Do not confuse colleges with Universities. A University will offer a degree in the health and fitness field and those degrees are legit and will help you find great employment. A local college whether in your town or online will offer a “personal training degree” in their school or on their website. They will charge you a lot of money to attend made up classes and after a year or 2 you will be a certified personal trainer.

What they don’t tell you is that none of their classes or made-up personal fitness trainer degrees is necessary or even valid in any state. To become a personal trainer you simply need to take a test from an accredited institution of which I would only recommend 3. The three are ACSM, ACE fitness and NASM. They are accepted at every gym and they certify you to be a fitness trainer.

You simply have to pay the money to take the test and if you pass, you are a certified trainer. Never pay a college for a bogus degree and made-up classes. Most gyms will usually pay for you to take the tests as long as you do so in your first week of training.

Any college offering a degree in personal training is a scam and should not be trusted.