I have to agree with Reiki Pixie here. In fact, if you search through the forums pretty much every distance learning organisation recommended here has negative feedback somewhere in the forums.
The only one I've had any exposure to is SNHS and only because I came across a useless therapist in my field and after several clients told me their negative experience of him, I decided to Google him (in fact one gave me a recording of one of his sessions which I used on one of the courses I teach as a demonstration of "how not to") and that was when I first found the SNHS name. He spent a few hours and £95 becoming a "qualified therapist", after a string of other failed businesses of course. Anyway, he appears to have vanished again now, he's probably started a wheelie bin cleaning service in an area that doesn't have wheelie bins :rolleyes:
Hi Rustic
If you have read my post correctly you will notice that I said that distant learning has it's place in education. As for various CPD workshops, I could moan about them as well, but this thread is about DL learning.
I'm taking the p### out of those distant learning courses by the providers as mentioned in previous posts. As a typical example, a provider will offer a courses on Diet and Nutrition, Nutritional Therapy, Clinical Nutrition, Vegetarianism, and so forth. Why is there not one complete course? Because the provider can make more MONEY!
Take another example: Basic Reflexology, Advanced Reflexology, Hand Reflexology, and an optional two day practical training course. Screwing more money out of people for a highly questionable qualification. It would work out cheaper to go to an state-finded FE college and get a proper industry recognised qualification.
And other example: Tai Chi. How the hell can you learn Tai Chi with no personal tuition! That is impossible. And as a tai chi instructor I am personally outraged. This particular BSY course is more expensive that I would charge a student for over a year of teaching.
What about counselling and psychotherapy DL courses? What an outrage! If you look at what such a practitioner has to do to work in formal healthcare, years of hardcore study. Would any of you reading this seriously go to a counsellor or psychotherapist who just read it in a book?
DL courses on sports massage & therapy, that several experienced sports therapists on Hp recently have condemed as out of date.
I didn't make up my previous post as a wind up, I mean every single word. So anyone reading this post think twice before spending your money on any course DL or not. Don't let the publicity suck you in. Don't let your ego take over from commonsense. Don't be fooled by 4 DL courses for the price of 3, write a short essay and be awarded with a Diploma in Naturopathy insulting those who worked their ar## off getting such a qualification at a legitmate college.
If I didn't have ethics, I would be jumping on the "diploma mill" bandwagon myself as I have the skills and knowledge to do so. But Pixie sleeps well at night with a clear conscience 😉 It's money for old rope and highly profitable.
Best Wishes
RP
Bannick and Reiki Pixie
I'm afraid that I have to disagree with you.
I am currently a student of a reputable face-to-face college. Their pass mark is 40% for each of their exams. I literally need not have bothered doing any study - to achieve the 40% pass. The programme is great and I will be very proud when I graduate and practise in the field. But, don't kid yourself that it's a high-end product just because we sit in a room with someone standing in front of us lecturing.
By comparison, the courses I am studying by online distance learning have a pass mark of 80%. It's hard work, and requires a lot of further reading to complete the assignments. Ironically I am taking these courses for CPD to give me a healthy general knowledge of the modalities - rather than to practise in those fields - yet they require more work than the face-to-face programme I am on.
My point is that just because it is face-to-face and costs £2000 because you have to fly the lecturer up from England for the weekend, doesn't necessarily mean it is better than something online which costs £300 and the tutor replies via email.
I work in the field of online distance learning in postgraduate Medicine (yes Reiki Pixie: doctors, nurses, research scientists, vets... but no farmers ;-)) and no-one taking our courses thinks they are getting anything other than a high quality product. I think we have to throw aside these outdated views that just because something is delivered online it is inferior to those delivered face-to-face - and that all face-to-face programmes are excellent. They aren't - which is why there are a healthy number of debates here about which are the good/rubbish face-to-face programmes.
Bannick - I suspect that your wheelie bin man would have been just as crap if he had completed a face-to-face programme. It is likely that the college (whether online, or not) he studied at is not the one at fault here, but he himself.
Ava x
My view is:
There is nothing wrong at all in studying THEORY subjects by distance learning.
Especially if you already have a job and need to study part-time, and can fit this around your other commitments.
When it comes to practical skills it is obviously much better learning face-to-face and hands-on (quite literally, in the case of massage etc).
If i was you i would stay clear of stonebridge i have had trouble with them over practical training, not what they say on the tin!!!!!