formal Coaching Qualification; namely the confidence, knowledge and skills you will develop through the training process, which will aid and certainly positively influence your long-term success as a Tennis Coach.

Having a formal qualification from a reputable training organisation such as the ATPCA, ensures your competency status within the industry, and signifies to employers, clients and other Coaches that you have appropriate and industry accepted credentials.

There are numerous other benefits associated with being a member of the ATPCA Coaching community, like the on-going support and assistance we provide to all our Coach Members, and you can read more about those here.

Keen to get started? Our line is always open, so phone us for a more personal chat about your training objectives today on 02 7202 4225

The Australian Tennis Professional Coaches Association Ltd. (or ATPCA for short) is a community of Australian tennis coaches and business owners; like-minded, active individuals that possess a passion for tennis and a love of coaching. ATPCA exists as an independent non-profit public company, providing the industry with economical and quality assured tennis coach training and membership services to enable and support professional (or part-time) tennis coaches in Australia and around the world.

Established in 1967, ATPCA has been delivering its Coach Training courses in Australia for over 50 years, during which time we have accredited over 5,000 Professional Tennis Coaches. Today ATPCA delivers Coach Training courses in China, Hong Kong, Japan & the Philippines, making the ATPCA Qualification a truly International Accreditation.

We strive to deliver the most practical, up to date, and industry appropriate coach training courses in Australia. Whilst ensuring that the majority of our training courses are delivered out out on-court in practical training scenarios. Don’t believe us? Ask around, or read what some past trainees have said after their ATPCA training experience here.

Want to know more about the history of ATPCA & relevant changes to the industry over the years? Check out our History page here.

This is an easy one. You can read all about ATPCA’s four Professional Coach Training Courses (Qualifications) here.

We get asked this alot!

The short answer is no, we don’t require experienced & knowledgeable tennis professionals to go through our on-court Coach Training Courses in order to obtain an ATPCA accreditation. Of course we don’t just hand these Qualifications out either. There is an Application process for coaches with industry experience and those who have achieved accreditations elsewhere, called Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

If you feel this may be applicable to you, head on over to our RPL page for further information on the eligibility criteria and links to begin your Application.

Yes, and we look forward to welcoming you. Many of our Coach Members, hold memberships with both the ATPCA and TA.

In the case of TA Members wanting to join the ATPCA, we have a ‘Qualification Transfer’ option available to Coaches who have previously obtained certification (minimum of a Junior Development) through either Tennis Australia (TA), Tennis Coaches Australia (TCA) or the International Tennis Federation (ITF). For these coaches, a qualification transfer to the ATPCA equivalent accreditation can be arranged and would be exempt from having to pay any RPL assessment fee.

If this fits your situation, head over to the Qualification Transfer page for further information on Applying.

There are two Coach Training & Membership service providers here in Australia, ATPCA & Tennis Australia (TA).

The ATPCA is a not-for-profit and independent coach training organisation. All the Directors of ATPCA are Honorary – meaning there is no CEO earning millions of dollars, and no corporate sponsorship. Established in 1967, ATPCA has been assessing, accrediting and qualifying professional tennis coaches for over 50 years now, whereas Tennis Australia (TA) has only been directly involved in the delivery of its own Coach Education Courses since 2007. That is fact.

Prior to 2007, there were still two Coach Training Organisations operating in Australia – ATPCA and TCA (Tennis Coaches Australia) both these organisations were at that time acting as training proponents for Tennis Australia – meaning TA were not directly involved Coach Education in their own right, they were simply the National body for Tennis overseeing its independent Coach Training Proponents. In 2007 however, TCA wound up its operations and all of its Coach Members were inherited by Tennis Australia, who were at the time making quite a strong effort to eliminate ATPCA from the Coach Training & Membership market altogether, in order to establish a monopoly over Tennis in Australia. Not good!

Tennis Australia’s commercial agenda remained clear to a large number of objecting coaches who remained in full support of ATPCA, its training history and an open market of competition. Therefore ever since 2007 ATPCA has been operating completely independent of Tennis Australia and remains its primary competitor in the delivery of Coach Training, and in providing Coach Membership services. These days the training programs offered by each of the two organisations differ significantly in the following ways;

ATPCA delivers short & intense, practical coach training courses delivered over consecutive days (normally a weekend) – we cover a lot during that time! TA’s course structure on the other hand dictates that an entry level accreditation could take anywhere between 3-9 months to fully complete, with a sparse training schedule – which doesn’t always fit some individuals goals and availabilities.

ATPCA ensures all course graduates complete their training program with the knowledge and practical tools & skills to allow them to confidently and competently commence a coaching role right away. Due to TA aligning with the VET sector, their courses are more heavily grounded in theoretical knowledge with a lessor focus placed on practical application. Please do your own research on both Training Course offerings and don’t hesitate to give us a call to discuss anything further.

For more info on ATPCA’s Coach Training courses including what is covered, and what you will be accredited to deliver, have a read of our Qualifications page

Everyone who undergoes an ATPCA Coach Training course, or RPL/Qualification Transfer, must first become a member of the ATPCA. ATPCA Membership costs $250 per annum, and is valid for 12 months – from the day you join.

Included with your ATPCA Membership is your own personal Coach Insurance cover – vital for anyone in this industry.

There are plenty more benefits associated with your ATPCA Coach Membership, check all of our benefits out here.

All of the ATPCA coach training courses are held predominately out on-court, with very little time spent indoors discussing theory.

Upon completion of your Coach Training course there will be a short online quiz (which can be completed as many times as necessary) to complete at home, that aims to further consolidate the knowledge obtained during your training course. That’s it.

Our courses are open to all ages, from 14 to 70 year olds, we have had them all, as there is no ‘typical’ age of a Tennis Coach.

There is no official minimum age requirement for the Graduate Pro course however, as each person is assessed on a case by case basis based on maturity, playing standard and exposure to tennis. As a guide, we have had some fantastic 14 year olds successfully complete our Graduate Pro accreditation course without any problem.

Entry into our Graduate Pro course also does not require you to have had any prior coaching experience. If you have some, great. If not, this is not a problem. We only advise that applicants to the Graduate Pro Training Course have a playing standard of a ‘consistent social’ player.

Any further queries we might have missed, just give us a call: 02 7202 4225.

As a trainee or Qualified member of the ATPCA you and your ATPCA assistants are immediately insured on joining, without extra fee. Firstly, you are covered for $20 Million Public Liability. That’s for the risk of personal injury to the general public where you become legally liable whilst tennis coaching. Secondly, you are covered for $10 Million Professional Indemnity. This is for any breach of your professional duty whilst working as a coach. Furthermore, the Policy provides you with $100,000 of Property Damage, and substantial Accident cover – should you ever sustain an injury yourself out on court. In this circumstance there is an income protection allowance, where a fee will be paid to you whilst you are unable to be on-court coaching.

The ATPCA Insurer is Sports Cover – the largest in Australia. As a member, you will each year, receive a personalised Certificate of Currency which outlines and proves your cover for employers and clients..

When your ATPCA Membership expires so does your Personal Insurance cover. If you are continuing to work as a coach and are required to keep your own personal Insurance cover it will be important to organise your renewal before it expires to avoid any loss of cover (we will mail you a renewal notice prior to expiry).

If you choose to take a break from coaching and no longer wish to maintain your membership with ATPCA, you will be taken off our coach member database and lose access to the range of member benefits provided. You can however choose to re-join and reinstate your Membership (Insurance & Qualification) at any time in future (if you start coaching again) – just give us a call to join back up – 02 7202 4225 or email tennis@atpca.com.au

Please note that if you drop out for an extended period of time (3 or more months) you will be required to pay a re-joining and re-administration fee of $125 when you re-join. If you have dropped out for a period longer than 2+ years, you will be required to undergo an on-court reassessment ($225) to ensure you have retained all your competencies and be updated on any changes to the industry.