CIMA: Financial Support

craggle87

Hi Everyone.

I really want to further my education and move on to CIMA and over the previous year I've been saving for the course myself. I've approached my employer a number of times with reasons why investing in me will benefit the company but he is not interested.

Does anybody have any tips for convincing my employer or found alternative ways for financial study support i.e direct.gov. Last time I checked the course cost approx. £12,500 over 2.5 years.


Thanks, Craig

Rinske

Just out of interest, how did you get to the figure of 12,500?

I think there are a lot cheaper options available and you might want to reconsider the figures, before asking your employer again.

My employer pays for CIMA at the moment, but only because I gave them the choice of the provider and the fact that I completed the AAT before that off my own back was also a very good motivator.

I've put a lot of work in preparing the different options and prices that are related to that and I got funding for everything in distance learning, but that doesn't go over the £ 2,000.

craggle87

Rinske, thanks for your reply.

It would appear the big difference in costs is based on whether I choose the long distance or class room study. I have just called a provider and I was informed the class room study can run up to £15,000 over the three modules but long distance is a much more cost effective option being, as you said, around £2000.

Can I ask, how are you finding the long distance studying?

Rinske

I love my distance studying for the freedom it gives me, but I lack a tutor actually giving lectures and other students to discuss things with.

You do need great motivation for distance studying though, because there is noone who tells you that you should study, when you don't feel motivated and you really do need to ask the right questions to the tutor in order to get a sensible reply, otherwise the tutor will not know what you want and might just give you any random answer.

I've only just sat two exams and no results back yet, so I might have failed both, we shall see.

There is also the online classes from the BPP and I think Kaplan will offer them soon as well.

And have a look at the classroom courses from Kaplan and BPP as well in that case, cause they are definitely nothing in the line of 15,000 for the whole course.

PAMDILL

have a look at ILA I got my First aid course through it. I am looking at using it for various courses over the next couple of years.

uknitty

You can take out a career development loan for almost any training course that is not eligible for funding via the Student Loan Company.

You can borrow between £300 - £10,000 and you must start making repayments as soon as you finish your course.

More info from gov.co.uk here.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/EducationAndLearning/AdultLearning/FinancialHelpForAdultLearners/CareerDevelopmentLoans/DG_10033237

craggle87

Thanks again for the replies

uknitty, your link is what I've been looking for. I was always contemplating a personal loan but i'm still paying the interest on my car loan right now. I'm now contemplating to ask my company if they will support me for long distance learning whilst i'm an employee and in the circumstances I do move on I hope to consider professional and career loan from direct.gov

I have also passed this link on to a friend who wants to begin AAT.

Thank you

uknitty

I've self funded AAT (I e-bayed everything that is not nailed down!) but I have been considering getting a career development loan for further studies for some time. I just need to decide exactly what I want to do after AAT.

With rerefence to your friend starting AAT, have they considered using one of the training providers that let you pay in installments ? Premier Training allowed me to spread the cost of the course over 4 installments with payments taken from my account every 2 months. This gave me 8 months to pay, working out at about £70 a month for level 3. (Put like that it seems much more managable right ?)

Eagle Education also offer payment in installments interest free, and I have heard such good feedback about them.

If your friend can manage to get through AAT without taking out a loan it will give them more options for financing their further studies should they want to continue on after studying AAT. If they take a loan out for AAT they will be required to make repayments once they finish level 4 - so trying to fund further studies while paying back a loan will be tough ! Just a thought Let me know how you get on !