How to become an athletic trainer, degree to license

From program to license in seven steps

Each step depends on the one before it.

1. Earn a CAATE master’s

   Bachelor’s-level entry has closed, so the route runs through a professional master’s program. Entry requirements vary, so check prerequisites with each program.

2. Apply in your final term

   You submit the application and your program director endorses it. Test dates, deadlines and fees: exam facts.

3. Pass the exam

   175 items in 4 h at a test center. Results post 2–4 weeks after the window closes.

4. Hold an ECC card

   Adult and pediatric CPR, AED and airway skills. An online course counts only if your skills are tested, by a certified instructor or a voice- or visual-assisted manikin.

5. Complete your file

   Upload the ECC card and have an official transcript sent within 1 year after results, or the result is voided.

6. Get your state license

   Apply to your state board; certification alone is not permission to practice.

7. Keep it current

   Continuing education every two years, ECC kept current throughout each reporting period, and an annual fee (renewal).

Education requirements

The degree: CAATE programs have not admitted new bachelor’s-level students since fall 2022, so new candidates come from master’s programs (254 accredited professional programs in 2023–24) (CAATE 2023–24 analytic report, p. 4). Look for the word professional: CAATE also accredits post-professional degrees, residencies and fellowships, which are for athletic trainers who are already certified.

Searches for a “sports trainer degree” lead to the same place. Sports trainer is not a credential; in schools and colleges the licensed job is athletic trainer, and the degree is athletic training.

How long the path takes

The program sets the length. You need the bachelor’s degree, or the undergraduate years of a combined program, and then the professional master’s. After that the waits are administrative: the next exam window, results 2–4 weeks after the window closes, then your state’s licensing review. The board itself caps one deadline: 1 year after results to complete your file.

Certification and the state license

49 states and DC regulate athletic training, so practicing also needs state authorization; BOC certification is not a license. Each state board sets its own application, fees and limits, including on how many exam attempts it accepts, and the handbook tells candidates to check their state before retaking. The board also asks about criminal convictions on the application. A conviction does not automatically bar you from the exam, but it can affect a state license, so read your state’s practice act early (candidates page, affidavit section).

Trained outside the US

Holders of an ARTI, BASRaT or CATA credential can challenge the exam through the International Arrangement: $125 application plus a $275 ICD credential evaluation; allow at least 10 weeks. Credentials from other countries go through the ICD evaluation, and the next steps depend on its outcome.

What athletic trainers are paid

$62,520 median pay for athletic trainers (BLS, May 2025) (occupational employment and wages). That figure covers every setting, from high schools and clinics to professional teams, and the BLS does not break out team-level pay.

Athletic trainer or strength coach

Both work with athletes, but only the athletic trainer is a licensed health-care provider. A strength coach needs no CAATE program; the NSCA’s CSCS is the usual credential to compare. The full comparison: how to become a strength coach.

The path, sourced