According to the Body of Knowledge (BOK) of the American Society for Quality (ASQ) and the international certification programs recognized by Motorola University and the International Society for Six Sigma Certifications, the minimum hour number of the Six Sigma program is:
- Green Belt – 80 hours
- Black Belt – 120 hours
There are a number of Six Sigma programs that are widely marketed and apply only a fraction of the BOK for each level. Acosixsigma is recognized for the large amount of curricular content that applies to all types of industry. For example, the estimated time for a Black Belt certification course is 120 hours, not including additional time allocated to a Six Sigma project. Other providers offer Black Belt training courses totaling 90 hours and Green Belt courses advertised at 56 hours. Therefore the variability in class hours obviously serves as a warning for interested companies to carefully check the subjects when taking a particular course against the established criteria for certification.