How are surf instructors trained?
Every year, the profession of surf instructor attracts a large number of applicants. However, of the 400 people who take part in the selection tests with the aim of passing on their passion, only 64 succeed each year. Come on board with us to find out how to become a surf instructor and, above all, what kind of training you need.
1. Basic prerequisites
Before you can consider becoming a surf instructor, you need to have a few prerequisites. The most important is to be at least 18 years of age. The second is that candidates must take the tests after having obtained their PSE1, i.e. Level 1 first aid diploma. But that’s not all. Candidates must also present themselves with at least a regional surfing level: it is therefore essential for them to have surfed competitively before being able to access the requirements tests.
2. The selection
Once these criteria have been met, candidates must sit a selection exam before they can hope to join a state-certified surf instructor course.
There are 4 main stages in the selection process. The first stage consists of a swimming test. For this, the candidate must go to a swimming pool and swim a distance under a given time. A lifeguard assists and certifies the candidate’s aptitude. Once this attestation has been obtained, the candidate must obtain a certificate of fitness from a doctor.
The third stage is a competition between all the candidates, the aim being to select students with a very advanced level of surfing in order to have competent future instructors. In Lacanau this year, around 130 surfers took part in this test. Candidates are divided into groups of 4 or 5, and each group is given 20 to 25 minutes in the ocean to demonstrate the extent of their technique. In order to assess the surfers’ level of practice, 4 official judges (accustomed to judging in competition) are on the beach and award marks to the surfers. Each surfer’s wave is scored from 0 to 10, with the two best waves being selected and the total of these 2 waves having to be greater than 10. The event can be held at several locations in France: Lacanau (Gironde), Soustons (Landes), Quiberon (Brittany) and Les Sables-d’Olonne (Vendée).
Once these 3 stages have been completed, the more academic tests begin: a written test and an oral test. At this stage, around 120 participants are still in the running. The written test consists of a 10-question MCQ lasting 10 minutes, and an essay on a topical subject from the world of surfing, lasting 1h30. Finally, the candidate undergoes an oral interview with a person from the CREPS and a person holding a surf instructor’s diploma with seniority. The purpose of this interview is to find out about the motivation and personal experience of each candidate.
All done! Now you have to wait for the results, which arrive approximately 1 week later. If the candidate is accepted, he or she becomes a student instructor in training.
3. The training period
Surf instructor training runs from mid-February to mid-October. During this training, the student instructor alternates between classroom training and time at the surf school where he or she will spend his or her first year teaching. During the classroom period, lessons are more theoretical, covering topics such as anatomy and knowledge of the surfing public (children, adults, senior citizens, people with disabilities, etc.). Sport, coastal rescue, surfing, bodyboarding and paddle courses are also offered.
Present at the surf school from mid-April to mid-May, the student instructor will give his or her first surf lessons after a period of observation. It’s at this point that each student begins to forge his or her own identity and teaching style.
Back in the classroom from mid-May to mid-June, the student instructor must pass a series of sports tests.
The first are a surfing event and a bodyboarding event during which maneuvers (particular trajectories on the wave) are expected. A stand-up paddle event on a lake also takes place, in the form of a race with a time to beat. Finally, a coastal rescue event takes place in the ocean. This event involves putting on your flippers and swimming out to sea, around a buoy and back to shore, using the waves. You then have to pick up a surfboard on the beach and go to the assistance of a person in difficulty in the water, bringing them back to shore.
With these tests in hand, the student returns to work as an instructor in the surf school from mid-June to mid-September. With activity at Lacanau in full swing, this is the ideal time for the student instructor to put into practice all the knowledge he or she has acquired with different audiences. During this period, the student instructor is assessed on the beach. The assessment consists of observing a surf lesson, with the examiners assessing the instructor’s teaching methods, audience management and, above all, his ability to provide a safe environment for his students.
Back in class in mid-September, the student instructor prepares his final assessment: a written production presenting his host structure and an improvement that the student brings to the surf school, in the form of a “project”. This project must be completed and presented orally to CREPS examiners. Once all these stages have been validated, the student instructor obtains his or her diploma and can teach surfing on a permanent basis. The only obligation is to retake the first-aid diploma every year, to ensure a sufficient level of first-aid training.
As you can see, the path to becoming an instructor is rich and complete: by coming to a surf school, you’re guaranteed to learn under the safest conditions from trained professionals with state diplomas.
