About Testing

Testing for higher ranks/belts is an important part of Taekwondo. When students are promoted to a higher belt, they receive tangible recognition for their hard work in class, completion of promotion requirements, and satisfactory performance of all required patterns and techniques during the testing. Belt promotions give students a great feeling of pride and accomplishment and build their confidence.

After students have been training for a few months, the instructor may invite them to test for the first color belt, if the instructor thinks the students are ready. At the testing, students must demonstrate their knowledge of Taekwondo and their ability to perform the techniques and patterns required for the belt for which they are testing.

At the beginning of their training, most students find that their belt tests are scheduled closer together and are shorter in length. This keeps up their interest in Taekwondo until a pure love of the art itself takes over and maintains their interest for a lifetime. As students move further along in the rank system and their knowledge and skills increases, their belt tests will be further apart and will take longer to complete. This is because the skills are more difficult and require more time to learn and more time to perform correctly in a test.

All tests are held in complete safety under the personal direction of the instructor and numerous assistants. In most promotion tests, a panel of senior black belts will judge and score each student's performance.