Opportunities with PSIA-AASI

Have you thought about continuing your coaching career year-round?

We wanted to share some exciting information with you about our sister organization in the snow sports world: PSIA-AASI (The Professional Ski Instructors of America – American Association of Snowboard Instructors).

Many of you may not be aware of this organization, but we already have many BICP members who work as bike guides and coaches in the summer and as ski and snowboard instructors in the winter. We see a lot of parallels between our organizations and believe this could be an excellent opportunity for you.

PSIA-AASI’s training credentialing

PSIA-AASI’s training and credentialing processes are built on more than 60 years of research and development. The country’s best teachers create them and continually evolve to meet the needs of the modern snow sports guest, just as we do at BICP.

Where is the PSIA?

The organization has regions across the country, including: Central, Eastern, Intermountain, Northern Intermountain, Northern Rocky Mountain, Northwest, Rocky Mountain, and Western.

Steps to PSIA-AASI Certification

Employment Opportunities & Benefits

You don’t need to be an expert skier or snowboarder; most resorts will provide ample training to get you up to speed to teach lessons and will often offer additional personnel development opportunities.

FULL TIME: You can work a full winter season, usually five days a week, with an expectation to work more over busy holiday periods.

PART TIME: This is a great options if you need to balance other jobs, as resorts often need more employees on weekends.

HOLIDAY ONLY: Some resorts offer this employment status where you are available to work just the busiest periods like Christmas Break, Spring Break and Martin Luther King Jr Weekend.

With more than 450 alpine ski and 350 cross-country ski areas in 37 states, you can find employment in more places than you might imagine. Working as a ski or snowboard instructor is a fantastic way to continue to develop your coaching skills and learn new techniques.

Maintaining a PSIA-AASI Certification

You are required to earn continuing education units (CEUs) each season. This includes on-snow performance clinics, teaching working shops, national academies, and e-learning courses. Some of your BICP certifications can be used to earn CEUs for your PSIA-AASI credentials.

After participating in an official formal education program offered to the public by an educational organization such as a college, association, or company that normally provides training courses, a member can apply for PSIA-AASI CEU’s by submitting the below form to the Western division office and attaching:

1 – Documentation of course completion signed by an official of the sponsoring organization.

2 – Printed material (e.g. flyer, brochure, web link) provided by the educational organization that describes the program and gives information concerning the dates the program is offered, program fees, program hours, etc.

Once submitted and approved by the Western Deputy Director, you will be emailed an invoice for payment of $12.50/CEU* with a max of 12-CEU’s every four membership years. (1 CEU = 1 hour of education).  Once payment is received, education credit(s) will be applied to your member account effective the date the course was taken.