Hello and thank you for your interest in the Alpha Trader Certificate Course. You do not need a Think or Swim (TOS) account to take the class. The class is designed to teach fundamentals of the options market, options pricing, strategies, hedging, and other applications. However, if you wish to trade options after completing the course, there is no other platform that I recommend.

I am not in any way affiliated with TOS but do offer training classes on the software. I do this at a nominal charge just to help investors fully understand the platform. It is without question the most powerful and efficient software in the industry at any price. And it's free just for opening an account! So that's why I recommend their software but it is not required to take the class.

Bill

The Alpha Trader course is more theoretical but it also includes many real-world examples and situations. It is designed to teach the fundamentals of how the process works and not a style of trading or investing. That's always the starting point for learning. I do have "Strategy Lab" which is more of an applied strategies course and am currently working on an "practical" course as we speak. It is being held privately for a small group to help with the design and to get feedback.

I think your idea of "Alpha 2" is excellent. I really like the idea of having people paper trade it and then monitoring and critiquing. I will be sure to let you know when the course if finally offered to the public!