Frequently Asked Questions

OSHAcademy is a business founded in 1999 to meet the growing need for dedicated, interactive, computer-based occupational safety and health education. Today, we provide computer-based occupational safety and health training to businesses, organizations, and individuals around the world. We also have a network of authorized independent trainers conducting classroom-based training to meet the needs of their local communities.

Our corporate address is:

1915 NW Amberglen Parkway, Suite 400
Beaverton, OR 97006
United States

You can call our office at +1.971.217.8721. When prompted, please press "1" for OSHAcademy.

You can also email our staff at instructor@oshatrain.org.

OSHAcademy Occupational Safety and Health Training is a division of Geigle Safety Group, Inc., and is not connected or affiliated with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), or the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Authorized Training Providers are independent contractors authorized to use OSHAcademy training materials to conduct OSH training within their respective territories or countries.

OSHAcademy issues jointly signed OSH professional program and course completion certificates, cards, and transcripts to document a student training.

Authorized Training Providers are not authorized by OSHAcademy to issue certificates or cards by DOL or OSHA upon completion of OSHAcademy specific training.

Our Director, Steve Geigle, retired from Oregon-OSHA after working many years as a trainer. He was also instrumental in developing OR-OSHA's computer-based training courses.

No. OSHAcademy cannot issue DOL or OSHA cards. The cards we issue are OSHAcademy training cards used to document student participation and training in one of our classes. If you need a DOL or OSHA card, please visit OSHA's website.

Authorized Training Providers are not authorized by OSHAcademy to issue certificates or cards by DOL or OSHA upon completion of OSHAcademy specific training.

Geigle Safety Group is our parent company. OSHAcademy is a division and legally registered DBA of Geigle Safety Group, Inc.

Yes. Our DUNS number is 078873689. This number allows Geigle Safety Group, Inc., the parent company of OSHAcademy, to contract with government agencies.

Our training is designed to be compatible with any device running a modern web browser. Some computer-based training (CBT) organizations force you to sit through flash slides or videos which only work on computers and some portable devices. With our training, you can use either our website or download one of our free PDF study guides and train wherever and whenever you want. You can use almost any device you have, including computers, tablets, smart phones, and even most eReader devices. We believe it is more important to provide easy access for our students than to provide flashy graphics that don't improve the content or the learning.

And, unlike other CBT organizations, we want you to email or call our office if you questions about either the course content or our website. We are here to help.

No. OSHAcademy computer-based training (CBT) helps to satisfy knowledge-level training requirements. However, some topics, such as fall protection, require the students to have hands-on experience with the equipment. Often, our courses will be used to provide the knowledge-level training, while the employer provides additional hands-on training.

A course is one focused unit of study, typically taking 2-6 hours to complete. You can view our course catalog to see a complete list of our courses.

A program is made up of several required courses, and is designed to ensure the student has a solid foundation for the broader program topic. For example, OSHAcademy's 36-hour OSH Train-the-Trainer program is designed to ensure the student has a solid understanding of several topics, such as Introduction to Training and Hazard Identification and Control. Students must complete all required courses in order to complete program. You can view our program comparison page to see which courses are required for each program.

Module quizzes are designed to allow students to self-check their understanding of the course content. At the end of each module, students can take the online quiz and submit their answers. Students will then be provided the correct answers to the quiz questions, and provided some additional explanation when needed. Because the module quizzes are designed to allow students to self-check their understanding, we do not receive your quiz results.

Course exams are used to formally document a student's understanding of the course content. At the end of each course, students are required to take the course exam and pass with a minimum score of 80%. Students will receive an email with a "pass" or "fail" score after each exam is submitted.

At the end of each course, students are required to take the course exam and pass with a minimum score of 80%. Students will automatically receive an email with a "pass" or "fail" score after each exam is submitted.

Students will only receive their detailed exam score if they have paid for the certificate or program which requires the course.

There is no time limit to complete a course or program.

Student should be able to pass a course exam within three attempts. The course exams are open book and are designed to ensure a reasonable knowledge of the course content. Students are allowed to submit a course exam three times within a 48 hour period. If the student fails the exam all three times, they are required to wait an additional 48 hours before they can submit the exam again. Students should review the course material during this required wait period to ensure they have reviewed any concepts they did not understand.

We are here to help. If you have a question about course content, please email or call our office. We can't help you on a course final exam, but we would be happy to help explain any concepts you might be having difficulty with within a course of study.

Student transcripts only document course and programs that have been paid for. If you would like your courses to appear on your transcript as you complete them, you will need to pay the documentation fee before completing the exam. Once you pay the documentation fee, your courses and programs will automatically be displayed on your student transcript.

Many OSHA standards require that employees receive training so that work will be performed in a safe and healthful manner.

• Some of these standards simply state the requirement for "training" or "instruction."
• Other standards require "adequate" or "effective" training or instruction.
• A third category of standards require training "in a manner" or "in language" that is understandable to employees.

It is OSHA's position that, regardless of the precise regulatory language, the terms "train" and "instruct," as well as other synonyms, mean to present information in a manner that employees receiving it are capable of understanding. This follows from both the purpose of the standards -- providing employees with information that will allow work to be performed in a safe and healthful manner that complies with OSHA requirements -- and the basic definition that implies the information is presented in a manner the recipient is capable of understanding.

Like most safety training, our certificates "certify" you have completed a formal course of study. OSHAcademy certificates do not certify you as a "qualified" safety professional or trainer. And, of course, OSHA does not "certify" anyone as a qualified safety professional either.

In the USA, to be "certified" as a qualified safety professional you need to meet experience and educational requirements and successfully pass an exam from a credentialing organization like the Board of Certified Safety Professionals (www.bcsp.com) or the Institute for Safety and Health Management (www.ishm.org).

OSHAcademy's 132-hour OSH Professional program is an accepted training program by the Institute for Safety and Health Management. The training can help you meet the requirements for the Associate Safety and Health Manager (ASHM) credential. You must also meet additional requirements, such as experience. Please contact the ISHM for more information.

That's a great question.

As a matter of policy, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) does not "approve" or "endorse" training programs. Instead, OSHA has established the employer, rather than the training provider, as being ultimately responsible for ensuring employees acquire the training and skills needed to perform their duties in a safe and healthful manner. (OSHA Ltr Dtd 10.20.1999)

OSHAcademy computer-based training (CBT) is "recognized" by colleges, universities, insurance companies, and many public and private sector organizations world-wide. Students from all branches of the US military, NASA, and other well respected organizations have completed our training.

Our training is "approved" by the National Safety Management Society and the Institute for Safety and Health Management. The 132 Hour OSH Professional Program is an approved certificate program for the accredited Associate Safety Health Manager (ASHM) credential.

OSHA "approves" or "certifies" training only when it is conducted by authorized OSHA Outreach Instructors who work with OSHA Training Institute Centers. These are typically classroom-based courses. For legal reasons OSHA does not formally approve or certify training presented by other providers.

OSHA recognizes safety training as long as it meets or exceeds the training required by various OSHA rules. Remember, if someone tells you they or their products are "OSHA certified", "OSHA qualified" or "OSHA approved," you should verify the claim.

OSHAcademy computer-based training (CBT) conforms to the guidelines within ANSI Z490.1-2009, Criteria for Accepted Practices in Safety, Health and Environmental Training, and OSHA Publication 2254, Training Requirements in OSHA Standards and Training Guidelines for computer-based training as stated and inferred in letters of interpretation.

OSHA recognizes CBT if the training conforms to their standards, and as such OSHA will "recognize" the training as valid.

No.

Embassies will authenticate diplomas issued from universities, colleges, and institutions which are accredited by U.S Department of Education-recognized accrediting organizations. If it doesn't appear on the Department of Education database of accredited post secondary institutions, a U.S. Embassy cannot stamp the diploma, as the stamp only attests to the accreditation of the institution in question.

OSHAcademy is a private training institution, not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Education, and does not offer a "degree-program" but rather a "certificate-program." Therefore, embassies are not generally going to attest to the authenticity of the training. Unfortunately, a great many worthwhile training courses and professional organizations do not have U.S. Department of Education accreditation, but the U.S. Embassy does not stamp or authenticate them.

The purpose of the authentication process is to help guard against spurious 'diploma mill' degrees, and I agree with the U.S. Embassy policy. Please be assured that OSHAcademy is NOT a diploma mill. There is no way a student will receive a course or program certificate without studying the material and passing the exams. If you have any questions on this topic please call or email OSHAcademy directly.

Yes.

Before you can request your documents be authenticated, you must complete your program or course and purchase an original copy of the certificate.

To get your certificates authenticated, the fee will be $145 to cover the following:

1. OSHAcademy will have your certificate notarized by a certified notary public. This step takes about 1 business day.
2. OSHAcademy will mail your certificate to the Oregon Secretary of State for authentication. This is required by the US Department of State. This step takes about 7 to 10 business days. After we receive the State authenticated certificate, we will continue to step 3.
3. OSHAcademy will mail your certificate to the U.S. Department of State to receive final authentication. This process takes 4 to 6 weeks. After we receive the authenticated certificate from the U.S. Department of State, we will continue to step 4.
4. We will mail your authenticated certificate to you via DHL. To prevent additional delay in the delivery of your authenticated certificates, you must provide OSHAcademy with a complete mailing address.

Important note: You can have either your certificate or transcript authenticated. Please be sure to tell us which document you would like to have authenticated. If you do not provided this information, we will have your transcript authenticated as the default training document.

Yes.

Students can register on our website and complete all of our courses for no cost. OSHAcademy only charges a fee if you want to document your training. Other computer-based training (CBT) providers charge a fee to access their material and then, when you complete their training you receive a low-quality electronic certificate. This is a significant different between OSHAcademy and other CBT providers.

All students who are enrolled in one of our training programs will automatically receive a complimentary PDF certificate for course 700. If you are not enrolled in a program, the complimentary certificate will not be available. If needed, you can change your enrollment status from the student dashboard after you log in to your account.

Because the fee we charge is only to document your training, and not for the training itself, we do not charge a large fee like other companies.

You can purchase individual certificates for each course you complete, or you can purchase a program, and receive certificates for all the required courses for that program.

Please view our Program Comparison page for a detailed comparison of the programs and what is included when you purchase a program package.

Individual certificates can be purchased for $11.95 (PDF), $15.00 (Original), and $20 (PDF and Original). The cost for shipping is separate.

After you complete each course exam, you will receive an email with a "Pass" or "Fail" score. You can print these emails out and use them to document your successful completion of the course. We do not provide detailed exam scores for free. Once you purchase a certificate or program, you will be able to print your training transcript which will provide a detailed record of your training.

No.

You can take all of our courses without paying anything. You only have to pay a fee if you would like us to provide you with documentation of your training. When you pay, you will receive access to your exam scores, PDF transcript, and PDF certificates (optional).

Some students want to pay at the beginning of their training so they can access their results immediately. Other students prefer to wait until they are done. The choice is yours! Do what is best for you.

Yes.

Purchase Order (PO) and DD 1556 purchases are available for corporate and Federal Government accounts. You can email the PO to instructor@oshatrain.org or fax to 1.971.327.6708.

Please include a cover sheet that provides your name, who you are faxing, and how many pages you have faxed.

Yes. We do provide a discount to organizations that enroll multiple students. Please see our Corporate Clients page for more details.

If you previously purchased PDF certificates, you can login to your MyTrainng Dashboard and click on the Print Certificate link for the respective certificate.

If you need to receive another copy of an original certificate, please login to your MyTraining Dashboard, then click on the "Ask a Question" link within the Quick Links box. Please send us a message with your request. You can also call our office at 971.217.8721 to request an additional original certificate.

Yes.

Our website uses a secure connection to PayPal to process all online credit card payments. Your credit card information is never exposed. You also do not need a PayPal account to make a purchase. After you complete your payment, you will automatically receive a receipt from PayPal confirming your purchase.

Your satisfaction is guaranteed. If you decide you do not want to document your training with our certificates, we will refund your fee based on the following guidelines:

• If you purchased PDF certificates or have not completed your training program, we will refund 100% of your fee. No questions asked.
• If you completed your program, but we have not mailed your original certificates yet, we will refund 100% of your fee. No questions asked.
• If we have already mailed your original certificates, we will refund 100% of your fee minus the cost for shipping. No questions asked.

Please note: once your refund is issued, your certificates will no longer be valid and cannot be validated through our website.

We accept the following forms of payment:

• Credit Card (Visa, Master Card, Discover, American Express)
• Western Union
• MoneyGram
• Bank Wire Transfer
• Check
• Purchase Order (Corporate accounts only)

We do not accept cash.

We use the United States Postal Service (USPS) Priority mail with Signature Conformation for all domestic (US) shipments. For domestic (US) students requiring overnight shipping, we use UPS Overnight and charge $80 for this service.

We use DHL for all international shipments. We cannot provide overnight shipping for international students.

Domestic (US) shipments typically arrive within 2-5 business days.

International shipments typically take 3-5 business days. For remote locations, delivery times may be longer.

Yes.

When we ship your certificates, we will submit your email address to the shipper. They will then send you an email with the tracking number for your shipment. If you are shipping more than one student's certificates together, only one of the students will receive the tracking information. Please contact our office if you need the tracking number for your package.

We can ship directly to most locations within the world, however, some locations are not within our shipper's service area. To verify if you are in our shipper's service areas, please contact USPS (domestic) or DHL (international) directly.

If your mailing address is not within our shipper's service areas, your certificates could be delayed.

Because date formats vary significantly around the world, OSHAcademy has chosen to use the standard date format found within the United States of America. The standard date format found within the United States of America is “MM-DD-YYYY” (ex. 01-01-2001).

Geigle Safety Group, Inc., is committed to respecting your privacy and recognize your need for appropriate protection and management of any personally identifiable information you share with us.

Geigle Safety Group, and it's family of divisions, does not give your personal information to any organization without your permission.

Geigle Safety Group may provide student information, to United States government agencies upon request.