Frequently Asked Questions

Nope! In fact, most of our students join our first class with no or limited martial arts experience—and for some, this was the first sport they’re ever doing.

Beginner classes are the first 3-4 weeks of each semester, and then we start moving on to more advanced material.

We have just the one class, and we all practice together. We may break into small groups during class or challenge the more advanced students within the drills.

Just like a regular university class, students are expected to attend all class meetings. Material covered in one class may not necessarily be reviewed again prior to grading, and students are responsible for knowing all material covered by the end of the semester. Overall attendance is reviewed when Black Belt Instructors are considering whether a student is ready to grade at the end of the semester.

It’s not straightforward to join mid-semester because we’ve already covered a lot of material, and we build upon previous classes. Think of joining a university class mid-semester or a sports team mid-season. For those who find out about us mid-semester, we encourage you to watch a class to see if SLU Karate is a good fit, and to reach out to slu.karate.ninja@gmail.com or talk to a Black Belt Instructor before or after class for additional information.
If you want to join for an upcoming semester, send us your name and email address at any time and we’ll add you to our email blast at the start of next semester.

The best thing to do is talk to one of the Black Belt Instructors and we’ll determine what works best for you—there’s a few different paths to take.

Unfortunately, no. Since we are funded by and run out of the university’s facilities, only current students and faculty are eligible to join.

For the most part, yes. We are part of the Cheezic Tang Soo Do Federation, have uniforms, ranks, teach specific techniques and forms to our students, spar, go to tournaments, and do everything a regular school does. We hold our gradings at the end of Spring and Fall semesters. The main exception is that we follow SLU’s undergrad schedule, so we are not formally in session during the summer and winter breaks. Club members who are in town during breaks often meet up regularly to keep their skills sharp.

Weapons are not our primary focus like they are for other martial arts styles or individual studios. However, our Federation has official bo staff forms that students are encouraged to work on outside of class, and we try to have at least one class per semester dedicated to weapons work.

Yes! We aim to attend one tournament in the St. Louis area each semester. Our students compete in forms and sparring, and occasionally the weapons divisions.

We try to keep things interesting around SLU Karate! We have done demos for events and groups on campus and collaborations/symposiums with other martial arts clubs. We also get everyone off campus occasionally just for some fun—whether it’s a BBQ picnic lunch in Tower Grove Park, a game night, or swinging a round or two at Top Golf.

Considering SLU’s urban campus, SLU Karate continues the tradition started at our founding in 1991, teaching our students practical self-defense practices that complement our Cheezic Tang Soo Do style.