Standard Belt Testing & Rank Promotion
Rank at AIK is earned through consistent training, clear standards, and a test that measures growth — not comparison to someone else. This page explains when students test, what they must bring, how stripe tests lead to promotion day, and how instructors grade performance.
During a belt-testing week there are no regular classes for the groups that are testing. If you are scheduled for a test, attend only the test you registered for.
Testing Schedule
Youth Ranks — every 2 months
Ages 4–7 train on a rotational curriculum. Youth students work through six rotations each year. After a rotation is completed, they may test and, if they pass, move to the next rank.
Junior & Senior Ranks — every 4 months
Ages 7 and up train on a rotational and progressive curriculum. Each level has three rotations. After a rotation, students may test and advance in rank. When all rotations in a level are complete, they move to the next level.
Active Standard Belt Testing Rotation
Youth Ranks
Red Stripe Test Week:
1/8/2024 to 1/12/2024
White Stripe Test Week:
1/22/2024 to 1/26/2024
Blue Stripe Test Week:
2/19/2024 to 2/23/2024
Belt Test & Promotion Week:
2/19/2024 to 2/23/2024
Junior & Senior Ranks
Red Stripe Test Week:
1/8/2024 to 1/12/2024
White Stripe Test Week:
1/22/2024 to 1/26/2024
Blue Stripe Test Week:
2/19/2024 to 2/23/2024
Belt Test & Promotion Week:
2/19/2024 to 2/23/2024
Eligibility & Expectations
The main expectation is steady personal development. Between ranks, skill should rise with the student’s potential.
To test, a student must:
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Know the techniques, sets, and forms required for the rank they are testing for
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Schedule the Belt Test and Rank Promotion with AIK
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Show the behavior and manners of a martial artist
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Youth and Junior ranks: have a parent or guardian sign the previous rank certificate
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Arrive in a complete, clean uniform — pants, jacket, and the belt for their current rank
Do not measure your progress against another person. The useful comparison is who you are now versus who you were.
Included With Tuition
Students in a standard program may take the rank-appropriate belt tests listed on the Calendar at no extra cost, except Junior and Senior Black Belt ranks. Those tests are covered on the Black Belt Testing pages.
Make-up / Private Tests
If you cannot attend the date on the Calendar, a make-up or private test may be scheduled when an instructor is available. These tests are paid at scheduling. Pricing is on the Tuition Information page.
The Belt Testing Process
How Testing Works
Standard testing starts with three stripe tests and ends with the Belt Test and Rank Promotion. Students must earn their red, white, and blue stripes before they can take the belt test.
Stripe Tests
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The Workout — Physically demanding at every fitness level. The purpose is resilience: staying in the work when it gets hard.
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The Technical Evaluation — Students are graded on the required techniques, sets, and forms.
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Belt striping — A passing grade earns the stripe for that material. A student who does not pass receives extra help in regular class.
Belt Test and Rank Promotion
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Technical demonstration — The current rotation’s required techniques, sets, and forms
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Rank promotion ceremony — New rank belt and rank certificate
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Photos — Group photo, plus optional photos with family, friends, and instructors
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Handprints (youth only) — Youth students add a handprint to the wall to mark the new rank
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Bonus snack — A celebratory snack after a successful test
AIK's Grading System
Martial training is meant to raise a person’s chance of surviving a real problem — and to build focus, self-control, discipline, and better interaction with other people. We hope those skills are never needed in violence. We still train as if they might be.
“It is better to be a warrior in a garden than a gardener in a war.”
~ A paraphrase of a Chinese proverb
Youth ranks (ages 4–7)
Effort comes first. If a child can do the required combinations and techniques at an age-appropriate level, they may test. Steady, stronger effort is what keeps them growing.
Junior & Senior ranks (ages 7 and up)
Effort is not enough on its own. Age and life experience are considered, but the student must understand the self-defense patterns and perform them at the level of their rank. With time, movement, intensity, accuracy, and awareness should all rise.
The AIK Grades
AIK uses a standardized grading scale so students can see where they are at in their training.
F — Failed
Given only when there is no effort — the student stands still and does not attempt the pattern.
R — Relearn
The student and/or grader cannot recognize what they are doing. This is a non-passing grade.
G — Gross Body Movement Proficiency
The student can perform the basic self-defense patterns for their rank in a clear, recognizable way.
Without G, a student cannot receive I or A, no matter how hard they try to look advanced. G is the required foundation at every rank. For White, Yellow, and Orange belts it should take most of their attention. Earning G at those ranks is a real achievement.
Off the mat, this looks like someone willing to learn a new task even while they are still slow and inefficient.
I — Intensity of Movement
After G is solid, movement becomes more efficient. You can see more speed from the start of an action to the end. Intensity is not only physical. It is emotional commitment and a mindset of intent — the decision to finish what was started.
Without G and I, a student cannot earn A. Purple, Blue, and Green belts often make their biggest gains here. That extra intensity is also what helps a person last longer in a hard encounter.
Off the mat, this looks like skill plus the willingness to step in and do the work with energy, focus, and clear intent.
A — Awareness of Application, Positioning, and Timing
After G and I, the student can adjust in real time — reading the situation and changing application, position, and timing as it changes. Beginners often cannot see this inside a pattern. Experienced martial artists can.
Examples:
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Scanning the room while covering out
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Holding ground and using borrowed force when the opponent is falling into the strike, instead of shuffling forward and crowding the power range
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Waiting long enough after a strike for it to land, then setting up the next one
Brown and Black Belts often see their largest gains in A. That awareness is what helps a person survive a violent encounter.
Off the mat, it shows up in teaching and speaking: holding attention, choosing the right way to explain something, and making the information stick.