Becoming a PGA Member: Steps 12, 13, & 14

Once you get back from your week of Seminars in Florida, it’s time get to work on your Work Experience Portfolio so you can submit it for review. Like the Portfolios from Levels 1 and 2, there’s nothing overly complicated about the Portfolio, it just takes time. This Level requires a five-lesson series with an advanced player and ten different videos documenting various aspects of the experience.

When you’re finally ready to submit your Portfolio for review, you’ll be greeted by the following message on your computer screen:

“Thank you for your work experience portfolio submission.

Your portfolio has been received. It is currently in the review process and will be evaluated within 30 days of today’s date. You will be notified by email when the review has been completed.

For questions regarding the status of your portfolio, refer to PGALinks.com by clicking here or contact the PGM Mentor Line at 1-866-866-3382 Option 6. Please leave a message when prompted and include your name, PGA apprentice number, and a phone number where you can be reached. Your call will be returned as soon as possible.

Click here to return to pga.org.”

Again, my words of wisdom once your submit your Portfolio would be to start studying. To access my Level 3 Study Guide, click here. Depending on who intercepts your Portfolio, it could be 30 days, or it could be less than a week. I submitted my Portfolio for grading on a Thursday, and it was back and approved by early Tuesday morning. I guess sometimes you get lucky and submit outside of high grading season!

Within five business days of approval, you’ll receive and email from PSI Online inviting you to “register to schedule” your Level 3 Test Battery.

Cost: $78
Running Total: $8,585.99

Apply for Membership
Unlike previous Levels, once you have scheduled your Level 3 Test Battery, it’s time to apply for Membership. For a look at the letter from the PGA detailing the process, click here.

Log on to PGA.org, log-in, and click on “Form Library” at the top of the page. Click on the 3rd form under “Member Information (Form #)” labeled “Application for Membership (302).” Print it out, fill it out, and email it to the Membership Services Department at membershipapps@pgahq.com for preliminary processing. That way, when you pass your tests, you’re just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Membership and Class A Certification.

Start Studying
According to the PGA Education faculty members I’ve spoken to, the self-study sections are often the most failed. At this Level, that means Human Resources Management and Food and Beverage Control. There is no test covering the Career Enhancement Course Manual. Don’t worry, there’s still plenty of material to cover: 416 pages (not including Seminar Manuals).

Spend some extra time on these sections. It’s common to fail them, and if you do, it’s no big deal. Just ask me. I’ve failed self-study sections in Level 1 (Golf Car Fleet Management) and Level 2 (Turfgrass Management) and posted Extra Credit Study Guides that are almost word-for-word what’s on the tests themselves.

I will say that on this time around, I’ve really relied on the Level 3 Knowledge Test Blueprints. These were distributed in a packet on the first day of the Level 3 Seminars. And I’m glad I did. The Food & Beverage Control test is extensive, and most of the material comes from the book Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls by Paul Dittmer and J. Desmond Keefe, not the course manual. In the packet is a Study Guide for Food and Beverage Control. Had I only focused on the Learning Outcomes, I would have definitely failed.

Testing Day
Great news! I passed all four sections the first time around, meaning there’s no need for any re-takes. I didn’t get to choose which exams I wanted to take. The order was pre-determined: Advanced Teaching and Golf Club Fitting, Food and Beverage Control, Human Resources Management and Supervising & Delegating, Player Development Programs and Teaching Business.

I sat down at about 8:55a and was out of the Testing Center a little after 10:30a. It was a relatively short period of time when you consider the downtime it took for me to log-in at the outset and for the proctor to log-in prior to each section, the five-minute bathroom break I exercised, and the time I used to review each and every question prior to submitting each test for final grading.

Advanced Teaching and Golf Club Fitting consisted of 66 questions (of which only 60 were scored at random) and took me about 20 minutes to complete. Food and Beverage Control consisted of 44 questions (of which only 40 questions were scored) and took me about 30 minutes to complete. Human Resources Management and Supervising & Delegating consisted of 44 questions (again, of which only 40 were scored) and took me about 25 minutes to complete, and Player Development Programs and Teaching Business consisted of 33 questions (of which only 30 were scored) and took me only about 15 minutes to complete. The 187 questions went by in a flash!

Next On the Tee
Awaiting PGA Membership! It’s a journey that began on August 8, 2016, and here we are, a little more than two years later. I’m proud of the progress I’ve made in such a short time. On average, it takes four to four-and-a-half years for Associates to complete the PGA Professional Golf Management (PGM) Program.

Previous Steps
Step 1 – In order to become a PGA member, you first have to become a registered apprentice and go through the PGA Professional Golf Management (PGA PGM) Program. It takes up to three years to complete all 11 steps. Step 1 is pretty self-explanatory. To register into the PGA PGM Program, you have to register or re-register as an apprentice and complete a Background Check. (Cost: $58.99)

Step 2 – You’re not considered a PGA Apprentice until you satisfy all the requirements at the Qualifying Level and register as an apprentice. At the Qualifying Level, applicants must complete three online courses: Introduction to the PGM and the Golf Profession, PGA History and Constitution, and Rules of Golf 1 as well as pass a knowledge test based on the three courses. (Cost: $200)

PGA Qualifying Test – This 90-minute, 75 question test is administered by PSI Exam centers nationwide. The test covers three online courses: Introduction to the PGM and the Golf Profession, PGA History and Constitution, and Rules of Golf 1. A clean, unmarked copy of the Rules of Golf is permitted into the testing center and a score of 70% is required to pass. (Cost: $40)

Step 3 – The 36-hole, one-day Playing Ability Test (PAT) at a PGA Approved Golf Course requires a target score within 15 shots of the course rating in order to pass. The $160 total cost includes the $100 pre-registration fee as well another $60 paid on-site to cover the cost of green fees, cart fee, range balls, and lunch. (Cost: $160)

Step 4 – Print out the PGA PGM Program Application, get it signed by your Current Employer/Intermediate Supervisor, and then fax or email it back to the PGA. Be sure to include proof of your highest level of education and a copy of Work Permit or Employment Visa if you’re not a U.S. Citizen.

The last page of the application is a combination of National Fees ($60), Section Fees ($250), Liability Insurance ($25), Life Insurance ($34), a Registration Fee ($200), and the Level 1 Online Course Access Fee ($560). Once your registration is approved, you’ll have access to the Level 1 courses through the PGA Knowledge Center. (Cost: $1,129)

Step 5 – Register for the PGM 2.0 Level 1 Seminar in Florida
The all-inclusive package includes five days of classes, airfare to West Palm Beach (from the city you prefer to fly out of), lodging for the week (it’s $500 more for your own hotel room if you don’t want to share with another Apprentice for the five days), ground transportation, and breakfast and lunch each day. (Cost: $2,000)

Apprentices registered after January 1, 2010, can view and/or download PGA PGM 2.0 curriculum information online.

Step 6 – Level 1 Work Experience Portfolio
The average student takes 26 months to pass Level 1: the Portfolio and all five tests. That’s ridiculous! In the right environment, a properly motivated Apprentice can easily complete the task in less than two months. It’s not difficult, but it is time consuming and, at times, tedious. (Cost: $0)

Step 7 – Level 1 Test Battery
The five-test battery consists of 240 questions and took a little more than 90 minutes to complete. Check out the study guide I posted here, and really focus on the Golf Car Fleet Management section, which more Apprentices fail than any other. (Cost: $78, Retakes: $32)

Step 8 – Register for the PGM 2.0 Level 2 Seminar in Florida
This is just like Step 5. The PGA is now working with a new travel agency called Omega World Travel, but the accommodations are still the same: airfare to West Palm Beach from whichever city you prefer, lodging, and two meals per day. Oh, and don’t forget about the $350 access fee for the Level 2 online pre-seminar courses, which you have to pay beforehand. (Cost: $2,350)

Steps 9 & 10 – Level 2 Work Experience Portfolio and Level 2 Test Battery
We’re now well into the rinse and repeat stage of the PGA Class A Certification Process! Once your Portfolio is approved, you will need to pass a four-test battery consisting of 176 questions. Be sure to check out my Study Guide before you take the test. (Cost: $78, Retakes: $32)

Step 11 – Register for the PGM 2.0 Level 3 Seminar in Florida
This is just like Steps 5 and 8. Nothing new to report here. Just like Level 2, access to the online pre-seminar courses is $350. You have to pay that before you book your trip. (Cost: $2,350)

Note:
If you’ve been convicted of a felony, misdemeanor or equivalent, you should submit documentation to the PGA Membership Department to determine eligibility for PGA Membership prior to proceeding. Per the PGA Code of Ethics, certain transgressions are cause for permanent preclusion to PGA Membership.