We’re always looking for ways to improve our knowledge and skills. Short Learning Programmes are a great way to do this. Read more to find out about what short learning programmes are and how they can benefit you.
You may often have the desire to study further and improve your skills, but this is a time consuming and expensive process. There comes a time in everyone’s life when you are simply unable to take the time out of your routine that you would need to in order to study a full-time tertiary course. Short learning programmes are the tertiary education sector’s answer to this problem. These courses are usually aimed at (working) adults and are designed to upgrade specific knowledge or skills in a short amount of time.
What is a short learning programme?
Short learning programmes (SLP’s) are offered by many of South Africa’s tertiary institutions. They were created in order to provide people who do not have time to study full-length courses with “just enough” knowledge to be able to perform a task or to have a more specialised skill. The aim of a SLP is to quickly improve and update a person’s knowledge or skill-set, giving them the tools they need to perform a task they were not previously able to. SLP’s are a quick and efficient way for a working person to gain the skills needed in order to improve your performance in the work place.
How can you benefit from short learning programmes?
SLP’s are a useful tool for a number of reasons. In one’s life (and career), one often feels that there are useful skills they have simply not had time to learn. SLP’s are the way to take your education into your own hands and teach yourself what you’ve always wanted to know, in your own time and on your own terms. Because SLP’s are offered over short periods, they have to be very specific. This means that you are able to choose exactly which skills you need in order to improve your performance in the workspace and study just that. When completing an SLP, you will not have to learn content that is not relevant to the specific skill that you want to gain – saving a lot of time.
SLP’s have a lot to offer in both your personal and professional life. SLP’s can give you the practical skills that you would learn in a full-time course over a shorter period of time. Typically, there are several reasons that one chooses to enroll in an SLP, if one of them applies to you, then an SLP is definitely something that you should consider.
You are interested in a field of study different to what you pursued during your tertiary education
We choose what to study when we’re about 18. We often make this choice without being completely sure of what we love. Further than that we’re only allowed to choose one thing. If there is something else that you’ve always been interested in, or something you’ve recently become interested in and would like to pursue further, SLP’s are the way to do it. They give you the opportunity to learn more about a field you’re interested in, without having to complete an entire full-time course.
You were unable to pursue tertiary education
Many of us have had to enter the workforce straight after school and are never able to pursue tertiary education. SLP’s give you the opportunity to study fields that interest you and give you the skills you need to become a more competitive candidate in your field.
You are short on time and money
SLP’s are shorter than other courses offered by many institutions, and because of this they are often far more affordable. This means that if you are working full-time and you don’t have the money to stop working and pursue a full-time qualification, you can gain many of the skills you would from pursuing the qualification by completing a SLP. SLP’s are also very convenient as often you are able to cover the content in a way that suits you and in your own time, so you do not have the time commitment that you would have if you were studying full-time.
You would like to add something to your CV
SLP’s are a great way to learn new skills that might make you a more attractive candidate to future employees. You are able to complete SLP’s in an extremely wide range of fields and you are almost always able to find one that will be relevant to your career.
The difference between SLP’s and full-time qualifications
The biggest difference between SLP’s and other courses is that SLP’s are not NQF rated and there is no formal mechanism for SLP’s to be accredited in South Africa. This does not, however, mean that SLP’s are not recognised, it simply means that each individual institution chooses whether or not they recognise your SLP. Quality councils require that institutions who are accredited by them assure that their SLP’s are of the same standard as there NQF rated courses, this means that even though you do not have a formal qualification after completing an SLP, the knowledge and skills that you have gained will be of a high quality.
Open Learning Group
Open Learning Group (OLG) is a private tertiary institution that offers quality, fully-accredited qualifications via distance learning and short programmes via face to face classes. OLG is accredited with the Department of Higher Education and Training. Students can choose from a range of full qualifications and short learning programmes in the fields of Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Finance and Commerce, Teaching and Education as well as Management and Leadership. If you are working in this fields or interested in improving you skills, then OLG is definitely worth a look.
EduConnect 2Cents
SLP’s are not exclusively there to help you improve your career. SLP’s are also something that you can do to improve your knowledge and skills about something that you love. This means that you are able to do something extremely productive in your free time, and enjoy every minute of it, all the while becoming more knowledgable in your own fields of interest.
