You have been coaching for years. It is time to make it official.
A 12-month coach training and mentor coaching program for practicing coaches who want the ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential, built around ICF’s new mentor coaching rules that take effect in 2027. Delivered through Kintana Institute.
ICF is changing how coaches earn the ACC.
From April 1, 2027, ICF no longer requires a recorded performance evaluation for the ACC. Instead, your mentor coach observes at least three of your coaching sessions and submits a Competency Review Form for your application. Read ICF’s announcement.
From January 1, 2027, every mentor coach working with credential candidates must hold ICF’s new Mentor Coach Specialization (MCS). Read about the MCS.
Your mentor coach now signs off on your readiness. This program is designed around the new rules from day one, so you are not caught between the old process and the new one.
Every ACC requirement, and where you meet it.
Check each requirement for yourself on ICF’s ACC page.
A note on the application path. This program is not ICF-accredited, so graduates apply for the ACC through ICF’s Portfolio path, which accepts coach-specific training from non-accredited programs. ICF charges its own application and exam fees, separate from this program.
64 hours of training, built to fit a working life.
Live hours
Two 2-hour sessions a month, January to October. Twenty sessions in total, online with me and your cohort.
Self-paced hours
About 2 to 3 hours a month: short recorded lessons, readings, reflection, and structured peer practice with feedback forms.
Mentor coaching hours
5 in a small group and 5 one-to-one, July to December. Separate from the 64 training hours.
Attendance matters. ICF requires at least 30 live hours. The program offers 40, so you have room to miss a few sessions. Recordings of missed sessions count as self-paced time, not live time, so you need to attend at least 30 hours live yourself.
For coaches who already do the work and need the credential to match.
This is for you if
- You already coach clients, colleagues, or teams
- You can reach 100 coaching hours (75 paid) by the end of the program
- You can attend two live sessions a month, online
- You are ready to record your coaching and receive direct feedback
- You want a small, serious cohort with real personal attention
- You coach across cultures and want training that takes context seriously
This is not yet for you if
- You have never coached and are starting from scratch
- You want a fast-track certificate in a few weeks
- You cannot commit to 12 months of consistent participation
- You need a program that is itself ICF-accredited
Four phases. Twelve months. One credential.
Foundations and the ICF standard
The ICF Code of Ethics and Core Competencies. Agreements, presence, and listening. Where your coaching already meets the standard, and where it does not yet.
Core skills in depth
Evoking awareness, direct communication, working with emotion, identity, culture, and power. Structured peer practice and your first recorded sessions.
Summer break: June 23 to July 16, 2027
Advanced practice and mentor coaching
Live training continues through October. Your 10 hours of mentor coaching begin, and three of your recorded sessions are reviewed against ICF’s ACC standard.
Integration and your ACC application
Mentor coaching concludes and your Competency Review Form is completed. Exam preparation, coaching log review, and support to submit your application.
Founding cohort pricing.
This first cohort is priced below the full rate. It is not free, because the work is substantial: 64 hours of training, 10 hours of mentor coaching, review of your recorded sessions, and the documentation ICF now requires from your mentor coach.
Complete Program
- 40 hours of live training
- 24 hours of self-paced training
- 10 hours of mentor coaching (5 group, 5 individual)
- Review of 3 recorded coaching sessions
- Competency Review Form for your ACC application
- Exam preparation and application support
- Certificate of completion with your hours
$250 deposit reserves your place. Then 10 monthly payments of $295, the first on December 31, 2026, then at the end of each month through September 30, 2027. You can also pay in full.
Mentor Coaching Only
- For coaches who already have 60+ hours of coach training
- 10 hours of mentor coaching (5 group, 5 individual) over at least 3 months
- Review of 3 recorded coaching sessions
- Competency Review Form for your ACC application
Sponsor a Coach
- A full place for a committed coach who cannot cover the cost
- Recipients go through the same fit conversation as every participant
- Individuals and organizations welcome
The cohort runs with at least 4 people
If fewer than 4 participants enroll by December 1, 2026, the start is postponed or everything you paid, including your deposit, is refunded in full.
Try the first month
If the program is not right for you after the first three sessions, you can withdraw and receive a refund of everything paid except the $250 deposit.
Mentor coaching credential
I am completing ICF’s Mentor Coach Specialization, required for mentor coaches from January 2027. If it is not awarded by July 2027, you choose between a full refund of the mentor coaching portion or mentor coaching with an MCS-credentialed partner coach.
ICF fees are separate
ICF charges its own application and exam fees directly. Current fees are listed on ICF’s ACC page.
Payment by Stripe, Wise, or bank transfer. Full payment and refund terms are shared in writing before you pay your deposit.
Three steps to reserve your place.
Fill out the interest form
Your background, your coaching experience so far, and what draws you to the program. About five minutes.
Book a fit conversation
30 minutes to check the program fits where you are, including whether you are on track for 100 coaching hours.
Pay your $250 deposit
Your deposit reserves one of 8 places. Enrollment closes December 1, 2026, or when all places are taken.
Rakotonirina
- Professional Certified Coach, PCC (ICF)
- Mentor Coach Specialization (ICF), in progress
- Certified Applied Positive Psychology (CAPP)
- Certified PQ Coach, Positive Intelligence™
- Facilitator, leadership and emotional intelligence programs
- Founder, Kintana Institute
I am an ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with over 2,000 coaching hours in the last five years. You can verify my credential in ICF’s Credentialed Coach Finder. I have coached leaders in Ministries of Health across West and East Africa for the Gates Foundation LGMS program through Strathmore, World Food Programme managers through Factor10 Coaching, and many others through WorkBravely. My clients have also included leaders at Bloomberg and Autodesk.
I designed and led a leadership camp for Tekfutura, facilitated an emotional intelligence and social-emotional learning workshop for school principals with Projet Jeune Leader, and have coached members of PJL’s leadership team individually. I also founded Sekoly Kintana, a trilingual Montessori school. I built my own coaching practice without a peer community or a program designed for the contexts I work in.
This is the program I wish I had had: rigorous, small, and honest about what it takes to earn the credential.
Eight places. One founding cohort.
Reserve your place with a $250 deposit. Enrollment closes December 1, 2026, or when all 8 places are taken.
Coach Training through Kintana Institute
Questions? alison@alisonrakoto.com