The Pros and Cons of Weekend Training Courses

Elizabeth is a freelance writer and project manager living and working in London. She runs The Otobos Group, a project communications consultancy specializing in project management.

  Career Development  

The last time I attended a training course, I got all my pre-course reading on a Kindle. Other training providers offer you pre-loaded iPads, complete with copies of the standard you are studying and all the handouts. Gone are the days when you returned from the classroom staggering under the weight of binders containing half the rainforest. And gone are the days when you have to study 9-5.

Today, you can take courses online, during your evenings and even on weekends. More companies are offering weekend options, and we’ll see even more do so as time goes on. After all, it makes better commercial sense to use their training facilities seven days a week, and there are plenty of employees stuck in a Catch-22: Their companies are prepared to invest in training, but their managers aren’t prepared to let them out of the office.

So what should you consider before signing up to studying in your weekends?

The advantages of weekend courses
Taking a credential over the weekend (or several weekends) is a great prospect if you find it hard to get time away from your project. I took a five-day course, which would normally mean a week out of the office. The weekend option meant that I had just one day out--a Friday, followed by that weekend in the classroom (and the following weekend, too). This has a limited, manageable impact on your project, and you get to …

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