Akamas

FLEXIBILITY FOR STUDENTS AND EMPLOYERS

We believe that in order for transformative learning to take place, it must complement rather than compete with the demands of a student's day-to-day role. Workloads in the public sector can be time-consuming and unpredictable, so we have designed our online courses to be as flexible as possible, both for individual students and for the employers and agencies who commission training from us.

Modular structure

Each of our BTEC Certificate courses consists of four units - three core and one option. Since all the online units are available separately as short courses, agencies can choose between enrolling students for a BTEC Certificate course at the outset or building towards the qualification one unit at a time. Once the required units have been completed, students can simply be registered with Edexcel to receive their BTEC Certificate qualification.

Flexible start dates

We create student accounts on a monthly basis, with new accounts activated on the first Monday of each month. Once a student's place has been booked, they can be enrolled into any one of the next 12 monthly intakes, providing that their registration form is received at least a week prior to the start date.

Flexible study time

Because our material is available online, students can access it at any time of day or night, whether at home at work or in a public library with internet access. Communication with Tutors and other students is via online message boards, so students never need to be able to guarantee to be online on a particular day at a particular time.

With no deadlines for course completion or the submission of tasks and assignments, students can work through the material at a pace that suits them or as agreed with their employer or other funding organisation.

Account extension

Our student accounts provide access to the Online Learning Environment for two years (BTEC Certificates) or one year (BTEC Awards), and we expect most students to complete their course well within this period. However, since some students will always take longer than others, accounts can be extended for a further year on payment of a £100 administration charge.

Student transfers

In the occasional circumstances when students simply cannot complete their training - perhaps because they have moved to a new employer or their circumstances have changed - our system allows customers to enrol a new student in their place. Our charge for this service covers our administration and tutoring costs while enabling customers to recoup some of their initial investment in training.

We operate a sliding scale of transfer fees depending on how far the student had progressed through the course:

• £180 if student withdraws before submission of their first Unit Assignment
• £360 if student withdraws before submission of their second Unit Assignment
• £540 if student withdraws before submission of their third Unit Assignment

Progress reporting

In order for employers and agencies to make best use of the features outlined above, we send all our customers a monthly report detailing the progress of their students through our courses.

This means that students who are experiencing difficulty can be provided the support they need at the same time as providing employers with a clear view of the use being made of the training provided.

For more information on how you can help support your students in making best use of the Akamas courses, please see our page on Supporting your students.