This is your 30-day warning

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Thinking of doing a course? Whether you鈥檙e already in employment or jobhunting, learning extra skills can give you the edge. But, warns Emily Wright, time is fast running out

Everyone remembers that back to school feeling. After a long holiday of lie-ins, ice cream and as much fun in the sun as the UK summer would allow, September seemed the greyest month of the year.

But that was years ago - today, you may find re-entering the world of education is every bit as bracing as a holiday.

And in today鈥檚 employment marketplace, getting an extra line or two on that CV could make all the difference.

There is a wide range of types of construction-related course on offer - from undergraduate to postgraduate, one-off training and long-distance learning schemes. But if you鈥檙e confused about which to choose, you may not have long to make up your mind: most start in the autumn. And while this may seem like a long way off, some courses, particularly postgraduate courses, have application cut-off dates as early as this month.

鈥淣ow is absolutely the time to be applying ahead of a September start date,鈥� says Nick Evans, higher education policy manager at the RICS. 鈥淓specially for postgraduate courses. These could be very popular, considering the state of the market and unemployment levels. To get onto a course starting in the autumn, the closing dates for applications tends to be this month or next. But there鈥檚 still time if people get their applications off now.鈥�

So, there鈥檚 still just time to arrange a skills boost this academic year and sharpen your skills with some studying. But if you don鈥檛 want to spend those last few days cramming about the best subject or learning type to choose, to guide you in the right direction and shave off some crucial hours of research, 好色先生TV has picked some of the best construction-related courses around.

And to help your application along, we鈥檝e asked a course director to offer some advice on getting the best chance of bagging that place.

Postgraduate degree

Why do one? Postgraduate courses usually run over two or three years, but some last up to five. This in-depth additional study looks great on your CV and postgraduate qualifications are sure to impress potential employers. This would explain then why they are so popular: 鈥淚nterest in postgrad courses has rocketed in the last 10 years,鈥� says Evans. 鈥淚n 2000 there were 400 people enrolled on RICS-accredited courses and now there are 4,000. Upskilling in the recession is on everyone鈥檚 minds as a way to impress employers.鈥�

Postgraduate degrees are particularly useful for anyone who has a general construction or property degree and who now wants to specialise in a niche area, from renewable energy or housing and law to something more unusual like street design and management.

Sometimes you can get in at the last minute but with popular courses it鈥檚 advisable to try to beat the rush
Peter Demian, Loughborough

These courses require a substantial time commitment but plenty of universities and colleges offer flexible or part-time study options so it鈥檚 worth checking out these options when you apply.

What you need to know: Peter Demian, lecturer in construction management at the Department of Civil and 好色先生TV Engineering at Loughborough university says: 鈥淧ostgraduate courses at universities usually require an undergraduate degree with a minimum of a 2:1, though that can depend on where you are applying. At Loughborough, international students must have a European language qualification as a bare minimum.

鈥淚f a course is very popular we will whittle the numbers down by looking very carefully at each candidate鈥檚 professional experience and references - so it鈥檚 important to make sure your CV is up to date.

鈥淲e take on about 40-70 people per course though this varies from course to course and between universities. How soon you need to get your application in for a September start depends on how oversubscribed the course is. Sometimes you can get one in at the last minute but it would be advisable to try to beat the rush. However, even if we are full, if we get an application from an outstanding candidate we will try to squeeze them in.鈥�

Course suggestions: Many universities offer MSc courses in subjects ranging from building services engineering to construction business management, pure construction management and construction project management. Most of these start in September or October. Universities with particularly good reputations for construction-related courses include Loughborough, Reading, Westminster, Salford, Nottingham Trent and Northumbria. For details of each university鈥檚 courses see the useful links below.

Distance learning courses are also available, such as the Graduate Development Programme PGDip/MSc in surveying. This course is a postgraduate conversion programme run by the College of Estate Management for graduates wanting to join one of the international professional bodies for surveying or construction. This course starts on 1 September, so you will need to get your applications in now! For details of more long distance learning options, see below.

How to stand out

Keith Hogg, associate dean of School of the Built Environment at the University of Northumbria provides simple rules to follow when you are filling out and submitting your application:

Make sure you fill out the application form correctly - you would be surprised at how many applicants give incomplete or incorrect information about themselves
Similarly, a number of applicants each year seem to have failed to check their forms against the most basic spelling and grammatical errors. This does not create a good impression
While all applications are considered, those which stand out show evidence of commitment to the course in the form of a genuine appreciation of its subject matter and the nature of the role - thus suggesting that they have read the prospectus and perhaps also extra material, such as that issued by the RICS, which sets out the work of a QS
In addition, some applicants might have had, or be seeking, summer work with a relevant company or professional organisation, suggesting a further level of commitment (as well as appreciation of the role) by the time they start their studies.

Useful links:

Loughborough university

Reading university

Westminster university

Construction

Salford university

Nottingham Trent university

Northumbria university

College of Estate Management

Distance-learning course

Why do one? If you want to study while remaining in full or part-time employment, or if you want to fit your studying around a home life or time off work then a distance learning course could be the best option for you. Equally, if you are unemployed but are hoping to be offered work, this gives you the flexibility to accept a job and still study.

You will usually be sent a structured online study programme as a guidance tool and can learn from wherever you are based in the country, or indeed the world.

What you need to know: Gary Reynolds, head of construction and training at the College of Estate Management says: 鈥淭he beauty of these courses is that you can do them from wherever you are, 364 days of the year. We have 4,500 students around the world from the UK to Afghanistan. The selection process is similar to other institutions in that we do have minimum requirements for courses. This is usually English and Maths qualifications to GCSE or equivalent level.

The beauty of distance-learning courses is you can do them from wherever you are, 365 days a year
Gary Reynolds, College of Estate management

鈥淎lthough they鈥檙e not taught face-to-face, these courses do cost money to do. The exact figure depends on the course; you鈥檒l need to check each one. But it is around 拢465 per module and so for a full-year course you will be looking at around 拢8,000 - though that鈥檚 a maximum figure.鈥�

Course suggestions: The College of Estate Management offers a number of courses that run throughout the year in pretty much any construction or real estate-related subject you can think of. You can choose to do an undergraduate, postgraduate or diploma course on subjects including facilities management, surveying, property management, construction management and more niche areas such as conservation of the historic environment.

Several of the courses start in September and span two years with a requirement of 15 hours a week of study. The application deadlines for these courses are 31 July. The courses include a diploma in surveying practice, diploma in construction practice, MSc in real estate and an MBA in construction and real estate.

Upskilling while unemployed

If you have been forced to take a break from work, any of the options listed above could be a constructive use of your time. Turning the situation into an opportunity to boost your qualifications will not only keep you motivated but will also look impressive to potential new employers.

If you want to take the time off to go full steam ahead and enrol on a postgraduate course, then great. But what if you don鈥檛 want to sign yourself up for a long or full-time course in case you get the opportunity to return to work in the interim?

The best options in terms of flexibility here are the long-distance learning courses, but they often come with a hefty fee attached, which you may not be able to justify if you are not in full-time employment.

Looking into bursaries could be the answer. The College of Estate Management has come up with a scheme to make its long-distance learning courses more accessible by offering discounts of up to 50% for the diploma in surveying practice and diploma in construction practice courses.

But make sure you get your application in on time, as the cut-off point to secure a bursary is two weeks earlier than normal deadlines.

Should you become unemployed while on a course, the college has also introduced a new redundancy package to help students who find themselves suddenly out of work. There is a potential discount of up to 75% available under this scheme.

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Everyone loves to get something for free. Good news, then, that about 70 universities have won government funding to run free courses for unemployed graduates.

Westminster university鈥檚 Build Up programme, for example, includes courses in retrofitting buildings, social networking, economic skills in a changing environment, project management, climate change and starting your own business.

For more information visit: