Some coaches are ready to go all the way into the deep end of mentor coaching training. And some coaches need a clear, well-structured path to their MCS designation that meets them where they are right now.

MentorPath Essential was built for the second group.

Mentor coaching supports the development and demonstration of core coaching competencies required for your credential. According to the International Coaching Federation (ICF), it is a reflective, feedback-based process that typically takes place over a minimum of three months. It is available at all credential levels (ACC, PCC, and MCC) and is required for both initial credentialing and renewal, supporting ongoing professional growth at every stage.

This is a complete and substantial training experience. It will prepare you well, and it will take you exactly where you need to go.

Who MentorPath Essential Is Designed For

You hold an ACC with at least one renewal (or close to it), a PCC, or an MCC. You want to become a qualified mentor coach and earn your MCS designation through the ICF Standard Path. You are looking for a program that is focused and well-designed without being overwhelming.

You are in the right place.

If you find yourself reading this and wondering whether you should be in the Immersive Path instead, that question is worth sitting with for a moment. The Essential Path is focused for deep enrichment and growth towards excellence as a Mentor Coach. And the Immersive is genuinely more for those who want to Master Mentor Coaching.

Only you know which one is right for you.

COHORT MCE-226

Part One: The Foundation

Five Live Sessions | November 17 – December 3rd

Every MentorPath Immersive student begins here, in five live sessions that establish the perceptual skills, conceptual frameworks, and observational precision that great mentor coaching is built on.

You will learn to see coaching through a competency lens, not as a checklist, but as a living, dynamic picture of a coach's development. You will develop the feedback frameworks that allow you to be direct without being directive, honest without being harsh, and developmental in every word you offer.

This is the bedrock. Everything that follows is built on it.

ALL Live Sessions are at 9 a.m. -  10:30 a.m.  Eastern 

• Session 1 - Definitions and Distinctions (Tues, Nov 17th)
• Session 2 - The Whole Coach Lens (Thurs, Nov 19th )
• Session 3 - Session Observation Skills (Tues, Nov 24th)
• Session 4 - Developmental Feedback - Frameworks Pt. 1 - The Formative - Feedback Form (Tues, Dec 1st)
• Session 5 - Developmental Feedback - Frameworks Pt. 2 - The Competency Review Feedback Form (Thurs, Dec 3rd)

Part Two: Mentor Coaching Studio

The Mentor Coaching Studio: Nine Practical Session with Jille starting Tuesday, December 8th at 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Eastern – Thursday, January 21st. 

After the Foundational sessions, Essential students come together for nine weeks of group coaching on your mentor coaching with Jille. These are intimate, unhurried conversations, a passiontate group of coaches exploring what it means to observe well, give feedback skillfully, and show up with deep presence for the coaches they will serve.

Each session builds naturally on the last. By the end you will have logged meaningful hours and developed real confidence in your mentor coaching work.

• Session 6 - Tues, Dec 8, 2026
• Session 7 - Thurs, Dec 10, 2026
• Session 8 - Tues, Dec 15, 2026
• Break for the Holidays 
• Session 9 - Tues, Jan 5, 2027
• Session 10 - Thurs, Jan 7, 2027
• Session 11 - Tues, Jan 12, 2027
• Session 12 - Thurs, Jan 14, 2027 
• Session 13 - Tues, Jan 19, 2027
• Session 14 - Thurs, Jan 21, 2027
• ALL SESSION ARE - 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. 

Makeup session available Friday, January 22nd for any missed mandatory live sessions. (same time)

All together you will have 21 hours of Live Instruction all centered around the Mentor Coaching Core Competencies and you Mentor Coaching Skills 

Part Three: Your Async Library  (Personalized to You)

The mandatory courses in the MentorPath Core Program build the knowledge foundation your MCS application requires. Your required (by ICF) BARS or Markers training at your credential level (ACC, PCC, or MCC) are included in this program and will sharpen the evaluative precision that separates good mentor coaches from exceptional ones. (you can take one, two or all three of the required BARS or Markers Training)

Beyond the required courses, the library is yours to explore and take to complete your 21 hours of asynchronous training. Choose any of the following:

• Bias Awareness in Evaluation
• Evalutation Feedback Mastery
• The Agreement Studio: The Step-by Step Guide to Building Your Mentor Coaching Agreement
• Reflective Practice for Mentor Coaches
• The Business of Mentor Coaching
• My Mentor Coaching Manifesto

These are invitations to go deeper into the dimensions of this work that matter most to you. They are anything but filler.

Note: 6 hours of asynchronous work is mandatory for this program. You may transfer in up to 14 hours of asynchronous hours, including your required (by ICF) BARS or Markers training at your credential level (ACC, PCC, or MCC).

MentorPath Essential at a Glance

• 42 total hours of mentor coaching education
• 21 live hours including 9 group sessions with Jille
• Personalized async path including your level-appropriate BARS or Markers training
• 18 students only
• Fully qualifies you to apply for your ICF Mentor Coach Specialization (MCS)

The Outcome: Your Transformation as a Mentor Coach

You will finish MentorPath Essential with every educational requirement met for your MCS application. You will understand how to observe coaching through a competency lens, how to give feedback that is clear and developmental, and how to show up for the coaches you mentor with skill and intention.

It is a solid foundation for meaningful mentor coaching work.

Program Details

Program begins: November 17th, 2026 

Completion Date: January 21st, 2027

Cohort size: 16 students - strictly limited

Investment: $2400.00 with Payment plans available during check out.

This is the only MentorPath Essentials cohort running before the ICF's January 2027 MCS requirement takes effect. When these 18 spots are filled, enrollment closes.

For coaching schools and organizations interested in preparing multiple mentors or faculty members, please reach out directly. That conversation is worth having.

A Personal Note From Jille Bartolome, MCC, MCS

I want to be honest with you about something.

I built the Essential program because I know that not every coach is in the same place, and the path to the MCS should reflect that. If you are someone who needs a focused, well-structured experience that meets the requirements and prepares you well without the full depth of the Immersive, this program was built for you. It is not a lesser version of something else. It is the right program for a specific kind of coach at a specific moment in their journey.

What I can tell you is that when we will spend time together having real conversations about the development of coaches going through the credentialing journey with coaches who are serious about doing this work well. That is where the learning actually happens, and I show up for those sessions fully. These are the sessions I look forward to the most. 

In more than twenty-five years of mentor coaching, I have watched coach after coach walk into their credential application with confidence and certainty. They knew they were ready. When this program is completed with full commitment, you will know it too.

If this is your path, I am glad you found it.

— Jille Bartolome, MCC