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Louise Chapman
2 minute read time.

Many of us are looking to develop ourselves in our careers as well as personal aspirations.

Learning & development is at the heart of everything we do to progress, invite new opportunities and grow as individuals. It keeps us current and enables us to deliver a positive impact on business goals whilst fulfilling the desire to expand our skills and knowledge.

Training is key to continued professional development and is delivered any many ways - from experiential learning from peers and coaches to attending training courses that focus on specific skills & knowledge gaps.

Having spent much of my career in L&D - designing and delivering training, and managing wider learning portfolios, I’ve seen first-hand the impact the right learning can have.

But there’s one question that comes up time and time again:

“Is the course accredited?”

I agree this is a fair question. Is it a question though, that we fully explore? Because somewhere along the way, accreditation seems to have become an indicator of value.

A signal that a course is “worth it”.
A shortcut for quality.
Something tangible to show for the time invested.

And while that can be true, it doesn’t always tell the full story.

Particularly with shorter training courses, I sometimes wonder if we place too much emphasis on the label, and not enough on what the learning actually delivers.

Accreditation, in itself, doesn’t guarantee impact.

It doesn’t tell you how relevant the content is, how well it’s delivered, or what you’ll be able to do differently afterwards. And in some cases, we may even blur the lines between accreditation and qualification, expecting something more formal than the learning is designed to provide.

If you consider training such as IET courses, the CPD hours already provide a clear and recognised contribution to professional development. Beyond that, it’s worth asking what role should accreditation really play? And what do we actually need it to add?

Perhaps it’s just one part of the overall picture.

The real value lies in the quality and relevance of the learning, and how effectively it supports you in applying new knowledge or skills in practice.

So perhaps the question isn’t simply whether a course is accredited, but whether it delivers what you actually need from it.

I’d be really interested to hear your perspective, join the discussion.


How important is accreditation to you when choosing training? Is it worth it?

What does accreditation of a short training course (1-3 days) actually mean to you?

 

  • Thanks for sharing your thoughts Mark. It's interesting hear the different viewpoints on this subject and it is a strong point that the credibility of the training provider often is equal to or even outweighs the value of accreditation itself. 

  • I feel that accreditation is irrelevant if the content does not meet the need - the relevance is the priority.

    For longer courses, such as degree programmes, I would always encourage someone to look for accreditation, as this means that a third party has reviewed the course and that it meets a specific standard. However, this doesn't always mean an un-accredited course is of lower standard.

    Short courses are a different matter. Often, especially with larger companies, you are limited to whatever organisations that your employer has agreements with (and a lot of training is in-house). Getting approval of training with other bodies can be a challenge, unless the cost of the training is negligible. You need to demonstrate a value to the business, what will you do differently as a result. Accreditation doesn't provide this.

    I've not typically worked in SMEs or as self-employed. Someone in those environments may have a different view.

    Taking a different viewpoint, the organisation presenting the training can essentially be as valuable as accreditation. If we go back to considering degrees, many engineering degrees are accredited. The higher prestige universities are still considered better despite being accredited to the same standard.

    So, ultimately I agree, the important factor is whether the course delivers what you actually need from it. Accreditation might be a useful aspect when considering similar courses, but not as much as it would be for much longer training courses.

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