At more and more universities, equipment managers must either arrive with AEMA Certification from the Athletic Equipment Managers Association or agree to obtain it within a specific period of time–usually one year.
And, it’s no walk in the park.
Sam Trusner, Office Manager for the AEMA, told us that as many as 20 percent of those who take the test fail.
“It’s not the ones who don’t try and fail that get you, it’s the ones who get 68 or 69 right,” he said. It takes a 70 percent score to pass.
The test is 100 multiple choice questions broken down into five categories:
- PURCHASING
- FITTING
- MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR
- MANAGEMENT
- ACCOUNTABILITY
Becoming a certified Equipment Manager takes time, experience, smarts, and know-how. It is not focused, as some believe, on football.
“It’s not about any specific sport,” Trusner told us. “It’s all about general knowledge for the job.”
He said many test-takers stumble on questions about human resources. Yet, a big part of the job of an Equipment Manager at a college, semi-pro team, and other environments is hiring and firing assistants and student managers.
A sample question asks about hiring practices:
“You cannot take this test lightly,” Trusner said.
He explained the process of creating the test each year.
A committee of the AEMA works with a professional testing company in North Carolina to come up with 200 questions. The company chooses 100 to put on the test. The tests are sealed and sent to the testing site, opened only for the test-takers, then resealed and sent back to the test company. They then grade the test and send the AEMA the results.
At this point in time, the AEMA offers the test at the annual AEMA Convention in June, the most attended and least expensive. This year’s convention is in Atlanta and Trusner expects about 100 people to take the test. Opportunities to offer the test at more regional sites are planned for the future, but costs and qualified personnel to proctor the test are issues that need to be resolved.
Helmet Tracker offers a one-time scholarship that will cover the cost of the test and testing materials. Please visit www.helmettracker.com/aema-scholarship for more information.