Entering the post-work chapter of life comes with numerous challenges. It is a big transition that carries both economic and lifestyle changes. If you want to help retirees navigate these difficulties by becoming a retirement coach, the best way to prepare for this role is to get a retirement coach certification.
There is a wide array of retirement coaching programs you can choose from, so we’ve narrowed the list to our favorites.
- Retirement Options – Best Overall
- Certified Retirement Coach – Best for Building a Business
- Retirement Life Plan – Best for Learning the Social and Psychological Aspects of Retirement Coaching
Table of Contents
What Is a Retirement Coach?
Why do people need coaching for retirement? After decades of active work life, retirement can present a shock to many people. Common retirement issues include a loss of identity, a change in income, and boredom. To ease this transition, people turn to retirement coaches.
A certified professional retirement coach provides clients with mental, emotional, and financial guidance through retirement planning. Some of the challenges they identify and tackle are adjusting to a new lifestyle, accepting physical limitations, staying healthy and active, maintaining a fulfilled life, and managing finances during retirement.
Clients can hire retirement coaches before retirement, during the transition, or once they’re already retirees.
Retirement Coach vs Retirement Planner vs Retirement Adviser
A retirement coach doesn’t just focus on the financial aspect of retirement, but also on the emotional, social, mental, and spiritual. This is an excellent role for those who want to offer holistic guidance to retirees, not just of a financial nature.
A retirement planner is strictly dedicated to long-term financial planning. They determine the amount of money people need to retire, when to retire, and how to use the funds for financial stability. They can assist in managing the client’s money while they are retired.
A retirement advisor helps retirees manage their money and investments. The aspects of retirement planning they specialize in are saving, investing, budgeting, and spending. Some retirement advisors pursue specific areas like tax planning or investment management.
How To Become a Retirement Coach
You don’t need a degree or a certification to become a retirement coach, since the only prerequisite is a high school diploma. However, certification can lend you credibility and help you build your strategy for running a successful retirement coaching business.
It’s common for professionals such as financial planners to niche in retirement coaching since they already have experience with the financial aspect of retirement. Retirement coaching training can help them gain insight into the non-financial aspects.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Certified Retirement Coach Program
Before you take the leap and enroll in a retirement coach program, you should determine which one will be the best fit. Taking into account the following factors will help you with that.
Program Cost
Retirement coach training is an investment that starts at around $1,000. Besides the base fee, you should look into additional costs such as materials and the annual fee for continual access to content.
Course Length
If you’re looking to earn your certification by a specific date, the course length will be a significant determining factor. Self-paced courses offer the most freedom as you can adjust the completion time to your goals.
Accreditation
Certification programs don’t need accreditation to be credible and reputable. What accreditation does offer is a guarantee that the program is following the guidance and respecting the standards of the accrediting entity. The International Coaching Federation (ICF) is the best-known accrediting body in this industry.
Best Retirement Coach Certification Programs
Top Pick: Retirement Options
At the top of our list is the Retirement Options Certified Retirement Coach program, which has set the standards for high-quality retirement coaching training. The program is pre-approved by the International Coach Federation (ICF). It is designed to prepare you for retirement coaching through a combination of books, manuals, podcasts, and practical retirement strategy tools.
They offer three learning formats, so you can choose what suits you best: self-study, interactive webinar sessions, or blended self-study and webinar courses.
- Course Length: 10 weeks
- Program Cost: $1,595 (+ postage for printed certification materials)
- Accreditation: ICF
- Mode of Delivery: Online
Building a Business Option: Certified Retirement Coach
If you’re looking for a well-rounded program that gives you a deep understanding of retirement coaching skills and techniques, we suggest the Certified Retirement Coach.
It is especially well-suited for those who want to learn more about launching a coaching business since it offers several sales and marketing tools and templates to help you build a brand and attract clients. Another benefit is that you can go through the first module for free and check out the content without any commitment.
- Course Length: Self-paced
- Program Cost: $1,795
- Accreditation: ICF
- Mode of Delivery: Online
Social and Psychological Option: Retirement Life Plan
Do you want to learn more about the mental and emotional aspects of retirement coaching? Retirement Life Coach Certification by Retirement Life Plan will give you comprehensive information about the social and psychological side of retirement.
This program is ideal for those who’d like to learn how to deliver personalized guidance based on clients’ characteristics and circumstances. You’ll learn through self-study modules and live webinars with group discussions.
- Course Length: Self-paced (up to 1 year)
- Program Cost: $1,250
- Accreditation: ICF
- Mode of Delivery: Online
Alternatives (non-niche)
Retirement coaching is a very specific niche, so what can help you hone general coaching skills and perfect the mental and emotional aspects of coaching is enrolling in a life coaching program.
There are numerous programs that can equip you with life coaching skills, but our top picks are Coach Training Alliance and Transformation Academy. You can read about the rationale behind our selection in our CTA and TA reviews. TA programs are super affordable, and with our link, you’ll get an 80% discount (applied at checkout).
Conclusion
Whether you’d like to go straight for a retirement coach certification program or you’d like to begin with life coaching to learn the ropes, there are plenty of programs that will prepare you for the world of coaching.
Our recommendation for certified professional retirement coaching goes to the Retirement Options Certified Retirement Coach program or Coach Training Alliance and Transformation Academy if you’d like to develop your coaching skills more broadly.
FAQs
- How much does a retirement coach make?
A retirement coach’s salary depends on qualifications, location, and experience level. According to iPEC, the average base-level salary for a certified life coach ranges between $62,500 and $245,000 per year.
- Do you need a certification to be a retirement coach?
Certification isn’t required for retirement coaches; however, becoming a certified retirement coach lends you credibility and helps build reputation as an expert in this field.
Take the Certification Quiz
Want help choosing a coaching certification or training program? We created a short quiz to help you find the best program for you. Take the quiz to find out!- How much does a retirement coach certification cost?
Typically, the fee for retirement coach certification ranges between $1,000 and $2,000.
- Does accreditation matter in a retirement coach certification program?
Accreditation can help you with recognition. If the program is ICF accredited, you’ll complete a number of hours of Continuing Coach Education (CCE) which can contribute to your further education.
- What is the most recognized coaching certification?
In the coaching world, recognition is less about the certification programs and more about accreditation. There are so many training programs that it’s hard to keep up, so you can gain recognition by enrolling in an ICF-accredited certification program that will provide you with name recognition.
This article was written by the Life Coach Magazine staff. We cover everything from personal development, to coaching tips, to how to grow your coaching business.
Be First to Comment