ATI Education & Certification

Build Confidence in the Water. Expand What You Can Offer Your Patients.

Many clinicians recognize the potential of aquatic therapy but have had limited opportunities to receive structured, clinically focused training in how to effectively use the aquatic environment as part of rehabilitation. ATI helps bridge that gap.

Our clinician training provides the knowledge, practical skills and clinical framework needed to confidently incorporate aquatic therapy into patient care. From understanding the properties of water to assessment, treatment planning, exercise selection and progression, clinicians learn how to use the aquatic environment with purpose.

The goal is simple: give clinicians another valuable treatment option, and the confidence to know when, why and how to use it.

01

Assisted

02

Supported

03

Controlled

04

Resisted

05

Independent

06

Transitional to Land

The Certification Pathway

Structured Syllabus · On-Demand Training · Learn on Your Schedule

Level 1 Certification

Build Your Foundation

Develop the knowledge and practical skills needed to confidently begin incorporating aquatic therapy into clinical practice. Explore the therapeutic properties of water, safety and risk management, patient screening and suitability, and foundational aquatic techniques. Learn how to apply these principles to common clinical presentations and how to adapt exercises to meet individual patient needs. Participants must have access to a pool to practice and demonstrate the techniques and concepts covered in the course through a practical video submission.

Designed for clinicians looking to build a strong foundation in aquatic rehabilitation.

ATI Clinician Certification Level 1: 7 core competency domains

Level 2 Advanced Certification

Advance Your Clinical Reasoning

Build on your Level 1 knowledge to manage more complex rehabilitation needs in the aquatic environment. Develop your clinical reasoning skills through aquatic assessment, exercise selection, and strategies for progressing and regressing treatment based on patient presentation, movement quality, and functional goals. Learn to manipulate the properties of water and key exercise variables to create appropriate challenges and guide patients toward meaningful functional outcomes.

Designed for clinicians with aquatic therapy experience who are ready to refine their skills and expand their aquatic therapy practice.

ATI Clinician Certification Level 2: 9 core competency domains

Start Your Certification

The Accessible Delivery Advantage

No Flights. No Lost Clinical Hours.

01

The barrier was logistics

The single biggest barrier to aquatic therapy education was never the content. It was the logistics, flying somewhere, taking days off, finding coverage for your patients while you were on training.

02

That barrier is gone

The entire course is delivered online, on your own schedule, from wherever you already are.

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CEU credit

The program is approved for continuing education credit in several US states, with more being added as the work continues.

Clinical Leadership and Authority

Built by the People Who Have Been Doing This for Forty Years.

The concept did not come from a textbook. It came from the combined forty years that Karen Snyder and Irene Hammerich spent working in the aquatic environment. Karen founded the Canadian Red Cross Adapted Aquatics Program in 1981. Irene's career began as a teenager teaching swimming, growing through her role as a Master Trainer for instructors and into senior aquatic leadership positions.

That depth of hands-on experience did not stay in the past. It became the daily working framework LiquidGym Therapy and Training Centre's physical therapists used daily, refined session by session as patients responded, progressed, and revealed what actually worked in the water. Years of observation, adjustment, and outcomes shaped the curriculum long before it was ever formalized, and that same clinical foundation is what now underpins the ATI Clinician Training Program, translating 12 years of hands-on expertise into a structured, teachable framework for clinicians entering the field.

This curriculum is the result of more than 12 years of research, development, clinical refinement, and collaboration. It has been shaped by the collective expertise of multiple experienced therapists who have worked together to develop, evaluate, and continuously improve the program. The result is a comprehensive, evidence-informed training program designed to provide consistent, practical, and clinically relevant education for aquatic therapy professionals.

Every module in this certification is developed under senior clinical oversight. The team upholds the clinical standards across the entire ATI education and certification ecosystem.

Start Your Certification

The Questions You Are Actually Asking

The Questions You Are Actually Asking.

What if I have no prior experience with aquatic therapy?

No prior aquatic therapy experience is needed. Level 1 starts with the fundamentals, including the properties of water, safety and risk management, and clinical screening, before introducing foundational techniques and their application in rehabilitation. The course is designed to help you build your knowledge and skills step by step, so you can develop confidence in applying aquatic therapy in clinical practice.

How do I receive my certificate of completion?

Once you have completed all course readings, videos, chapter quizzes, and your practical submission, you will be asked to complete a course evaluation. After submitting your evaluation, your certificate of completion will be emailed directly to you.

Is the course approved for continuing education credits (CEUs)?

The Aquatic Therapy Institute Clinician Certification – Level 1 has been approved for continuing education credits in several U.S. states. Approval requirements vary by state and professional regulatory body, so we recommend checking with your licensing organization to confirm eligibility.

We are currently pursuing continuing education approval for Level 2.

For You, or for Your Team

Certify Yourself. Or Certify Your Entire Team.

For individual clinicians

Start practicing in the water with a structured method behind every session.

Coming Soon

For clinic owners

Train every clinician to one ATI standard, so every patient gets the same quality of care, and your clinic's reputation compounds.

Coming Soon

Continuing Education Credit

Physical Therapy CEUs

State	Approved for	Approved by
California	9 hours	CEUApproval.com, a recognized approval agency of the Physical Therapy Board of CA — for Physical Therapists and Physical Therapist Assistants in California (CA)
Florida	9 hours	Florida Board of Physical Therapy Practice
Illinois	8.5 hours	Illinois Physical Therapy Association
Louisiana	9 hours	Louisiana Board of Physical Therapy
Minnesota	7.75 hours	Minnesota Board of Physical Therapy
New Jersey	9 hours	New Jersey Board of Physical Therapy Examiners
New York	10.8 hours	APTA New York
Nevada	9 hours	Nevada Physical Therapy Board
Ohio	9 hours	Ohio Physical Therapy Association
Oklahoma	9 hours	Oklahoma Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision – Physical Therapy
Tennessee	9 hours	APTA Tennessee
Texas	9 hours	Texas Physical Therapy Association
West Virginia	9 hours	West Virginia Board of Physical Therapy

Courses approved by other state boards in the following jurisdictions are likely accepted for licensure credit based on the state regulation:

AL | AK | AR | CO | CT | DE | GA | HI | ID | IN | IA | KS | KY | ME | MA | MI | MO | MT | NE | NH | NC | ND | OR | PA | RI | SC | SD | UT | VT | VA | VI | WA | WI | WY

Courses approved by other APTA chapters in the following jurisdictions are likely accepted for licensure credit based on the state regulation:

AZ | DC | MD | MS | NM

Please reach out to your state licensing board to confirm the currency and accuracy of this information. If you have a specific question about CEU approval for this course in your state, please direct your inquiry to info@ceuapproval.com.

Participants licensed in states not pre-approved may file for individual approval using the instructions on this document.

Not sure where to start with aquatic therapy?

Build Confidence in the Water. Expand What You Can Offer Your Patients.

Assisted

Supported

Controlled

Resisted

Independent

Transitional to Land

Structured Syllabus · On-Demand Training · Learn on Your Schedule

Build Your Foundation

Advance Your Clinical Reasoning

No Flights. No Lost Clinical Hours.

The barrier was logistics

That barrier is gone

CEU credit

Built by the People Who Have Been Doing This for Forty Years.

The Questions You Are Actually Asking.

Certify Yourself. Or Certify Your Entire Team.

For individual clinicians

For clinic owners

Physical Therapy CEUs