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Activity Director Certification Requirements

Activity directors and their staff provide residents of nursing homes, assisted living facilities, adult daycare centers and alike with meaningful activities. Federal law mandates that directors must be certified. The National Council of Certified Activity Professionals (NCCAP) is recognized by Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) as an organization that certifies activity professionals who work specifically with the elderly. NCCAP certification assures administrators of nursing homes and surveyors from CMS that a director has met the professional standards. There are several different ways to achieve certification.

  1. Option 1

    • A bachelor's degree (must include English and other specific courses that are explained at the NCCAP website) is the educational criteria necessary for the option 1 track. In addition, you must have 4,000 hours of activity experience (may be as an assistant or provisional director) within the past five years. Besides this, you must have 30 hours of continuing education. The continuing education must include workshops, seminars, and in-services about human development, aging, spirituality, sociology, leadership, psychology leisure activities, computer use, regulations and a wide variety of other topics that relate to nursing homes, aging and activities. You must take the Modular Education Program for Activity Professionals (MEPAP).This can be done online or in person at a cost of about $1,200.

    Option 2

    • To qualify as an ADC with the second option, you must earn an associates degree (including English and other courses that are listed at the NCCAP website), have 6,000 hours of activity assistant or director experience within the past five years, have 30 hours of continuing education similar to the criteria for option 1 and take and pass the MEPAP courses.

    Option 3

    • To use option 3 to qualify as an ADC, you must have 60 college semester credits (must include English and other courses that are listed at the NCCAP website), have 6,000 hours of activity employment within the past five years, have 30 continuing education hours similar to those that are needed for the other options within the part five years, and pass the MEPAP.

    Option 4

    • To become an ADC using option four, you must pass both MEPAP modules and have 12 college credits not including the MEPAP. The courses that need to be taken are similar to those that are listed at the NCCAP website. You also need 6,000 hours of nursing home activity experience within the past five years and 30 additional hours of continuing education, which includes those that are listed on the NCCAP website.

    Activity Director Provisionally Certified

    • The Activity Director Provisionally Certified (ADPC): is a person who is working toward the requirements of one of the other four options. The certification is provisional for six years and is not renewable after that time. To have a provisional certification, you are required to renew your provisional certification every two years throughout the six years with 30 hours of continuing education every two years in addition to meeting the requirements of those that are discussed in the other options. You can only apply for the ADPC once.

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