The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) – Shanghai asked McCarthy, who just rolled off the NSCA Board of Directors, to come teach a five-day exam preparation class for 31 sports scientists from various universities and professional sports coaches in 2011. These candidates were recently registered as new members of NSCA-Shanghai and were being prepped to take the international exam to become a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. McCarthy was just one of two American professors asked to teach the course.