FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Who is the test for?
The test is for all practitioners of Structural Integration who have had a minimum of 350 dedicated hours of training in Structural Integration. The level of difficulty in the Exam is designed so that most recent graduates of IASI-approved schools should pass it. With more professional experience and continued education, more senior practitioners should be even more successful.
I’m already a Structural Integration Practitioner with an established practice and a member of IASI. Why would I want to take the exam?
An exam is necessary to legally define the profession of Structural Integration. Without a Certification Exam we will not be able to protect our profession from untrained practitioners entering the field and claiming competence. The exam will also help practitioners in many states and countries gain the right to practice as Structural Integrators by providing a benchmark of competence for practicing Structural Integration. Certification is always a mark of excellence in a field. More than licensing, our public will feel confidence when they see that their practitioner has passed the highest bar set for our profession. As this Certification becomes more widely known in the bodywork professions, it will become the major tool we have to notify other bodywork schools, faculty, and practitioners that our profession requires specific training and skills. …or “what specific training and skills our profession requires”?
Taking the SI Certification Exam is not just a personal standard of excellence, but will begin the long-overdue process of setting knowledge and training standards for our profession. Practitioners who pass the Exam will be able to claim that they have passed the Certification Exam for Structural Integration Practitioners and are a SDSIP (Sooper Dooper SI Practitioner)
In some states, practitioners are required to pass a massage or bodywork exam to receive a license to practice. Practitioners, with support from IASI, can use our Certification Exam as a tool to educate State Legislatures and Licensing Agencies about Structural Integration’s unique qualities and potentials. In the future, achieving Certified status can help practitioners, who so choose, to receive approval for reimbursement from insurance companies.
In a broader context, taking the exam helps IASI validate the exam so that we strengthen our professional base, distinguishing Structural Integration from other forms of therapy.
Do I need to be a member of IASI in order to take the exam?
Membership in IASI is not required to take the exam. Being a member of IASI supports the profession of Structural Integration and is a commitment to being informed and involved with our profession, but does not necessarily demonstrate achievement of standards of competence which will be demonstrated by passing the exam.
We welcome all SI practitioners to take the exam. The more practitioners who take it, the more relevant it will become in our efforts in various US states and in other countries to professionalize and protect and promote Structural Integration and SI Practitioners.
The exam will be open to all practitioners who have graduated from an IASI-approved training in Structural Integration. The education prerequisite for admission to the exam will follow the guidelines established by the IASI for school approval. Approved training must include at least 750 hours of instruction, including at least 300 hours in the theory, methods and application of Structural Integration. Click here for IASI Professional Membership application with includes requirements for approved training status and a list of the training programs currently meeting the IASI standard.
Is taking the exam necessary for membership in the IASI?
No, it is not going to be necessary to take the exam to be a member of the IASI. The IASI has set up minimum training and continuing education standards for determining membership status. To be accredited, the Exam and its administration have to stay autonomous of the membership decisions of the IASI. Therefore, it will not be necessary to be a member of the IASI to take the exam. After all, there are lots of other good reasons to be a member of the IASI.
What about the original Grandfather provisions?
In the beginning, the founders of IASI mistakenly thought that membership could be based on successful passing of the Exam. We offered those SI practitioners who joined in the first two years anexemption from taking the exam. IASI was in error in offering this exemption. In exploring the world of exam credentialing, we have learned that we cannot offer Certification to persons who have not passed an Exam that is equal to the Certification offered to persons who have taken and passed the Certification Exam. Our Certification Exam could never be accredited if we made that offer. We are offering the exam for free to all Grandfathered members for the next 2 years (up to November 2009) and hope many of you will take the Exam.
If, in the future, the state in which you reside requires passing the Certification Exam to be a Registered Practitioner of SI, then you will need to pass the exam to be registered in your state.
Is there any way to prepare for the exam?
We are creating a study guide that will suggest reading material and information to focus on in preparation for taking the Exam. You will receive this study guide approximately 3 months before you take the exam.
The exam is designed to test the knowledge of SI practitioners at the point of their graduation from training. The materials used in your training are appropriate texts for review.
Can I take the exam over if I don’t pass it the first time?
Yes, you will be able to take the exam more than once. There will be a waiting period before the exam can be retaken.
Exam Locations
The exam will be offered in conjunction with the IASI Symposia and at Regional Meetings of the IASI. In the future, we may be able to offer the exam at times and locations convenient to graduations and conferences of the IASI-approved schools and at other Structural Integration conferences.
Exam Administration and Scores
The exam will be administered and monitored by volunteers trained through the Certification Board for Structural Integrators.
Your exam score will always be held confidentially by the exam committee?? You will get your exam results by mail within 2 weeks of taking the Exam.
How is this exam different from the NCBTMB exam?
The Structural Integration Exam will only cover knowledge specific to Structural Integration. You will not need to know about massage or oriental medicine to pass the SI exam. You may need to take the NCBTMB exam in addition to the SI Exam if your state requires that for licensing. The IASI will continue to work to have Structural Integration practitioners tested and licensed appropriate to our training and our work. The existence of the exam will help with this. The more people who take our exam, the more clout the exam will have.
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