Distance learning - how to tell which are good or bad?

Pthree

I have decided I want to try and get an A Level in English Lit, it needs to be a distance learning course as, fingers crossed at some stage in the next year I will be relocating can anyone recommend any good ones or are they all the same?

Apart from a few vocational qualifications, my GCSE grades were fair-ish to bad but I hated school back then. I re-sat through an evening course English and Maths at the time and got decent grades.

Would doing an A-Level actually add anything to my CV? I have worked solidly since I left school er.... 20ish years ago (where did that time go??) ago but need a bit of a challenge / change, to do something!

Thanks.
P3

InsideInsurance

I seem to have a different view to others on here but still.

Education is always a good thing as self improvement and so certainly not poopooing it but if you have 20 years of work behind you then its unlikely anyone is ever looking at your education section of your CV. I've even removed my GCSEs, A levels and S Levels from my CV and no one has questioned it at all

RAS

Hi

Is this for fun? Or to enhance your career prospects?

If the latter, in what way would A level help you?

If you have 20 years work experience; have you done any work-based courses? What transferable skills have you acquired; report writing, minute-taking, record keeping, IT skills etc?

Claire_A87

Distance learning has to work for you in a number of ways; it's great if you think it can add to your CV, but more importantly you have to want to do it (which it sounds like you do!). It's unlikely to add a great deal to your CV if you've been working for so many years, but having said that some employers will require a minimum of a level 3 qualification for certain jobs, so it certainly wouldn't be useless. Check out the National Extension College, they're reputable.

Just to add, I used to work for the Open University, and have also recently graduated with them, so distance learning is one of the only topics I'd feel truly comfortable advising on! Good luck with it

Pthree

InsideInsurance wrote: »

I seem to have a different view to others on here but still.

Education is always a good thing as self improvement and so certainly not poopooing it but if you have 20 years of work behind you then its unlikely anyone is ever looking at your education section of your CV. I've even removed my GCSEs, A levels and S Levels from my CV and no one has questioned it at all

You're right I don't have my "school" qualifications on my CV anymore just the NVQ's, that didn't even cross my mind!

RAS wrote: »

Hi

Is this for fun? Or to enhance your career prospects?

If the latter, in what way would A level help you?

If you have 20 years work experience; have you done any work-based courses? What transferable skills have you acquired; report writing, minute-taking, record keeping, IT skills etc?

It is a bit of both, I love to read, it is my hobby and a passion.
I am also one of those people who is determined to get their "one book" that everyone is supposed to have in them out one day:o and thought a slightly better grasp on the structure (I don't even know of that is the correct word!) of the language would help.

I have a couple of vocational qualifications all relating to Admin, which is what I have done since leaving school.

I work for a small firm and my current title is P.A / Office Manager, I do payroll, ,marketing and research, travel arrangements, minute taking, little bit of sales (which I don't like very much) a little bit of everything you could say! In previous jobs I have done bookkeeping.

Claire_A87 wrote: »

Distance learning has to work for you in a number of ways; it's great if you think it can add to your CV, but more importantly you have to want to do it (which it sounds like you do!). It's unlikely to add a great deal to your CV if you've been working for so many years, but having said that some employers will require a minimum of a level 3 qualification for certain jobs, so it certainly wouldn't be useless. Check out the National Extension College, they're reputable.

Just to add, I used to work for the Open University, and have also recently graduated with them, so distance learning is one of the only topics I'd feel truly comfortable advising on! Good luck with it

Thanks.

I have to admit I am in a "I don't know what I want to do when I grow up" situation (I am 39!) and just feel if I don't do something now, I'll end up coasting for another couple of years thinking about it, never making any decisions.

RAS

Pthree wrote: »

I have to admit I am in a "I don't know what I want to do when I grow up" situation (I am 39!) and just feel if I don't do something now, I'll end up coasting for another couple of years thinking about it, never making any decisions.

OK

I think you have two different issues here:

"I don't know what I want to do when I grow up"

"I love to read, it is my hobby and a passion. I am also one of those people who is determined to get their "one book" that everyone is supposed to have in them out one day"

Once upon a time you might have used the second to forge a related career like journalism or copy-writing. There used to be a lot of competition but now there is masses.

If you want a adult qualification that might go somewhere think about http://www.distancelearningcentre.com/

If you want to write start by blogging; fact, opinion, fiction etc, now. You never know. Start with wordpress.