ICF submissions
How to Choose Which Recording to Submit
By Gary Malcolm, Master Certified Coach (ICF) · Updated 1 September 2026
Key takeaways
- The session that felt best to coach is often not the one that best evidences the competencies. Assessors do not mark warmth, breakthroughs or chemistry.
- Rank your recordings on observable evidence: how complete the agreement is, who chose the direction at each turning point, question quality, and who designed the close.
- Check compliance first: any session outside 20 to 60 minutes, edited, or without a clean transcript is out, however good the coaching.
- For PCC and MCC you are choosing two recordings, and they should evidence the standard independently, not average out to it.
- A wrong choice costs $150 per recording and 6 to 8 weeks.
Most candidates have several recordings and need to choose which to submit. It is natural to pick the session that felt best, but the things that make a session memorable (chemistry, breakthroughs, emotional depth) are not what assessors mark. They mark observable behavior against the competencies, so rank your recordings on that evidence.
Check compliance first
Rule out any recording outside 20 to 60 minutes, recorded in parts, edited, or without a clean verbatim transcript. A non-compliant file will not be scored, however good the coaching.
Then rank the rest on four questions
1. How complete is the agreement? An agreement with measures of success ranks above a topic-only start. 2. Who chose the direction? Count the moments where the session could have gone two ways, and who decided. 3. What is the weakest question in the session? Assessors notice stacked questions and questions with your answer built in. 4. Who designed the close? Actions the client designs rank above homework the coach suggests.
Send up to five recordings and we’ll tell you which to submit.
PCC and MCC: two recordings
PCC and MCC submissions are two recordings, evaluated separately. A common mistake is pairing a strong session with a weaker one. The weaker one fails, and the retake costs $150 plus weeks. Make sure each of your two recordings meets the standard on its own.
Frequently asked questions
Which coaching recording should I submit to ICF?
The one with the strongest observable evidence against the competencies, not the one that felt best. Rank your candidates on four things assessors mark: a complete agreement with measures of success, summaries that hand the thread back to the client, single questions without embedded answers, and a client-authored close.
Why is my favorite session usually the wrong pick?
What makes a session feel great (connection, breakthroughs, emotional depth) is not what assessors mark. Sessions with a big client insight can contain a lot of coach steering, because the coach pushed toward it. Assessors mark behavior, not outcomes.
Should my two PCC or MCC recordings be similar or different?
Each must meet the standard on its own, because assessors evaluate them separately. Pairing one strong recording with a weaker one is a common way to fail half a submission and pay a $150 retake.
How many candidate sessions should I record before choosing?
Three to five compliant sessions gives you a real choice. Record until you have a few sessions that meet the compliance rules with no obvious steering, then rank them.
Can someone rank my recordings for me?
Yes. With Rank My Recordings you send up to five recordings. We rank them against the current ICF standards, tell you which to submit (which two, for PCC and MCC), and fully review the strongest submission with an expert review. It costs $99 for ACC, $129 for PCC and $149 for MCC. If none are ready, your next batch is half price (once).
What if none of my recordings are ready?
Then the report names the specific habits holding them back, so you know what to change before you record again.