The UW Pesticide Applicator Training (PAT) Program offers several training products.  To purchase any of the products below go to the PAT Store.

Required Training

One of the following registration fees has to be paid for Certification. Each of the items below comes with a Training Registration Certificate that you must present to DATCP when taking the certification exam.  What Training Material Should I Order – Video

1. A print manual ($50) or,
2. An electronic PDF version of the manual ($40) or,
3. An online course (which also comes with a PDF manual) ($60).

1. For the print manuals, the certificate is the first page of the book. For options 2 and 3 we will send you the Certificate via email.

Content of the Manuals

The manuals DO NOT cover pest control techniques for every specific situation. They also do not teach which specific pesticide or application technique is best for any particular weed, insect, fungus, or other pest. They do not give recommendations for what pesticides to use for specific pests. The focus is on ensuring that you know how to use pesticides—any pesticide—safely and legally. In addition, the learning materials produced by PAT do not advocate pesticide use over other means of pest management. Rather, they focus on the safe and proper use of pesticides by people who will be using them.

Every category manual contains “core” information that includes topics such as the use of personal protective equipment, proper storage, mixing and loading, and disposal of pesticides, to just name a few of the topics. Each manual will contain information that is relevant to the category in terms of types of pests, application sites, application equipment, and more. To see an example table of contents from one of the manuals, click here.

Content of Online Courses

Online courses provide a different way to learn the content. The online courses provide audio content, visual content, reading, and the pdf manual. The PDF manual and DATCP’s compliance manual (for some categories) are included. The course has sectional practice quizzes that can help you test your knowledge of the material. The content of the course is based on the content found within the manual. Purchasing the online course provides access for 6 months.

Supplemental Training

These are optional training materials that you can select if you wish. The price of these items is in addition to the required training above, but again, these are meant to be supplements to the main training above and are not required.

1. Live Training / Review Sessions ($35). These training / review sessions are held primarily during the months of January through April for select categories. These one-day sessions are meant to be a review of material in your manual and DO NOT cover everything in the manual that might appear on the certification exam. At the end of the review session, you have the opportunity to take the exam right away while the information is still fresh in your mind. Preregistration is required! We do not allow walk-ins due to limited seating and the availability of enough exams brought to the site.

For a review of the information above in the form of a podcast, click here: What Training Material Should I Order?