Whether you are already in the UK or studying from abroad, online learning is a great way to expand your skillset and add to your CV at very little cost. However, you may be worried that the online course you want to study may not be recognised in the UK. Provided you do the right research and ask the right questions, there is no reason for you not to be able to successfully study online and gain qualifications that you need.
Once you have found a course that covers the syllabus you need to learn, it’s time to start doing a bit of research about the qualification. First things first, is the course ‘endorsed’, ‘awarded’ or ‘accredited’ by a known Awarding Body such as Edexcel BTEC? If the course is, then you can be confident that the course will provide you with a qualification that will be recognised.
The next thing to check is what the end result of the course will be. Once you have completed the course, will you get a certificate or an Award or a Diploma? Some courses, which are just endorsed, mean that you will get a certificate, but it doesn’t actually mean you have a full qualification and you will need to progress you studies further in order to gain the full qualification. If you receive an Award or Diploma, then these are qualifications that wouldn’t require further learning, unless you wished to do so.
If the course only comes with CPD hours, then this type of course is more suited to professional development and may not provide you with the correct qualification or confirmation of ability that a potential employer or university may need to see in order to recognise the qualification. So be careful to check what the course is offering you.
What if the qualification is from an Awarding Body I haven’t heard of?
Most people have heard of the larger awarding bodies such as AQA, Cache, Edexcel, Cambridge International, but there are some awarding bodies that are smaller in nature and are possibly not known to you. If you haven’t heard of the Awarding Body offering the online course you would like to study, then it’s time to do some more research, a quick Google check will get you to the body’s website where you can check if they are registered with the correct Governing Bodies and that their qualifications are suitable for you.
When looking to go to university, it is always a good idea to get in touch with their admissions team to check and get confirmation that they will accept the qualification you are looking to complete before you enrol.
How to Check if an Online Course is Recognised in the UK?
Finally, if you have asked all the right questions and checked with your potential employer(s)/university about the qualification, but you feel you still want a little more reassurance, then you can check that the Awarding Body you will be studying with is recognised in the UK through the UK Government’s website here: