Distance Learning | Quality Courses

How We Work

THE SCHOOL

Established in 1979, ACS has educated thousands of full and part-time students, many of whom have gone onto successful employment, both in industry or in their own businesses. Others have used their courses to develop a hobby, or simply broaden their general education. We currently have over 2,500 students enrolled around the world. The school operates from the Midlands in the UK, with staff working out of a number of countries.<

Our Priority is and always has been "Learning"

The school holds high the ideals of practical education, emphasising in all courses those things which are relevant to "real life". Courses offered cater for hobby interest through to formal training in industry and the professions.

Welcome to ACS Distance Education UK from ACS Distance Education on Vimeo.

MORE THAN A SCHOOL

The school and it's tutors have always been active in industry. We believe strongly that maintaining an awareness of current information and trends enables us to keep our course notes and services to students up to date and relevant. When you study with this school you are learning from people who are doing what you are studying on a daily basis.

STAFF

We endeavour to employ tutors who have distinguished themselves as leaders in their respective fields. Current tutorial staff (more than 20 professionals) include former presidents and secretaries from professional associations, former and current managers and department heads from a variety of organisations (both private enterprise and government) and successful owner operators of a wide variety of businesses.

The school was founded by the current principal, John Mason. Mr Mason is a widely published international author of more than 100 books and thousands of articles. He is a well known and respected academic in his original field of horticulture, in both Australia and England (A fellow of the Australian Institute of Horticulture, Parks & Leisure Australia, and also a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Horticulture, in the UK.

Click here for more information on our staff.

HOW OUR COURSES WORK

You get to make more choices here than with most colleges. You can choose what to study; what to focus on in your assignments, when and where to study, when an how to use our academic support staff, whether to use printed materials or electronic course notes -and a whole lot more.

Our aim is to make the course fit the student; as much as is physically possible. The only limit we have is that we cannot compromise the quality of the learning experience (if we were to do that, we would be devaluing the benefit of the course to you and other students).

Often the problem with distance learning is that you feel you are on your own, and have limited access to resources, to ask questions and obtain assignment feedback.

ACS provides the highest level of support possible. Students can:

Talk directly with tutors by phone.
Email questions and receive an email back in 24 hours.
Access additional information that has been reviewed and recommended by our academics (through an online library or directly from tutors where needed for your studies).
Order e-books from our bookshop at www.acsebooks.com

SERVICES PROVIDED TO STUDENTS

We provide all the resources and advice needed for extensive student support, including all necessary course notes and required reading materials.

Unlimited Tuition as long as it relates to your course (Contact us by phone, email, social media or chat).
Assignments marked.
Questions answered.
Careers and business advice.
Access to our Resource Library.
Newsletters -emailed weekly to keep you up to date with what is happening.
Blogs.
Social Media (We are active on Facebook, Linked in and Pintrest).
Bookshop discounts.

RECOGNITION FOR PRIOR STUDY OR WORK EXPERIENCE

If you have already learnt things which are taught in a course, either through previous study or work experience, you may be able to obtain credit towards your chosen course, eliminating the need to repeat material, and thereby reducing the time taken to complete your course.

Credit can be obtained by completing a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) form BEFORE commencing your course.

To apply for RPL, contact the school for an application form. Complete the form and submit it together with photocopied documentation.

A nominal fee is charged for Certificate courses and Diploma courses, to make a standard RPL assessment. A higher fee may apply for more complex submissions involving large exemptions. The RPL fee will be deducted from the total cost of your course, plus discounts for any exempted studies, upon enrolment.

However, if you complete an RPL and choose NOT to enrol in a course, this fee is non-refundable.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

Short courses (i.e. any course below 150 hours duration) - Anyone can enrol, there are no formal prerequisites, though year 10 or equivalent is preferable in most instances.
Certificates & Advanced Certificates - See each course, usually Year 10, 11 or equivalent, or mature age.
Diplomas & Advanced Diplomas - Year 12 or Mature age.

COURSES ARE CONTINUALLY UPDATED

We're always learning new things, from conferences, magazines and journals, internet searches, colleagues and, of course, student's assignments and their feedback.

Staff at the school are continually researching and writing new books, magazine articles and video scripts. This gathered information is used to update course notes.

We offer you more up to date information than you are likely to get from many other schools.

We encourage feedback from students through newsletter questionnaires, and contact with tutors.

COURSE DURATION

There are no set starting dates. Start when you want at any time of the year.

We allow students to work at their own pace. There are no deadlines for assignments.

Cancellation of a registration will only occur if you haven't contacted us for over 6 months.

See schedule of fees for estimated hours of study for each course.

Extensions and deferments may be requested if needed. Please contact the school for more details.

If your studies are supported by someone else (e.g. Austudy or Employer), they may require you to finish within a specified period. In such cases check with the supporting agency before enrolling.

WHEN CAN I START?

As our courses are offered by distance learning (online or e-Learning), students can start when they wish, at any time of the year.

CHOOSING & ENROLLING IN YOUR COURSE

The task of choosing a course can be very exciting!

The courses available menu lists courses according to subject area. Look through the subject area/s that interest/s you and choose the particular course/s that most appeal/s to you. The fees for each course are listed at the right hand side of each course.

If you need further information then email the school for further advice or information. As you complete written & practical assignments, submit your work to the school for comment. Your tutor provides guidance where needed, and the work is returned to you to keep.

QUALITY GUARANTEED

This school maintains a quality control system to comply with the standard AS.NZS ISO 9002, as published by Standards Australia.

WHEN YOU COMPLETE A COURSE, YOU WILL RECEIVE:

A) LETTER OF COMPLETION

At the completion of any course, the school will, on request, issue you with an official "letter of completion" acknowledging your satisfactory completion of all assignments.

B) STATEMENT OF ATTAINMENT

To formally complete all course assignments, then sit and pass the required examinations. You can arrange to sit your exam close to your home, with someone such as a police officer, minister of religion, J.P. or college lecturer acting as a supervisor.

C) QUALIFICATIONS

Your official qualification is awarded by our UK school, hen you successfully complete all course requirements. The official document is yours to display. As a graduate, you are also entitled to use an appropriate abbreviation of your qualification after your name.

D) ASSESSMENT

You will have one assignment per lesson and at the end of the course, you will have one exam. You will be required to score a minimum of 60% at the final exam in order to complete the course.

WORK EXPERIENCE & WORKPLACE PROJECTS

WHAT IS APPROVED WORK EXPERIENCE

Credits may be achieved through a recognition of prior learning assessment which determines that you have developed appropriate skills through experience in industry. Such credit must be based on a fully documented, formal submission. The following situations are generally approved:

Work under the direction of a qualified person.
Under the direction of a long term member of an appropriate professional association.
Work which you can be refereed by a qualified or well recognised professional.

WORKPLACE PROJECTS

A workplace project may involve developing and undertaking a research project in liaison with a tutor. A typical project will involve a series of communications (by phone or email), interspersed with periods of work and preparation of written reports.