Carla
Tarotbear, is that what they really give you??? Wow, that's impressive. 
Anyone familiar w Tarot Certification Board?
tarotbear
GAVE ME? I had to PAY for it! LOL! And look~ it came with an expiration date! Did you know that knowledge expires? The Tarot Certification Board thinks so! It's one of my most cherished possessions! Isn't the detail on the engraving incredible?
It's one of my most cherished possessions! Isn't the detail on the engraving incredible? pcantu303
Just FYI...I will certify you for much less.
tarotbear
poopsie
I remember posting a thread on this on whether a certification was important. I wanted to see if it would make a difference for people who wanted the services of a professional tarot reader. I got answers similar to what i am reading in this thread with additional insights ... such as Grizabella's comment on who has the right to certify us for use of intuition.
What i find interesting is "who OWNS the wensite?". the reason i am asking because i tried to open the link and it says TCBA -Tarot Certification Board of America. I am not an American and I dont live there but if I were to migrate to the US and try my luck as a tarot professional, it's almost as if A certification is required before I can practice. i would have gotten the impression that i need to pass licensure exams before i can practice. It's like passing the bar to be a lawyer or a certified public accountant.
I am curious though ... first - is this TCBA a group of professional readers like what we have here in AT although we are more heterogenous in that we have both professional readers and beginners, and practitioners who do tarot as a hobby or special interest?
and second, is it possible that they are doing this also to put barriers to entry ... i remember that in one of the associations i was involved in (not tarot) they wanted people to qualify for certification so that "fakes" or people who are not real experts will not be qualified to practice?
and third ... from the perspective of querents and clients ... does it matter to them if the reader has a certification? I hope readers can answer this because they would know more. I don't do as much reading as others here and from where I come from, they don't seem to find a certification of value mainly because they still dont realize that there is such a thing.
i guess the reason i also brought it up is because of the fancy name of the website owner... The Tarot Certification BOARD OF AMERICA! woooooh! Heaven forbid! Scary! I'm trembling in my knees!
What i find interesting is "who OWNS the wensite?". the reason i am asking because i tried to open the link and it says TCBA -Tarot Certification Board of America. I am not an American and I dont live there but if I were to migrate to the US and try my luck as a tarot professional, it's almost as if A certification is required before I can practice. i would have gotten the impression that i need to pass licensure exams before i can practice. It's like passing the bar to be a lawyer or a certified public accountant.
I am curious though ... first - is this TCBA a group of professional readers like what we have here in AT although we are more heterogenous in that we have both professional readers and beginners, and practitioners who do tarot as a hobby or special interest?
and second, is it possible that they are doing this also to put barriers to entry ... i remember that in one of the associations i was involved in (not tarot) they wanted people to qualify for certification so that "fakes" or people who are not real experts will not be qualified to practice?
and third ... from the perspective of querents and clients ... does it matter to them if the reader has a certification? I hope readers can answer this because they would know more. I don't do as much reading as others here and from where I come from, they don't seem to find a certification of value mainly because they still dont realize that there is such a thing.
i guess the reason i also brought it up is because of the fancy name of the website owner... The Tarot Certification BOARD OF AMERICA! woooooh! Heaven forbid! Scary! I'm trembling in my knees!
Mama Fortuna
I had a really bad experience with TCBA
I was reading at LivePerson, and one of the other readers was a board member at TCBA, so I inquired about the certification ... although it seemed rather pricey.
I decided to take the first level test, for about $50. What a mistake ! The test was about matching up each of the cards to keywords or phrases, which seemed kind of silly. I was told there were "no wrong answers", yet after I submitted the test phrases I was told to redo them and resubmit them. I had already gotten over 80% of them accepted, last time I checked 80% was a passing test score. One of the phrases they rejected was "trophy wife" for queen of coins. Come on, what is queen of coins if not a tropy wife ? ? ?
Anyways, this went back and forth for a couple of days by email. I would send a few new phrases, and some of them would be accepted, some rejected. I was getting impatient around day three and send a few emails saying I was a little busy with my job and chores around the house, please be patient while I get back to you.
The response I got was I didn't take tarot "seriously enough" and everyone on their board refused to ever grant me certification and, by the way, don't bother sending the money for the test.
I was floored. After answering nearly 100% correct, these people actually expected I would pay attention to them 24/7 and forget everything else in my life. Too much ...
So, I went to World Metaphysical Association, tested paid my 50 bucks and got my certification in one afternoon. I'm told the bar exam for attorneys only takes about three hours, so in my opinion, TCBA is a bunch of mumbo-jumbo not to mention extremely overpriced and a total waste of time.
I've already filed with ripoff report. In my opinion, TCBA is a total scam.
I was reading at LivePerson, and one of the other readers was a board member at TCBA, so I inquired about the certification ... although it seemed rather pricey.
I decided to take the first level test, for about $50. What a mistake ! The test was about matching up each of the cards to keywords or phrases, which seemed kind of silly. I was told there were "no wrong answers", yet after I submitted the test phrases I was told to redo them and resubmit them. I had already gotten over 80% of them accepted, last time I checked 80% was a passing test score. One of the phrases they rejected was "trophy wife" for queen of coins. Come on, what is queen of coins if not a tropy wife ? ? ?
Anyways, this went back and forth for a couple of days by email. I would send a few new phrases, and some of them would be accepted, some rejected. I was getting impatient around day three and send a few emails saying I was a little busy with my job and chores around the house, please be patient while I get back to you.
The response I got was I didn't take tarot "seriously enough" and everyone on their board refused to ever grant me certification and, by the way, don't bother sending the money for the test.
I was floored. After answering nearly 100% correct, these people actually expected I would pay attention to them 24/7 and forget everything else in my life. Too much ...
So, I went to World Metaphysical Association, tested paid my 50 bucks and got my certification in one afternoon. I'm told the bar exam for attorneys only takes about three hours, so in my opinion, TCBA is a bunch of mumbo-jumbo not to mention extremely overpriced and a total waste of time.
I've already filed with ripoff report. In my opinion, TCBA is a total scam.
Milfoil
What an awful experience. Glad you didn't loose any money.
tarotbear
Being the bastard that I can be, I would be sure to post this - with their email address, of course - on every site I went to, every blog, my own web page, etc.
Grizabella
They list some very prominent people in the Tarot world there. I wonder what would happen if all of them were polled to see just how many actually are affiliated and/or certified by TCBA and whether or not they even know they're on that list.
QofWands
certification
I would not mind going after certification if it was worth the effort and meant something.
Prove to me that your certification actually illustrates more competent readers. Show me that your methods for testing are unbiased, reproducible outside of your group and can stand up to a test re-test hypothesis with MEASURABLE results that prove your certified readers have happier clients and also have more business as a result.
Until then it is only a gimmick needed to assuage a timid population. I am not against certification. I am very, very against badly designed tests that certify nothing in particular. Of which there are plenty.
I would not mind going after certification if it was worth the effort and meant something.
Prove to me that your certification actually illustrates more competent readers. Show me that your methods for testing are unbiased, reproducible outside of your group and can stand up to a test re-test hypothesis with MEASURABLE results that prove your certified readers have happier clients and also have more business as a result.
Until then it is only a gimmick needed to assuage a timid population. I am not against certification. I am very, very against badly designed tests that certify nothing in particular. Of which there are plenty.
