Actual Pin 3.4 cm, or 1.25 inches (2 clips on back),
The Master Koi Keeper Certification (MKK) is an advanced level of learning. It is targeted to those who have insatiable curiosity about the hobby, or who intend to be involved in some part of it. There are courses that would definitely be of help to every Koi Keeper, and as with all K.O.I. courses, students may select to take any single course in any order. Those working to achieve The MKK will be held to a higher standard, and policies and requirements mirror those of a Masters Degree from a good college. Students are expected to have the highest ethics and work dilligently to learn the concepts presented. It is the responsibility of the student to seek additional help if they are having difficulties. Each instructor teaches in their own style. The amount of feedback and help given to MKK students will not be the same as that provided to our CKK students, and professional conduct is expected. As with all courses, students gain according to the work they put in.
K.O.I.’s Master Koi Keeper (MKK) Certification consists of nine K.O.I. courses plus an MKK Practical Project (described below).
MKK Course Requirements
The MKK requirements are the following :
- 303 Advanced Filtration
- 307 Advanced Diagnosis & Treatment Case Studies
- 310 Transporting Koi
- 311 Anoxic Filtration
- 314 Advanced Nutrition
- 315 Bacteriology (New!)
- 316 How Water Quality Affects Koi Physiology (Coming Soon!)***
- 503 K.O.I. Show Water Quality and Koi Safety
- 563 Pond Modifications
- Practicum
The MKK certification package is priced at $330 for all nine courses, i.e., 1/3 off the individual cost to purchase the above courses of $490.
Students must pass all nine courses and complete the Practicum for the MKK within three (3) years of purchasing the first of the courses.
- For 2025 only, any of the above courses that a student has passed within the last five (5) years will be counted towards the MKK certification and the package price discounted for their exclusion. The remaining courses must be completed within three (3 years) of buying the first course.
- If the student took courses with similar titles originally taught by Professor Strange (original courses #313, #520 or #521), they must take the new courses above. The original courses have not been offered for seven years and the new versions are substantially different.
*** Course #316, How Water Quality Affects Koi Physiology, should be available within a year and must be taken when available. If a student has completed all other requirements except #316 before it becomes available, K.O.I. will present them with a Provisional MKK (including a Provisional MKK Certificate). The student must commit to taking #316 within a year of it becoming available to become fully certified and receive their MKK pin. If #316 is not available within two years, all Provisional MKKs will become Official MKKs, receive their MKK pin, and K.O.I. will refund them what they paid for the course.
Practical Project Requirements
Certification as a Master Koi Keeper (MKK) requires a Practicum with the goal of adding something substantial to the hobby. The project may be completed as advanced knowledge is acquired, at any time during the 3-year time limit for Certification.
Project Type: Presentation, E-Book, Articles or Other. After selecting a project type and topic, approval must be obtained in advance from Karen Pattist, the Practical Project instructor, before beginning the project. Approval Request must contain an outline of the presentation, EBook or article(s) or a detailed write-up of the proposed Other Project type.
Presentation - PowerPoint
- Suitable to be given to Koi Clubs (as their one free presentation provided by K.O.I. each year they are K.O.I. Member Clubs).
- Must be all new material – nothing cut and pasted from any existing presentation, article or document, whether K.O.I’s or another source.
- Must contain a minimum of 15 (and a maximum of 35) numbered slides. May contain extra slides that can be used for backup or in-depth discussions not meant to be part of the primary presentation. Author contact information should be listed on the last slide.
- Must be accompanied by a MS Word doc specifying the learning objectives, target audience, and contact information and credentials of the author.
- May be on any topic related to Koi Keeping.
- The target audience is for general club hobbyists. May be targeted to beginners or expert hobbyists only with prior permission.
- Slides should follow presentation conventions: very few words and very organized. Tell them what it’s going to cover, tell them the details, and wrap up with a summary of what you told them. All details should be placed in speaker notes not seen by the public.
- The speaker notes must be sufficient that any CKK should be able to give the presentation from the notes.
EBook
- An EBook should focus on one in-depth topic of Koi Keeping.
- EBooks are generally from 6-30 pages.
- It should contain multiple pictures, diagrams, formulas or graphs; all must be originally generated by the author, non-copyrighted or used with written permission.
- It must include a bibliography of sources from which the material was derived.
Please see existing EBooks for ideas and formats.
Articles
- A series of 5 short articles (1-2 pages) or 3 medium articles (2-4 pages).
- Must be suitable to be sent by K.O.I. to member clubs for inclusion in club newsletters, or suitable for posting as K.O.I. web site articles.
- Must contain at least one non-copyrighted picture. May contain multiple pictures, diagrams or graphs; all must be originally generated by the author, non-copyrighted or used with written permission.
- May be on any topic relating to Koi keeping.
- Must be accompanied by a MS Word doc specifying the learning objectives, target audience, author contact information and credentials of author.
Other - ONLY by pre-approval
- Developing a K.O.I. Course
- Teaching a K.O.I. Course
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Water Quality Manager at Koi shows
- Must include written synopsis of any issues experienced, water safety or health concerns
- Work on municipal Koi ponds – design, maintenance, problem solving, improvements
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Benching or Judging at Koi shows
- Must include written synopsis of all health concerns, details of the competition and why the winning Koi were selected
- Documented Pond Calls representing at least 20 hours of time over the 3 year Certification period