Four years is a long time. That’s especially true when you’re young and looking to join a fast-moving industry. That’s how long an event management degree could take to complete. The speed at which our industry moves, by the end of the degree, event management could look completely different to when you started!
A degree is an internationally recognised qualification proving beyond reasonable doubt that you know your subject. But it isn’t the only way to prove your knowledge or your worth.
What if you could get an industry-recognised qualification, real-life experience, genuine work placement and the contacts you’ll need to make it in event management? What if you could get all that in nine months instead of three or four years?
That’s exactly what the Event Academy Degree Alternative offers.
A 9 month intensive event management course resulting in a Level 7 qualification accredited by The Chartered Institute of Marketing. A course that includes real-life projects for existing events companies, 3 months’ work placement and one-to-one tuition for some of the course.
For many careers, such as the law, medicine, pharmacy, academia, research and many others like it, a degree is the only method of entry. For other types of career such as event management, a degree is one of a few ways to achieve your dream.
The Event Academy degree alternative is a Level 7 qualification. That’s the equivalent of a masters degree. We’re not talking NVQ 1 or 2 here!
There are pros and cons to degrees and to vocational qualifications.
University degrees are universally recognised and a great way to demonstrate your knowledge of a particular subject. UK universities have some of the highest reputations in the world for academic achievement and carry a lot of weight in the international arena.
Going to university is considered a rite of passage for many cultures. It is often viewed as favourably for the experience as it is for the learning.
Degrees are expensive! Not only do you have tuition, you have books, events, accommodation and living costs for up to four years to cover. Then there’s student debt…
Degrees also take four years of your life where you will learn a lot about many subjects. If you’re lucky, a significant proportion of those subjects will relate directly to your future career. If you’re not so lucky, they won’t. Not all courses are based on the real world and won’t always deliver the skills and knowledge required by employers.
I remember my first day at work after university. My new manager sat me down and said ‘You spent four years learning how academics think our industry works. I now have to spend months teaching you how it REALLY works.’
I’m not the only one who has heard that type of speech!
Vocational qualifications are designed to deliver quality training and education as required by employers in the industry. They are often tightly focused on a specific career and tightly linked to real world requirements as outlined by the industry in question. Employers view them favourably for just these reasons.
Vocational qualifications take a lot less time than a degree. The Event Academy Degree Alternative takes just nine months. It’s an intense nine months sure, but at the end you get the equivalent of a masters degree.
Vocational qualifications are much, much cheaper than a degree. As the course is only nine months, it is less than half the price of a degree. You would feasibly finish the course and jump right into a job without any student debt!
Vocational qualifications are less transferrable than degrees as they are tuned to specific industries. If you stay within that industry, the Level 7 course carries a lot of weight. Move out of the industry and it will still demonstrate your ability but will have slightly less influence than a degree.
If you view going to university as a rite of passage you may feel like you’re missing out. You won’t actually miss out on very much at all but you might feel like it!
Price: £9,540 in total
Reviews: 4.5 / 5
Accreditation: The Chartered Institute of Marketing
Employment rate: 90%
The Event Academy Degree Alternative course has been designed by events managers for future events managers. It’s an intensive course that packs a lot into the nine months duration. Three of those months are work placement with events management companies who offer real-life experience.
The course covers core skills, marketing, site visits, budgeting, supplies and logistics, production, fundraising, PR, sales, immersive events, sustainability and a lot more. Lectures and site visits take place in London, the heart of the UK events industry.
The result is an internationally recognised Level 7 qualification accredited by The Chartered Institute of Marketing. Plus 3 months of valuable experience within an events company.
Price: £9,250 per year plus other costs
Reviews: 4.1 / 5
Accreditation: The Chartered Institute of Marketing, the Association for Project Management, the Institute of Travel and Tourism and the Institute of Data and Marketing.
Employment rate: 91%
Bournemouth University offers a BA (Hons) Events Management recognised by the above institutes. It’s a four year course that includes 30 weeks of work placement with an employer. The course covers many elements of events management and includes work placement anywhere in the world.
The university is well regarded, appearing 48th on the WUSCA student ranking. Bournemouth is a nice place to study too as it’s a prime position on the south coast.
Price: £9,250 per year plus other costs
Reviews: 4.2 / 5
Accreditation: None
Employment rate: 85%
Falmouth University offers a Creative Events Management BA (Hons) degree over three years at the Penryn Campus. The course includes work placements, arranging at least four events over the course, study of sustainability and creativity as well as the academic side of event management.
Falmouth University appears 77th in the WUSCA student ranking. Falmouth is in Cornwall and another great place to study.
Price: £9,250 per year plus other costs
Reviews: 4.0 / 5
Accreditation: None
Employment rate: 100%
Derby University offers the Event Management BA (Hons) degree course over three or four years. There are three years of study with an optional 1 year work placement. The course covers management, strategy, human resources, marketing and finance and includes internships, arranging events and as much practical experience as possible.
Derby University appears 67th in the WUSCA student ranking. Derby is in the Midlands, close to Birmingham and Nottingham.
Price: £9,250 per year plus other costs
Reviews: 4.0 / 5
Accreditation: None
Employment rate: 91%
Greenwich University in London offers an Events Management, BA Hons degree course over three years at their central London campus. The course includes design, marketing, professional development, sustainability, research, strategy and venue management among others. There is no work placement option.
Greenwich University appears 42nd in the WUSCA student ranking. It’s in central London so is ideally positioned for the events industry.
Price: £9,250 per year plus other costs
Reviews: 4.0 / 5
Accreditation: Association for Events Management Education
Employment rate: 88%
Leeds Beckett University offers an Events Management, BA Hons degree course over four years with an optional sandwich year in year 3. The course covers planning, marketing, event practice, event safety, law, production, workforce management, strategy and the future of events.
Leeds Beckett University appears 111th in the WUSCA student ranking. Leeds is a thriving city in picturesque Yorkshire.
Each of these courses teaches you the vital skills you’ll need to make it in the events industry. They provide academic and practical learning and a wide mix of real life experience and industry interaction.
But only one can do that in less than three years and without incurring student debt!
Only one of those courses has been designed specifically to deliver the skills and the knowledge the industry is crying out for. Only one offers real projects for real companies, the opportunity to pitch your event to real clients like you’ll need to do in your career.
It doesn’t have to take three or four years to learn what you need to do. It doesn’t have to incur thousands of pounds of student debt to get there either. Degrees are valuable and time spent at university can be also, but that isn’t the only way to get into a job you love.
You can do it faster and cheaper with the Event Academy Degree Alternative course. Download a brochure to find out more.
