Erickson Coaching International
Vancouver-based coach training school founded in 1980. ICF-accredited at all three levels and winner of the ICF's 2024 Distinguished Coaching Education Provider Award.
- Type
- Coach Training Organization
- Founded
- 1980
- Headquarters
- Canada
About
Erickson Coaching International was founded in 1980 by Marilyn Atkinson in Vancouver, Canada, making it one of the oldest continuously operating coach training institutions in the world. Atkinson, a clinical psychologist with a background in industrial psychology, built the school around the ideas of Milton H. Erickson, the American psychiatrist and hypnotherapist whose indirect, metaphor-rich approach to helping people change she recognized as a powerful model for human development. The name "Erickson" is a deliberate tribute: Atkinson believed his solution-focused, outcome-oriented mindset offered a more generative framework than problem-analysis alone, and she designed her coaching methodology to embody that belief.
From its Vancouver base, the school expanded into the United Kingdom, Russia, Europe, and Australia through the 1980s and early 1990s. Today Erickson operates across 179 countries, with 75,000+ alumni, coaches active in 217 cities, and more than 40 global delivery partners. In 2024, the ICF named Erickson its Distinguished Coaching Education Provider, its highest award for coach training organizations.
For a coach, completing an Erickson program means they have trained under an ICF-accredited curriculum grounded in a specific, well-documented methodology: solution-focused coaching informed by Ericksonian psychology and neuroscience principles. It does not automatically confer an ICF credential (that requires a separate ICF application), but the training is structured to satisfy ICF's competency hours at the level completed.
The Art & Science of Coaching
The Art & Science of Coaching (ASC) is Erickson's flagship program, first launched globally in 1997 after more than a decade of in-person development. It is structured into two courses, Essentials and Advanced, each subdivided into two parts. The curriculum is organized around four core coaching questions: what do you want, how might you accomplish it, why is that important to you, and how will you know when you've achieved it. Every part maps explicitly to ICF Core Competencies and ethics standards.
Delivery is available online (in multiple time zones and cadences), in person at global locations, and in hybrid format.
Level 1 — Essentials (ICF Level 1 / ACC pathway)
The Essentials Course covers the foundational Erickson Coaching Arrow process, shifting from problem-focused to solution-focused conversation, and the formation of effective coaching relationships. Completion requires 60 hours of coach training plus a 10-hour mentor coaching bundle and an ACC-level oral assessment. Graduates earn the Erickson Accredited Coach (EAC) designation and meet ICF's Level 1 requirements for the Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential application. No prior coaching experience is required to enroll.
Level 2 — Advanced (ICF Level 2 / PCC pathway)
The Advanced Course builds on the Essentials, deepening competency in integration and completion: how clients consolidate change and confirm they have achieved their desired outcomes. Combined with the Essentials, the Level 2 path totals 140 hours of instruction including 10 hours of mentoring. Completers earn the Erickson Certified Professional Coach (ECPC) designation and satisfy the training requirements for the ICF's Professional Certified Coach (PCC) credential, which separately requires 500+ hours of verified client coaching experience.
Level 3 — MCC Journey (ICF Level 3 / MCC pathway)
The MCC Journey is designed for practicing coaches who already hold a PCC credential and are pursuing the ICF's Master Certified Coach (MCC) designation. It provides 200 hours of coach training and 10 hours of MCC-level mentoring, targeting the most advanced ICF competency standards: coaching with systemic, whole-person awareness, deep presence, and precision across diverse client contexts. This level was added as ICF introduced its updated accreditation framework, making Erickson one of a small number of schools globally accredited at all three ICF levels.
Solution-Focused Methodology
The term "solution-focused" is widely used in coaching, but Erickson's version has a specific lineage. Atkinson drew directly from Milton Erickson's clinical work, particularly his use of indirect language, metaphor, and future orientation to bypass habitual patterns, and from her own training in NLP and industrial psychology. The result is a structured approach called the Coaching Arrow, a four-part model that moves clients from desired outcome through strategy, values alignment, and completion.
This stands in contrast to problem-focused or insight-only models: rather than analyzing what went wrong or why, Erickson-trained coaches are taught to hold attention on what the client wants to create and to build the conversational conditions in which the client generates their own answers. The methodology is also informed by neuroscience, with Erickson positioning the approach as grounded in how the brain responds to possibility-framing versus threat-framing.
Beyond the ASC, Erickson offers specialist programs including Team Coaching Certification, an NLP curriculum, a Light of the Enneagram course, and the International Trainers Training, a program for coaches who want to become licensed Erickson facilitators.
Erickson's Place in the Coaching Field
Erickson operates in the same space as other large ICF-accredited training schools, including CTI (Co-Active Training Institute), iPEC, and Newfield Network. Its distinguishing characteristics are longevity (45+ years), geographic reach (179 countries is unusually broad for a single school), and the fact that its entire curriculum traces to one coherent methodology rather than an eclectic assembly of frameworks.
Unlike a professional accrediting organization such as the ICF, Erickson does not issue industry credentials itself. The ICF credential remains the relevant external mark. What Erickson provides is the training pathway. Coaches who list Erickson as their training school have completed a methodology-specific curriculum; coaches who also hold an ICF ACC, PCC, or MCC have additionally met the ICF's independent assessment requirements.
What This Means for You
If a coach lists Erickson Coaching International as their training school, you can expect them to have been trained in a solution-focused conversational approach, one that prioritizes your desired outcomes over diagnostic analysis. The ICF accreditation of the program gives external confirmation that the curriculum meets internationally recognized standards, but the ICF credential itself (if the coach holds one) is the stronger signal of independently assessed competence. When speaking with a potential coach, it is worth asking which Erickson level they completed, whether they hold an ICF credential, and how many hours of client coaching experience they have logged. Those three data points together give a far clearer picture than the training school name alone.
Coaching orients toward what is possible: it draws out the resourcefulness that is already there and gives it direction.
1 Erickson Coaching International training programs
Challenges our Erickson Coaching International coaches help clients through
Erickson Coaching International coaches on Dream Coach Match
MCC-credentialed coach with 25+ years of financial services leadership. I've sat in the seat my clients sit in — promoted for results, then handed a team and expected to lead differently. I work with VPs in professional services to close that gap: decisively, sustainably, and without burning out the people around them.
With 20+ years of diverse experience in international B2B, digital marketing, and interpreting, I’ve gained deep insights into various industries and business dynamics. Now, as a business and team coach I work alongside leaders to spark clarity, uncover potential, and move confidently toward intentional growth.
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Questions about Erickson Coaching International
Q.01What is Erickson Coaching International?
What is Erickson Coaching International?
Erickson Coaching International is a coach training school founded in 1980 by Marilyn Atkinson in Vancouver, Canada. It delivers ICF-accredited coach training programs rooted in solution-focused methodology, with a global network of 75,000+ alumni across 179 countries. The school is named after Milton H. Erickson, the American psychiatrist whose indirect, outcome-oriented approach to helping people change inspired Atkinson's coaching model.
Q.02Is Erickson's flagship program ICF-accredited?
Is Erickson's flagship program ICF-accredited?
Yes. The Art & Science of Coaching (ASC) is accredited by the International Coaching Federation (ICF) at Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3, the three tiers introduced under ICF's updated accreditation framework. This makes Erickson one of a small number of schools globally with accreditation across all three ICF program levels.
Q.03What ICF credentials can I pursue through Erickson's programs?
What ICF credentials can I pursue through Erickson's programs?
Erickson's Level 1 program satisfies the training requirements for the ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential. Level 2 satisfies requirements for both ACC and Professional Certified Coach (PCC). Level 3 is designed for PCC holders pursuing the Master Certified Coach (MCC). Each credential also requires separate ICF application, a coaching experience log, and (for PCC and MCC) a performance evaluation.
Q.04How many training hours does each level require?
How many training hours does each level require?
Level 1 (Essentials) requires 60 hours of coach training plus a 10-hour mentor coaching bundle. Level 2 (Essentials + Advanced) totals 140 hours of instruction including 10 hours of mentoring. Level 3 (MCC Journey) provides 200 hours of coach training plus 10 hours of MCC-level mentoring. All hours are structured to meet the corresponding ICF program accreditation requirements.
Q.05Do I need prior coaching experience to enroll?
Do I need prior coaching experience to enroll?
No prior coaching experience is required to enroll in Erickson's Level 1 (Essentials) program. The curriculum is designed to take complete beginners through the foundational competencies of solution-focused coaching. Level 3 is restricted to coaches who already hold an ICF PCC credential.
Q.06How is the Art & Science of Coaching delivered?
How is the Art & Science of Coaching delivered?
The program is available in three formats: fully online (in multiple global time zones and at varying pace options, including fast-track), fully in person at locations across the globe, and in a hybrid format combining elements of both. Erickson has offered online delivery since 2007 and operates a dedicated online academy launched in 2015.
Q.07What does 'solution-focused coaching' mean in practice?
What does 'solution-focused coaching' mean in practice?
Erickson's solution-focused approach, rooted in Milton H. Erickson's clinical methodology, means coaches are trained to orient conversations toward what the client wants to create rather than diagnosing what is wrong. The Coaching Arrow model, Erickson's core framework, moves through four phases: desired outcome, strategy, values alignment, and completion. Coaches are trained to use language and questioning structures that generate the client's own answers rather than offering advice or analysis.
Q.08Who was Milton H. Erickson, and why is the school named after him?
Who was Milton H. Erickson, and why is the school named after him?
Milton H. Erickson (1901–1980) was an American psychiatrist and hypnotherapist widely regarded as the most influential practitioner of medical hypnosis of the 20th century. He was known for indirect suggestion, metaphor, and a deep belief in each patient's innate capacity for change, an orientation Marilyn Atkinson recognized as foundational for coaching. She named the school in his honor, not because it teaches clinical hypnotherapy, but because his solution-focused, possibility-oriented mindset underpins the entire Erickson coaching philosophy.
Q.09Does completing an Erickson program automatically give me an ICF credential?
Does completing an Erickson program automatically give me an ICF credential?
No. Completing an Erickson program satisfies the training-hours component of an ICF credential application, but the ICF credential is awarded separately by the ICF itself. For the ACC, applicants also need 100+ hours of coaching experience and a performance evaluation or knowledge assessment. For PCC, the bar rises to 500+ hours of experience and a more rigorous assessment. Erickson's training is a pathway to ICF credentials, not a replacement for the ICF's own process.
Q.10Where does Erickson operate, and can I train in my own language?
Where does Erickson operate, and can I train in my own language?
Erickson delivers programs in 179 countries through its own facilitators and a network of 40+ global partners. Training is available in 24 languages. In-person programs run in dozens of cities annually; online programs are grouped by time zone, making them accessible from virtually anywhere.
Q.11What does an Erickson coaching credential tell me about a coach?
What does an Erickson coaching credential tell me about a coach?
An Erickson-trained coach completed a solution-focused curriculum grounded in one specific, well-documented methodology: the Coaching Arrow framework built on Ericksonian psychology and neuroscience principles. ICF accreditation at Level 1, 2, or 3 means the program met independently reviewed standards. The more informative question is which level they completed: Level 1 (60 hours) supports the ICF ACC credential; Level 2 (140 hours) supports PCC. The school's own designations, EAC (Erickson Accredited Coach) or ECPC (Erickson Certified Professional Coach), confirm training completion; whether the coach also holds an ICF credential is the stronger signal of independently assessed competence. Coaching is not therapy: Erickson-trained coaches work within a non-clinical scope, focused on desired outcomes and forward-looking strategy. When a client's needs move into territory that requires clinical or therapeutic support, a competent coach recognizes that boundary and refers appropriately.
Q.12What should I ask an Erickson-trained coach before hiring them?
What should I ask an Erickson-trained coach before hiring them?
Before hiring an Erickson-trained coach, ask: Which of the three levels of the Art & Science of Coaching did you complete? Do you hold an ICF credential, and if so, is it ACC, PCC, or MCC? How many hours of paid client coaching experience have you accumulated? Finally, ask what their solution-focused approach looks like in a real session and what the work actually feels like for the client. The solution-focused model performs best when a client arrives with a clear desire to create something. For clients whose primary need is processing past experience, significant emotional difficulty, or clinical-level symptoms, a licensed therapist is the more appropriate starting point. How a coach draws that line, and how they handle referrals, tells you as much as any credential.