Are Online Courses Recognised?
When considering online courses, one of the first things you might want to know or check is whether online courses are recognised by either employers or universities. Online learning offers a wide range of courses for students, you can enrol and study anything from GCSEs and A-Levels through to Diplomas and Short Courses. But how do you know which of these online courses are recognised and useful to have?
Let’s start with the more traditional qualifications of GCSEs and A-Levels, up until a few years ago, the only way to study these courses was through a traditional school or college. Opting to do the qualifications online just wasn’t an option, so what changed to make it possible? The simple answer to this is the improvement in online learning platforms, previously, these were clunky and just didn’t work for most people or they required a Degree in IT to just get logged in! Now though, learning platforms are smooth and easy to use, as an online student you get more than just an eBook online to read through, you get interactive materials to work with. When it comes to the examinations for the courses, you actually attend an exam centre and sit the same exams as any student in a school or college. So when you get your final grade and certificate, there is absolutely no difference between your qualification and that of someone who went to school or college.
Diplomas and Short Courses are a little more complicated to identify whether they are a recognised or not. There are a lot of awarding bodies available for these courses and some of them are better known and more accredited than others. So as a student considering one, how do you know which is the right course to select and which online course is recognised? The quickest and easiest place to start would be with a Google search, you can put in the course name and awarding body and see what comes up. Then from there you can do more research into the quality of the qualification and whether it is suitable for your needs. Another good way to identify if a course will be recognised is to stick with the awarding bodies you know, so Diplomas from Edexcel BTEC or nfce CACHE would be safe options to go for when choosing a course.
In conclusion, the simple answer to ‘whether online courses are recognised?’ is yes, they are. As a student looking to study an online course, you need to make sure that the course you are looking to study is recognised and offers what you need for your next career or educational steps before you enrol and that way you can be confident in your choices and the progress of your learning.
If you would like more help and advice on selecting the right course for your needs, get in touch with our helpful team of experts for a chat about your options. www.opencollege.ac.