Yoga Course

Yoga Course, which trades online as YogaCourse.com, is a small, family-run school that teaches yoga teacher training online. Its students study at their own pace from home, with video lessons, assignments, tutor feedback and, on some courses, live webinars, and graduate with a certificate the school says is registered with Yoga Alliance International. The About page sums up the mission as providing "flexible, in-depth, community focused yoga teacher training courses in the UK and beyond for busy people." The school's address is in Great Wyrley, Walsall, in the West Midlands.

Where it came from

The school began as in-person teacher training at its own yoga studios in Staffordshire. Its founder and Master Yoga Teacher is Rachel Tidman (the About page's history gives her name as Rachel Park), who has been a yoga teacher in the UK since 2006. The school started writing its online 200-hour course in 2017 and, according to the About page, "In 2019, after 2 years of writing our 200 hour course, we launched YogaCourse.com worldwide and became the first company in the world to have 200, 300 and 500 hour online yoga teacher training courses certified with Yoga Alliance International." The homepage puts the reason plainly: a month-long training abroad "may not be feasible for a lot of people," because of children, careers and other commitments.

The homepage says the school has helped train over 1000 people so far, and the 200-hour course page puts the figure at "over 1,200 people."

The 200-hour teacher training

There are two versions of the 200-hour course, and the courses page explains the difference.

• 200 Hour Course, £599 in full or in 3 payments with Klarna at 0% finance. This is the "budget-friendly option" for "self-motivated individuals who don't require much support." It covers sequencing, asanas, history and philosophy, and anatomy. Yoga Alliance International registration can be added later for a fee.
• 200 Hour Enhanced Course, £1395 paid in full, or in 3 payments through PayPal or Klarna. The school calls it its "signature package." It adds modules on the business of yoga, mudras and bandhas, chakras and specialized teaching, extra support and mentoring, and Yoga Alliance International registration (usually £400). Enhanced students also join a private Facebook group of over 800 students and get two live webinars a week plus the library of recorded webinars from the past six years.

The syllabus lists over 60 asanas studied in depth, history and philosophy, sequencing, anatomy and physiology (20 hours plus), teaching beginners through to advanced students, yogic lifestyle, meditation and pranayama, and demonstrating and adjusting classes. Students have a full 12 months to complete, and the page notes that most finish sooner. Feedback comes from senior yoga teachers who are "all 500 hour minimum."

The teaching approach favors building your own classes over learning a script. The 200-hour page says graduates will "be ready to teach anything from a high-energy Vinyasa class to a calming Gentle Hatha session," and that "We help you find your own teaching style." Instead of memorizing fixed sequences, "we show you how to build your own sequences and teach each student safely." On finishing the 200-hour course, the page says, you become a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT), "recognised internationally."

The 300-hour course and other programs

The 300 Hour Online Course costs £1500, paid in full or in 3 payments with Klarna. It is "exclusively designed for certified yoga teachers who have completed a 200-hour certification or more," with the goal of deepening their understanding of yoga "holistically" and improving their own and their students' practice.

Two more courses sit beside the teacher trainings. The New Yoga Basic Course, £120, is for people new to yoga and is "not a Yoga Teacher Training course but rather a course to deepen and transform your own personal practice." The Business of Yoga, at an introductory £499, teaches how to build a yoga business, whether a studio, retreats or a product-based business.

CPD courses

For qualified teachers, the CPD page lists short and longer courses with prices:

• A confidence course for teachers and Sequencing Outside The Box, £27 each
• Restorative Yoga, a 40 hour certified training, £395
• Yin Yoga Course, 50 hours, £300
• Prenatal Yoga Teacher Training, £395 (a 40 hour prenatal syllabus is offered as a download)
• Yoga Nidra Course, 40 hours, £300
• Children's Yoga Teacher Training, 40 hours, £395
• Mastering The Assist, on safe and effective assists, £300
• Chair Yoga Course, 40 hours, £300

Most can be paid in full or in 3 installments through Klarna or PayPal. A Workshops & Bundles section is also linked.

Trying it before you pay

The school offers several ways in. A 7-day free trial course lets you "experience what we offer firsthand," and the 200-hour page shows 4 sample videos from the course. You can book a one-on-one call with a course tutor to ask questions and preview the course. Free classes include a 40-minute Vinyasa class and a Yin practice for the chest, ribs and upper back, and syllabuses for the 200-hour, 300-hour and prenatal courses can be downloaded.

The team

Alongside Rachel Tidman, Kelly-Rhian Harris is the Senior Yoga Teacher; the site says she trained as a dancer and blends that background into her teaching. The tutor team named on the About page is Helen Machen-Pearce, Madhava Das, Marita Dortins, Zenny Sharif, Robin Aurora, David Kiel, Dianne Murphy and Diane Leek, and the homepage says "we're all at least 500 hour yoga teachers."

What students say

Reviews on the site are marked as verified on Trustpilot. Lisa Brannan writes that "The feedback from the tutors on assignments is so valuable." Sarah Deal says she is "so glad I completed my 200hr and 300hr with Yogacourse.com and will definitely be continuing my CPD with them." Martin Cunningham calls it "a really really good course, lots of detail and resources to help you learn at your own pace" and adds that "they make you work hard in a good way," and Zoe Mitchell, after 2 courses, calls it "a team, a community, a guide and incredible learning platform." Danielle, a 200-hour graduate, writes that "The live webinars are very inspiring."

Who it suits

Yoga Course suits people who want a yoga teaching qualification without traveling or giving up work, especially parents and others with fixed commitments, which is exactly who the school says it built the course for. The two 200-hour options let a learner choose between a cheaper self-directed route and a supported one with live webinars, a community and registration fees included. Qualified teachers can continue with the 300-hour course or with specialist CPD in restorative, yin, prenatal, children's, chair yoga and yoga nidra.

The trade-off is self-discipline: the courses are self-paced over up to 12 months, so the Enhanced course's live webinars and Facebook group matter for anyone who needs outside structure. The free trial and the tutor call make it easy to check the fit first.