Mission

The mission of the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education is to:

Goals

The specific goals of AIARE are:

• Increase the public awareness of avalanches and avalanche safety.

• Provide high quality avalanche education thereby enhancing public awareness and safety.

• Provide avalanche instructors with the curriculum, training and tools with which to educate students about the knowledge, methods, and decision making skills necessary to travel in avalanche terrain.

• Develop an international network of professional avalanche educators, and provide educational development in the form of instructor training courses and opportunity for continued learning.

LEVEL 1, LEVEL 2 AND LEVEL 3 AVALANCHE TRAINING COURSES

AIARE courses are designed to be a complete program of avalanche education. Within each course the lesson plans, student materials, and teaching aids are fully integrated. What you hear and see when an instructor delivers the content of a lesson plan in class or in the field is linked with what you take home when you leave.

The following individuals and companies offer AIARE courses. In some cases, not all the courses offered by the listed company are at the AIARE standard; this may be due to a variety of reasons, such as, the provider offers courses for which no AIARE standards exist, no AIARE qualified instructors are available, etc.

There are a lot of companies and individuals out there offering avalanche course instruction. How do you decide if you are getting someone who knows what they are doing?

The level one is a 3 day/24 hour introduction to avalanche hazard management. The course is expected to:

• Provide a basic understanding of avalanches
• Describe a framework for decision making and risk management in avalanche terrain
• Focus on identifying the right questions, rather than on providing “answers.”
• Give lessons and exercises that are practically oriented, useful, and applicable in the field.

There's a lot of avalanche courses out there. How do you decide which one to take? Here's a few things to consider before you sign up and spend your money.

The level 2 course is a 4-day program that provides backcountry leaders the opportunity to advance their avalanche knowledge and decision making skills. This course also includes the introductory and prerequisite components for the professional progression: the level 3 certificate.

The Level 3 course is an advanced certification course for experienced and professional avalanche practitioners, professional guides, patrollers and advanced recreational backcountry travelers. There are two course offerings - one is 7 days long and completes the avalanche course stream of the Level 2 and 3. (11 days together). The other course is 5 days long and is avaialble to professionals who have 10 years or more of work experience in avalanche forecasting and control operations.  Individuals who receive a passing grade and successfully complete the course receive a certificate provided by the AIARE administration.