NRA Range Safety Officer (RSO)
Description: "Develops NRA Certified Range Safety Officers with the knowledge, skills, and attitude essential to organizing, conducting, and supervising safe shooting activities and range operations. This course is conducted in a classroom and at a shooting facility. Range Safety Officer candidates will learn roles and responsibilities of an RSO; Range Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs); range inspection; range rules; range briefings; emergency procedures; and firearm stoppages and malfunctions. Each Range Safety Officer Candidate will receive an RSO Student Study Guide, a Basic Firearm Training Program brochure, an NRA Gun Safety Rules brochure and a Course Evaluation form." (Source)
Length: 9 hours
Prerequisite: none
Certification Length:
Part 1: BIT
NRA Basic Instructor Training [Part 1] (BIT)
NRA instructor training is two-parts. NRA instructor trainings are designed to develop NRA certified instructors who possess the knowledge, skills, and attitude necessary to conduct the NRA basic firearm training courses. It is the NRA class that helps people who already have subject matter expertise learn how to hold a class the NRA way so that their students earn recognized NRA certification.
NRA Basic Instructor Training (BIT) is the first part of the two-part course to becoming an NRA Certified Instructor and covers lessons one to five of every course. BIT is the first part of every discipline-specific NRA instructor course and must be renewed every two years. Participants learn essential methods of conducting a formal NRA class in the use of firearms and concludes with "preparing to teach" followed by the trainers examination.
Participants learn the essential methods to safely conduct a formal NRA class in the use of firearms. The student must complete the entire class and pass the trainers examination before moving to an instructor course. Learn more about becoming an NRA instructor.
The discipline-specific class is the second part of the two-part course and begins with lesson six.
Description: "NRA Instructor Training Courses help you develop the additional knowledge, skills and techniques needed to organize and teach courses in the NRA Basic Firearm Training Program." (Source)
Length: 6 hours
Prerequisite: none
Certification Length: Must be renewed every two years
Part 2: Rifle, Shotgun, Pistol, or Muzzleloading
NRA Basic Rifle Shooting (ILT-BRS)
Description: "Teaches the basic knowledge, skills, and attitude necessary for the safe use of a rifle in target shooting. This course includes classroom and range time learning to shoot rifles. Students learn NRA’s rules for safe gun handling; rifle parts and operation; ammunition; shooting fundamentals; range rules; shooting from the bench rest, prone, sitting, standing and kneeling positions; cleaning, and continued opportunities for skill development. Students will receive the Basics of Rifle Shooting handbook, NRA Gun Safety Rules brochure, Winchester/NRA Marksmanship Qualification booklet, take a Basics of Rifle Shooting Student Examination, and receive a course completion certificate." (Source)
Length: 14 hours
Prerequisite: none
Certification Length:
NRA Basic Rifle Instructor (BRI)
Description: Teaches the knowledge, skills and attitude essential to organizing, promoting and teaching NRA’s Basic Rifle Shooting course.
Length: 14 hours
Prerequisite: NRA Basic Instructor Training (BIT); NRA Basic Rifle Shooting (ILT-BRS); possession of basic firearm safety and shooting skills; pre-course questionnaire and demonstrate firearm background in pre-course assessment exercises.
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NRA Basic Shotgun Shooting (ILT-BSS)
Description: "Teaches the basic knowledge, skills, and attitude for the safe and proper use of a shotgun in shooting a moving target. This course includes classroom and range time learning how to shoot shotguns at moving targets. Students learn NRA’s rules for safe gun handling; shotgun parts and operation; shotgun shell components; shotgun shell malfunctions; shooting fundamentals; range rules; shooting at straight away and angled targets; cleaning; and continued opportunities for skill development. Students will receive the Basics of Shotgun Shooting handbook, NRA Gun Safety Rules brochure, Winchester/NRA Marksmanship Qualification booklet, take a Basics of Shotgun Shooting Student Examination, and receive a course completion certificate." (Source)
Length: 10 hours
Prerequisite: none
Certification Length:
NRA Basic Shotgun Instructor (BSI)
Description: "This course teaches the knowledge, skills and attitude essential to organizing, promoting and teaching NRA’s Basic Shotgun Shooting Course. Students demonstrate organizational and teaching skills via participation in practical exercises during the course, and complete an instructor certification examination. Students will receive the NRA Trainer’s Guide, NRA Shotgun Instructor Candidate Packet, and NRA Basic Shotgun Shooting course student packet." (Source)
NRA Instructor Shotgun Shooting Course is an instructor level course that can be taken after completing the BIT class. The Instructor Shotgun Shooting Course is eleven hours of instructions on safe gun handing, gun parts and their function, ammunition, shooting positions, and teaching methods. Candidates are expected to apply their lessons learned in BIT in giving lessons and presenting demonstrations. This is a “hands on” class taught by NRA Training Counselors in “Total Participation and Involvement” method. The instructor candidates will give classroom lessons and demonstrations and concludes with teaching those lessons learned to their classmates at the range.
An NRA certified shotgun instructor is required to provide instruction for BSA shotgun shooting activities involving Boy Scouts, Venturer, and Sea Scouts. It is essential to be a certified instructor if you want to be a Merit Badge Counselor in the BSA Shooting Sports for firearms. This is an NRA Certification, not BSA, and will be conducted according to the NRA’s requirements. (NRA Course Catalog)
"An NRA certified shotgun instructor is required to provide instruction for BSA shotgun shooting activities involving Boy Scouts, Venturers, and Sea Scouts. The NRA shotgun instructor may teach the BSA 30-Minute Shotgun Briefing, the NRA FIRST Steps Shotgun Orientation, the Shotgun Shooting merit badge using the BSA Shotgun Shooting Merit Badge Teaching Guide, and the eight-hour NRA Basic Shotgun Course. The NRA shotgun instructor course is 11 hours and includes classroom and range activities with student teaching, evaluation, and testing. The course is conducted by an NRA training counselor." (National Shooting Sports Manual, No 30931, p65)
Shotgun Shooting Merit Badge Counselor: "The merit badge counselor is responsible for ensuring that all instruction or other activities involving any handling of firearms or live ammunition is consistent with state and federal law and supervised by a certified NCS shooting sports director or NRA Shotgun Instructor or Coach. Instruction or other activities involving handling muzzle-loading shotguns must be supervised by an NCS shooting sports director or NRA/NMLRA certified muzzle-loading shotgun instructor. Shooting must be supervised by an NRA-certified Range Safety Officer. If instruction and shooting are to occur at the same time, both the RSO and qualified instructor must be present. They may not be the same person. Note that commercial shooting ranges may provide RSOs." (BSA website). See the Guide to Safe Scouting: shooting sports section and the BSA National Shooting Sports Manual, for further details on shooting sports.
Length: 11 hours
Prerequisite: NRA Basic Instructor Training (BIT); NRA Basic Shotgun Shooting (ILT-BSS); possession of basic firearm safety and shooting skills; pre-course questionnaire; demonstrate firearm background in pre-course assessment exercises.
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NRA Basic Pistol Shooting (ILT-BPS)
Description: "The NRA Basics of Pistol Shooting is intended for all individuals regardless of previous shooting experience or NRA-affiliation and is available for delivery in two ways. One option is the traditional, instructor-led course where you will receive direct instruction from an NRA-certified instructor from beginning to end. The other option has two components: a self-study or “eLearning module” which is completed online in your own timeframe and a hands-on practical portion conducted in a classroom and shooting range with an Instructor....Course topics include: gun safety rules, proper operation of revolvers and semi-automatic pistols, ammunition knowledge and selection, pistol selection and storage, shooting fundamentals, pistol inspection and maintenance, marksmanship, and shooting range safety. Additionally, students will complete live fire training and a nationally standardized shooting qualification while on the range with an NRA Certified Instructor. Students will receive the NRA Guide: Basics of Pistol Shooting handbook, take a Basics of Pistol Shooting Student Examination and receive a course completion certificate bearing the signature of the NRA Secretary and your NRA Certified Instructor." (Source)
Length:
Prerequisite: none
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NRA Basic Pistol Instructor (BPI)
Description: This course teaches the knowledge, skills and attitude essential to organizing, promoting and teaching NRA’s Basic Pistol Shooting course. Students demonstrate organizational and teaching skills via participation in practical exercises during the course, and complete an instructor certification examination. Students will receive the NRA Trainer’s Guide, NRA Pistol Shooting Instructor Candidate Packet and NRA Basic Pistol Shooting course student packet. (Source)
Prerequisite: NRA Basic Instructor Training (BIT); NRA Basic Pistol Shooting (ILT-BPS); possession of basic firearm safety and shooting skills; pre-course questionnaire; demonstrate firearm background in pre-course assessment exercises.
Length: 10 hours
Certification Length:
NRA/BSA CO-OP Basic Muzzleloading (rifle only) (ILT-M-C)
Description: "Teaches the basic knowledge, skills, and attitude essential to the safe and efficient use of a muzzleloading guns. Instructors may focus the course on one specific discipline or a combination of disciplines. The course includes classroom instruction and time on a range shooting either muzzleloading rifle, muzzleloading shotgun, muzzleloading pistol, or a selected combination of these disciplines. (Source)
Length: 12 hours
Prerequisite: none
Certification Length:
NRA/BSA CO-OP Muzzleloading Instructor (rifle only) (MI-C)
Description: Teaches the knowledge, skills and attitude essential to organizing, promoting and teaching the NRA-NMLRA Basic Muzzleloading Rifle Shooting course.
Prerequisite: NRA Basic Instructor Training (BIT); NRA/BSA CO-OP Muzzleloading (rifle only) (ILT-M-C); possession of basic firearm safety and shooting skills; pre-course questionnaire; demonstrate firearm background in pre-course assessment exercises.
Length: 12 hours
Certification Length:
Shooting Sports 101
Description: Shooting Sports 101 Training is typically held during the spring University of Scouting. Shooting sports is a popular activity in Scouts and there are many rules and regulations involved with the activity. This course introduces Scouters to the world of shooting sports in the BSA and provides participants with a better idea of how to incorporate shooting sports into the unit's program in compliance with the BSA Shooting Sports Manual.
Length: 1 hour
Prerequisite: none
2018 Shooting Sports presentation