The steps to learning astrology can be both exciting and overwhelming in the beginning. Continuing with learning astrology can become a lifelong learning experience.
Learning astrology can be as small as learning to read your birch chart and understanding your horoscope. It can also be as large as understanding where the planets align always and how the zodiac signs play a part.
Read on to learn more about how to start studying astrology to open up your mind and provide insight into your life in a new and sometimes scarily accur ate way.
Article Contents
How Do I Start Studying Astrology?
Studying astrology can be studying enough to read your birth chart or it can be a lifelong journey of learning. For the most part, studying astrology will be self-taught. Not necessarily completely by yourself but done at your own pace on your own.
For the United States, there is no actual degree or certificate needed to become an astrologer. Studying astrology will take the form of:
- Reading information online
- Reading books
- Learning the different signs and symbols
The easiest way to start learning astrology is to learn everything you can about yourself. Once you can understand the signs and symbols from your birth chart you can expand your knowledge from there. If astrology becomes something you enjoy learning about you can eventually find a mentor or a teacher to help you learn more as well.
7 Steps to Start Studying Astrology
Being a beginner in astrology can seem overwhelming, but it will get easier. The amount of time needed to learn astrology will depend on how much time you can dedicate to your learning. Some people might be able to learn everything that is needed in six months and other people might need four years.
Learn Your Birth Chart
Everyone everywhere born into this world will have an astrology birth chart. When beginning astrology getting a copy of your birth chart is the best place to start. Specific information is needed for your birth chart including:
- Name
- Gender
- Birthdate
- Time of birth
- Country
- Birth town
The exact time and date of your birth are extremely important because this will show where your rising sign also known as an Ascendant was aligned when you were born. Wrong birth dates or times can shift the signs and symbols on your birth chart. This will give you an inaccurate reading right from the beginning.
Looking at your birth certificate can be one of the easiest ways to find the time of your birth. If you do not have access to your birth certificate you should still be able to get ahold of a new one. However, you will probably have to contact the state you were born in and possibly fill out forms to get a new one.
Learn the Signs and Symbols
The more you can learn to recognize what the different signs and symbols in your birth chart are the easier they will be to memorize. Signs and symbols are used to fit more information into a smaller area. The birth chart is broken up into 12 houses. Signs and symbols are used for:
- The sun
- The moon
- The planets
- The zodiac signs
There will also be symbols for major and minor aspects. These aspects will show the planets and their relationships with each other. With practice, you can have the different signs and symbols down in no time.
Everyone learns differently so memorizing the signs and symbols will be different for everyone. One way to help can be by reading different birth charts. This way too, you can see how the signs and symbols move around the 12 different houses.
Another way to help with memorization can be to use flashcards. You can write out the information onto the flashcards yourself or you can print the information out onto the flashcards. This way you can have the symbol or sign on one side and the meaning or definition on the other side. Flashcards make a great study tool because they are smaller in size, and you can carry them with you almost anywhere.
Take Astrology Classes
Classes and courses for astrology are available online and in person. Some classes you will have to pay for, and some classes will be available for free.
Astrology Library offers free lessons for beginners. 18 lessons are included to help guide you through the beginning stages of learning astrology. Towards the bottom of the lessons page, there is a list of helpful resources. The resources available are printable worksheets that can aid in the learning process as you go through the different lessons.
Astrology 42 offers a free astrology learning guide broken up into 10 sections. Each section has a list of what will be covered in that specific section. You can start at the beginning, or you can skip around throughout the section itself.
Find Astrologer shows a list of local astrology classes available by state. The classes offered will vary by state. Examples of classes offered include:
- Classes in school-like settings
- One on one tutoring sessions
- Online classes
Depending on where you live will determine the type of classes offered. Find Astrologer should be checked regularly in the event classes change or are canceled.
Attend Conferences and Workshops
Attending conferences and workshops can be great learning tools. Many different topics can be covered. The topics covered can be very specific or can cover a range of similar topics revolving around one larger topic. Some examples would include:
- Astrology for Beginners
- Introduction to Birth Charts
- Beginners Astrology
Dates and times of conferences and workshops will change over the years. Some conferences or workshops might be for one day and others might be weekend events. Conferences and workshops can be fun because not only are you learning from the speaker or teacher, but you can also learn from other people that are attending.
For example, if you are seated at a table with two to four other people, you will each pick up the same information differently. If you have a question or are unsure of something you can ask someone at your table to explain it also. The same can go with you sharing information you have picked up along the way as well.
Listen to Podcasts and Webinars
Podcasts and Webinars will be like classes in that some will be free and some you will have to pay for. The prices will range depending on who is selling the classes and how much information will be made available. Another thought to hold onto is many people that are now teaching these webinars and podcasts once started as beginners just like you.
Mary English has an astrology podcast with over 200 episodes available. Her podcasts are posted every Sunday. The first 20 episodes will talk about how to make and understand your birth chart. It is suggested you make a free account on Astro so you can create your own birth chart. This way you can follow along as Mary explains the information.
Bracha Goldsmith offers webinars for a price. Her webinar beginner course is six weeks in total. At the time this article was written, all six weeks can be purchased for $150.00 or the weekly webinars can be purchased for $25.00 each. All webinars are an hour and thirty minutes in length.
Podcasts and webinars can be listened to at your own pace. If needed they can be paused or resumed whenever you need them. In the beginning, you may have to sit down and pay more attention, but as you become more familiar with astrology, eventually you will be able to listen and understand what is being said.
Read Astrology Books
While much information is available online, books can still be great resources to use and to have. Books will sometimes give a more in-depth explanation as well. When beginning astrology some recommended books will help you with your journey.
The Complete Guide to Astrology by Louise Edington is a great book for both beginners and those more advanced. The astrology foundation is discussed along with moon signs and planet influences.
The Twelve Houses by Howard Sasportas will help beginners of astrology learn more about the houses in greater detail. Each house has its own chapter. The book then goes on to explain how the different planets and zodiacs move through the 12 different houses.
The Essential Guide to Practical Astrology by April Elliott Kent explains how to understand your birth chart and the zodiac wheel. This book will also help you plan out your daily, monthly, and yearly goals.
The American Ephemeris by Neil F. Michelsen will show how the planets and zodiacs are positioned for every day of the year. This version of the Ephemeris is for the years 2000-2050. The Ephemeris can seem confusing to understand in the beginning, but with help and practice, it will become easier to understand.
Decide How Far You Want Your Journey to Continue
In the beginning, it will feel like there is a ton of information you have to learn. Eventually, though, a lot of the information will become repetitive information. Becoming repetitive is not a bad thing because this will help you learn what you need to learn and will aid with memorization.
Then you will have to decide for yourself how far you want to take your astrology journey. There are schools available where you can continue to learn astrology and get either a diploma or certification.
The American Federation of Astrologers offers certifications including:
- AFA Certification Exam
- Professional Exam
- Teacher Exam
The AFA Certification exam is more of a student certification and then the exams get harder as your knowledge gets larger. An example of the student exam is available to see if this is something you would be interested in taking.
The Superstar course is taken at home at your own pace. This course includes 22 lessons that lead up to a final examination. Once you pass the final exam you will be able to take the AFA Certification exam.
Astrology University offers a four-year program called the Professional Astrologer Training and Certificate. The program will teach the core building blocks of Western Astrological Practice. The four-year program starts every August. You can choose to participate with other students or work at your own pace. At the end of the four years, you will receive a diploma.
If getting certified is not something you want you can take the Non-Certification Personal Development track. This will allow you to drop into any of the classes that interest you rather than having to sign up for the full four years.
Outro
Time and practice are all that are needed to learn astrology. The more time and practice you are willing to put in the larger the amount of information you can understand. Learning to read your birth chart and memorizing the symbol meanings is just the beginning. The amount of time you are willing to put into your learning will determine how long you stay as a beginner as well.
