Invest in your skills through distance learning
04/15/2009
Learning new skills and gaining qualifications will not only make you more attractive to a prospective employer - they'll also make you more valuable to an existing employer, writes Maggie Mallon Fears that unemployment rates are to hit three million this year have prompted the government to try a range of incentives to help people back into work.
But whether you are seeking work or face losing your job, there are ways you can help yourself survive the current economic crisis.
Learning new skills and gaining qualifications will not only make you more attractive to a prospective employer - they'll also make you more valuable to an existing employer.
Sally Coady a spokesperson for learndirect said: "It's the people who have invested in their skills who are the most likely to be kept on during a recession.
"When large companies have to shed staff they shed the least skilled because they know when they come out of recession they are going to have to innovate to keep their business ahead and they need the best, most skilled employees to do so."
Just how do you go about 'skilling up' when you're already working hard in a job, juggling a family and work, are unemployed, or can't afford to take several years out to attend university or college?
The solution is distance learning, which has become even more accessible in recent years thanks to advances in technology such as the Web, Email and mobile phones.
ICS (International Correspondence Schools) is one distance learning provider that has embraced new technology as a way to bring learning opportunities to people in all walks of life.
The organisation offers a learning system based on guided independent study through literature delivered to the home, computer and, more recently, iPod.
"We really have embraced new technology to help our students stay motivated," says Brigitte Read, head of marketing at ICS.
"There is an online student community which you can log onto and meet other people who are doing the same course or who are in the same situation.
"You can chat online and there are even ICS communities on social networking sites. Our students are connecting in lots of different ways.
"We have thought hard about delivering our courses in different ways that fit into people's busy lives. We have just released a course on iPod, which means if you're commuting to work you can plug in your iPod and listen to it that way. It's all maximising the time you already have rather than making extra time for studying."
ICS enrols around 36,000 students each year who study everything from GCSEs and A Levels to degrees and professional qualifications such as those from the Chartered Institutes of Marketing, Accountancy, and Purchasing and Supply. The 150 courses on offer also include vocational qualifications in areas such as health, beauty and construction.
Many ICS students are already in work or who want to keep their options open while they are looking for employment.
Read said: "The great thing about distance learning is that it fits into people's lives. You don't have to be at a set place at a particular time. You don't have to attend lectures and you can study for a qualification at your own pace. Some of our students are studying for four hours a week - if you give up watching your favourite soap you can free up all the time you need to study in a year."
Tom Lowe gave up going out at the weekends with his friends to concentrate on his studies, which means that he is about to complete a BA in Business Management with Human Resources in only three years despite holding down a full time job as a recruitment consultant with Orange.
"The great thing about distance learning is you can pick it up whenever it fits in with your lifestyle - on the train to and from work or at weekends. You do have to make sacrifices when it comes to your social life and it is a big commitment, but it's definitely worth it," said Tom, 25, from Bristol.
"I would say doing a degree while gaining valuable work experience has put me ahead of other graduates. It's already paying off because I'm currently being considered for a number of graduate training schemes that wouldn't have considered me without this degree.
"I was at an interview for a graduate programme recently and was asked what made me unique compared to the other inteviewees. I said I was probably the only one with a degree gained through distance learning, and that I also had more work experience than the majority of graduates."
Lowe's experience of fitting study around his existing work is typical of many distance learners, according to Coady of learndirect.
"What we know from research we have done into our employed learners, who make up around half of our learners, is that they value the flexibility of distance learning. A recent focus group told me they don't want to have to come from a day's work to go back out and learn. The notion that you can have your tea and start learning online is very attractive to them."
It certainly makes sense when the headlines are full of firms closing down for people to go out and get new qualifications, even if they are already in what seems to be a secure job.
Read of ICS said: "Our strapline is: 'Invest in yourself. Doing one of these qualifications doesn't just make you that bit more valuable in your role, it is also something that nobody can take away from you. Investing in yourself is the soundest investment you can make."
If the worst comes to the worst and you are made redundant, there's never been a better opportunity to train for another career.
Learning providers recommend gaining new skills and qualifications to those who are made redundant because learning shows you can take care of your own development and proves you're a motivated, positive person.
Coady of learndirect said: "Learning develops people's confidence as well as giving them insights into how they can adapt to the changing labour market. An over-riding conclusion from our research into learners is that they all come out with levels of confidence they didn't realise they had."
For more information about distance learning click here