chongjasmine Posted October 1, 2017 Posted October 1, 2017 Is it necessary to possess a tarot certificate, in order to read tarot professionally?
~D~ Posted October 1, 2017 Posted October 1, 2017 No... I guess every bit helps in learning the tarot, but you dont need the certificate... Some of those courses are super expensive too...
sandrang123 Posted October 1, 2017 Posted October 1, 2017 Nope. Not that I have ever been aware of, anyway.
EmpyreanKnight Posted October 1, 2017 Posted October 1, 2017 I think some PR savvy, an effective online presence, and good word of mouth would be more advantageous tbh.
saintsandliars Posted October 1, 2017 Posted October 1, 2017 Honestly, no. I mean, there's no School of the One Right Way to Read Tarot. If it makes you feel more confident to take someone's course and become 'certified', then great, but it seems like more of a confidence building exercise than anything else. It's not like a professional certification in the business world. The most important parts of becoming a successful reader in the online world seem to be a strong social media presence and good word-of-mouth. Affiliating yourself with a big name (Biddy, Ethony, etc) through certification might help in finding customers through those brands, but eh. People have been reading for years without 'certification'.
katrinka Posted October 2, 2017 Posted October 2, 2017 Absolutely not. Certifications are a sham at best, and pyramid schemes at worst.
Lantana Posted October 3, 2017 Posted October 3, 2017 Necessary, certainly not. I could see it being useful to draw certain customers in, but as others have mentioned these days it's more about your presence in a community that will get your services out there.
EmpyreanKnight Posted October 4, 2017 Posted October 4, 2017 On the plus side, I think the process involved in getting a Tarot cert makes for a rich experience if the certifying body is legit. From what I've read, you learn a lot of things, interact with a highly knowledgeable mentor, create papers that makes you think outside the box, etc. That's just from what I read tho and is not my actual experience so a grain of salt might be needed. Also, at the very least, your potential clients would be confident that you really know your Tarot stuff and that you're not just a cold reader. That said, while there are some nice advantages to having a certification, the main question of the thread is whether it is necessary, which I'm still skeptical of.
Trogon Posted October 5, 2017 Posted October 5, 2017 I would agree that it is not necessary. I suppose that if you were going to set up a business, with your own store-front, it might be nice to hang that certificate on the wall. But as far as I know it isn't required anywhere. I recall having looked at one of those programs a few years ago. I think that one of the best things they had going for them was that you had to abide by their code of ethics. Now, I don't necessarily believe that their specific code of ethics was better than any other. What I liked was the idea of having a set code of ethics and abiding by that. The one I had looked at (and I can't recall which it was, but it was an international organization), did seem to have a lot of really good programs to work through for your various levels of certification. So, I could see that it would be good to some extent, but I remember it being rather expensive.
gregory Posted October 5, 2017 Posted October 5, 2017 No. As has been said, who gets to certify you ? Someone with a fixed set of meanings (I found a site the other day that offers certification (there aren't many any more) and if you read through, you have to know that x cards "means" y - no chance of context affecting anything, and the rest. If that works, anyone could read - just get the right book, look up the cards and there you go. Reading is more than that. Take courses - sure; get something to say that you completed the course - fine - there are some excellent courses out there. The ONLY use for such a certificate is if you live in one of those US states that REQUIRE certification.
chongjasmine Posted October 8, 2017 Author Posted October 8, 2017 It seems that most of your agree that there is no need for certification. Anybody think there is a need for certification?
katrinka Posted October 10, 2017 Posted October 10, 2017 The ONLY use for such a certificate is if you live in one of those US states that REQUIRE certification. Do you have a link regarding that? I'm not aware of any states that require it. Tarotpedia says "Following some questions and concerns regarding the inclusion of this page, it is hereby stated and readers reminded that Certification is nowhere a requirement for those who practice the reading of tarot." http://www.tarotpedia.com/wiki/Tarot_Reader_Certification:_Links
Ace Posted October 11, 2017 Posted October 11, 2017 Is it necessary to possess a tarot certificate, in order to read tarot professionally? No. barb
gregory Posted October 11, 2017 Posted October 11, 2017 The ONLY use for such a certificate is if you live in one of those US states that REQUIRE certification. Do you have a link regarding that? I'm not aware of any states that require it. Tarotpedia says "Following some questions and concerns regarding the inclusion of this page, it is hereby stated and readers reminded that Certification is nowhere a requirement for those who practice the reading of tarot." http://www.tarotpedia.com/wiki/Tarot_Reader_Certification:_Links I don't at this moment; but several US people on AT got themselves ordained as ministers because otherwise it was illegal. I probably saw that as a form of certification. I think there are also some markets (as in farmers' markets etc) that won't allow it without, but that's a private thing.
gregory Posted October 11, 2017 Posted October 11, 2017 It seems that most of your agree that there is no need for certification. Anybody think there is a need for certification? Let's put it this way. I have been on many forums where this has come up, and I have not seen one single person who thought it necessary. I have seen a couple of posts from people who felt that they wanted to be able to show they had completed a course, but even they didn't feel it was necessary.
katrinka Posted October 11, 2017 Posted October 11, 2017 The ONLY use for such a certificate is if you live in one of those US states that REQUIRE certification. Do you have a link regarding that? I'm not aware of any states that require it. Tarotpedia says "Following some questions and concerns regarding the inclusion of this page, it is hereby stated and readers reminded that Certification is nowhere a requirement for those who practice the reading of tarot." http://www.tarotpedia.com/wiki/Tarot_Reader_Certification:_Links I don't at this moment; but several US people on AT got themselves ordained as ministers because otherwise it was illegal. I probably saw that as a form of certification. I think there are also some markets (as in farmers' markets etc) that won't allow it without, but that's a private thing. I've never heard of that. I did get ordained through the Universal Life Church, but not for the purpose of reading cards. I did it before gay marriage was legalized in case anybody wanted a wedding, or if somebody wanted a handfasting, or anything else that was not available where I live. It wouldn't have been a legal marriage - I never registered with the county or whatever because of this - but I'm a technically minister so it would have been legal in the eyes of (insert deity here). But I've never heard of doing that in order to read cards professionally, and google isn't turning anything up.
Trogon Posted October 11, 2017 Posted October 11, 2017 The ONLY use for such a certificate is if you live in one of those US states that REQUIRE certification. Do you have a link regarding that? I'm not aware of any states that require it. Tarotpedia says "Following some questions and concerns regarding the inclusion of this page, it is hereby stated and readers reminded that Certification is nowhere a requirement for those who practice the reading of tarot." http://www.tarotpedia.com/wiki/Tarot_Reader_Certification:_Links I don't at this moment; but several US people on AT got themselves ordained as ministers because otherwise it was illegal. I probably saw that as a form of certification. I think there are also some markets (as in farmers' markets etc) that won't allow it without, but that's a private thing. I've never heard of that. I did get ordained through the Universal Life Church, but not for the purpose of reading cards. I did it before gay marriage was legalized in case anybody wanted a wedding, or if somebody wanted a handfasting, or anything else that was not available where I live. It wouldn't have been a legal marriage - I never registered with the county or whatever because of this - but I'm a technically minister so it would have been legal in the eyes of (insert deity here). But I've never heard of doing that in order to read cards professionally, and google isn't turning anything up. I had mentioned this in the thread on what questions you won't do readings on. I had gotten ordained in order to give my querents some legal protection (e.g., I couldn't be forced to reveal what the reading was about), and it gives me some protection as well. But again, not a necessary thing.
gregory Posted October 11, 2017 Posted October 11, 2017 Ask on carto maybe - I think tarotbear knows something of it all...
Ephemeridae Posted October 13, 2017 Posted October 13, 2017 Going to add my answer to the already large pile of "no" Honestly, places that do a pay-for-certificate in regards to any kind of highly individualized spirituality (and I do think Tarot falls into that category) sort of put me off. It seems to defeat the purpose, and can even feel a bit... cult-y. If I were shopping for a professional tarot reader, I would be looking for someone whose ideas and spirituality mesh well with mine. I think the best thing you can do is put out content for your audience to consume (blog, vlog, e-zines, what have you) so they can get a feel for who you are and how you practice, and attract customers that way.
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