How to make your qualifications stretch further

If you’re looking for the chance to develop your career, CIM can offer qualifications which are flexible to your needs. We’re here to take you through the study possibilities and help you make the right choice.

Making the decision to return back into studying is a big step to take, so it may help to move forward stage by stage by deciding to study a part of the qualification, known as an Award, before committing to a  longer-term studying commitment.

Being able to choose when you study a module also means that you can sync and work in conjunction with work projects such as sustainability, digital and AI, taking the opportunity to develop knowledge and skills that are immediately applicable but also allow you to build towards a full qualification. Adding any achievement to your LinkedIn profile is beneficial and demonstrates how you have applied your learning in your role.

What is a CIM Award?

An Award gives you the ability to pay for each award individually, like that of a payment plan. You can budget for each award and won’t need to worry about paying it all upfront, so you are making sure that each payment towards it is thought out and you can afford it comfortably.

Studying for a qualification with CIM demonstrates that you will invest in your career, updating your knowledge and skills to move with the changing marketing industry. It’s an investment tailored to your needs.

Why study an award?

Studying a qualification one module at a time is a great introduction to CIM qualifications as it allows you to get a taster of the learning experience without the need to commit to a full qualification. But committing to an award could be beneficial if you’ve not studied for a while, considering a change in career or would like to solidify your marketing knowledge.

Typically studying a qualification requires approximately 3 months of study with an Accredited Study Centre, before submitting an assessment by assignment or online exam. These 3 months can be studied in any order and at any point during the year depending on whether you’ll study online, virtually or in-person. You’ll have the ability to control the timeframe of your study.

Each of our qualifications, can include:

• Guided learning hours
• Practical and work-based learning
• Assessment preparation time
• Assessment time
• Supported self-study

What’s more, if you completed a marketing degree within the last 5 years, you may be eligible for exemptions, which could mean studying just one or two modules and completing a professional marketing qualification. Check out the full list of accredited degrees that are mapped to our qualifications.

Want to achieve the sought-after Chartered Marketer status? Well, studying just one award will provide you with enough CPD credits for one year of the two required to achieve the status. Find out more about the CPD programme or becoming a Chartered Marketer.

Sometimes you’ve got to take a little time

We spoke to people who graduated and some currently studying to get their insight into how an Award might be right for you.

“During the lockdown, I had time to finally get stuck into a qualification and I quickly completed my first module. I started my next module and at the same time, I landed a job. Studying and working was challenging, being honest.

“I used my evenings and weekends as fully as possible, and I took some time off to make sure that my work was good quality. I used some of my holiday to get the coursework done. For me, it was worthwhile as I could spot mistakes I made in those late nights and early mornings.”

CIM current student, Level 4 Certificate in Professional Digital Marketing.

CIM student stories

“I did a part-time job while studying at CIM, I needed experience and worked for a company because studying theories and real-life situations are different. For my CIM course, we needed to find a company and create a proposal for them. So, if we wished to know more about the company's real situation and wanted access to the data, we needed to work with a company as some information was only revealed for internal employees.

“I would schedule my working time and study time out first and would mark out the final deadline for the time around project submission. I’d give each task an earlier deadline, set by myself to make sure I could complete and successfully submit my proposal earlier.

“I chose to study with CIM because I believe that what we learn from our degree is mostly academic theories, but in a CIM qualification, we learn about real-life experience, knowledge and have the ability to come out with an individual proposal by ourselves.”

Testimonial by NG PO LE - exemptions due to studying a degree and topped up with one Award at CIM, they Achieved Level 6 Diploma in Professional Marketing in December 2022, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology (TAR UMT).

“When applying for jobs in marketing departments, the Awards I had done made me stand out from those who hadn’t studied a marketing qualification. In my current job, I’ve been able to put marketing tasks I do, such as social listening as a practical method in my Digital Marketing Techniques module. So, it’s been a case of the Awards helping me to land a job and then the job helping me to land a pass in my module!”

CIM current student, Level 4 Certificate in Professional Digital Marketing.

Speak to us today

Our dedicated and knowledgeable customer experience team can talk you through your options, taking into account your current priorities and making sure that you can maintain the balance in your life.

Explore your options

Explore your options and find out how you can embark on one of our flexible study programmes, designed to suit your schedule and complement your work experience. Learn the most up-to-date information on your subject of choice. Find out more by taking a look at our qualifications page.