Design Training – Information About Our Training Courses
We offer short, intensive training courses for graphic design, desktop publishing, photo editing and video editing.
We can provide on-site training (at your premises), and can provide online video training for most courses.
- Short, intensive training sessions.
- One to one or small group training.
- Custom courses are available for most applications.
One to one training or group training?
One or two trainees is ideal if you want in-depth training.
With one to one training you will usually learn a lot more than you would as part of a group. You will be able to look at the application in much more detail. You can learn at your own pace and spend more time on the areas you find most difficult. The training can easily be tailored to include working through any current projects that you may have and answer your questions.
Group training is usually available for up to 4 trainees.
With a smaller the group, you will usually learn more in a day, and we will also be able to adapt the training to any specific training requirements more easily.
Trainees in a group should have the same current skill level and the same training requirements.
How long is a training session?
Training times are typically 9.30am to 4pm, with a 45 – 60 minute break for lunch.
Times may vary with different trainers or with specific courses, and the start and finish times can often be adjusted to better suit the client.
Where does the training take place?
We can provide on-site training (at your premises) around the UK.
We are also now offering online video training, using Zoom or MS Teams.
Please contact us for more information.
You will need somewhere suitable to do the training where you will not be constantly disturbed, and you will also need to have suitable computers with the appropriate software installed and working.
Computer Equipment Requirements
You will need to have suitable computer equipment with the software installed and working.
You may need either a large screen or a projector so that everyone can see demonstrations.
Please see our pages on On-site Training and online video training for more information on equipment requirements.
How many training days do I need?
The amount of training you will need will depend on your current design skills and the level of skill you would like to work to.
If you are new to design software you will obviously need more time to learn these applications than if you already have some experience of this type of software.
For most applications, you should allow one day for an introduction to that software, and further days to cover the application in more detail.
As a guide, for an application such as Photoshop, you will typically need:
1 day for beginners introduction level,
+ 1 day for intermediate level,
+ 1 day for advanced level.
This would vary for different applications and different requirements, and you may need anything between 2 and 5 days training to cover beginners to advanced level thoroughly.
For a complete beginner wanting to learn Photoshop, we usually suggest starting with 1 or 2 days of training, to cover the basics and familiarise yourself with the basic skills and how that program works. Then follow that with further training if required.
Most design software does take a long time to learn well, and you will need to allow plenty of time to practice the techniques you have learned during the training.
If you would like advice on which training you may need, please contact us.
Please also see our Design Reference section for more information on the software and how it works.
Course Content
The course outlines give an idea of the typical areas which can be covered during that course. The course content can often be adapted to better meet the requirements of the trainees.
The amount of any course outline which can be covered will often vary depending on the number of trainees, the abilities of those being trained, and the amount of time spent looking at specific areas of interest or answering questions which may be asked during the training.
Custom Courses
The content of most courses can be modified to better suit your needs.
Beginners courses are only able to have a limited amount of customisation, but intermediate or advanced courses can usually be adapted to your requirements.
Please supply a list of any specific requirements and we will try to accommodate you, if it would be possible to do so effectively.
Please see this page for more information on custom courses.
Please supply details of your requirements or examples of any documents you would like to create or edit before booking the training.
Computer Platform
Apple Mac or Windows PC?
The training can be on Windows PC or Apple Mac (whichever you normally use).
Skill Level
For all beginners courses, it is assumed that you will have reasonable computer skills (for example: know how to open and save files) and that you are competent with basic computer use.
The requirements for specific courses may vary – please see individual course outlines for more information.
Notes and After-Training Support
Some basic notes may be available for courses which we run very regularly, such as beginners Photoshop, and beginners Illustrator, but we don’t supply notes and handouts with most courses.
Due to the variety of courses which we offer and the number of different software versions which we cover – it is very difficult to maintain good quality notes which would be suitable for everyone. Also many of the courses we run are custom courses, which are adapted to the specific needs of the client.
We usually suggest that trainees try to make some brief notes for areas of specific interest and we can usually suggest some useful reference books.
We can sometimes offer the option of supplying one or more reference books with some longer courses.
One month of email support (and telephone support – by arrangement) is available after your training, for questions relating to the subjects covered during the training.
Do I Get Qualifications Or Certificates?
The courses are short, intensive, flexible courses designed to give you the skills you need to do your work – rather than specifically for working towards an exam or qualification.
Therefore you will not get an official qualification at the end of the courses. However, we can supply training certificates after the training.
Booking Training
How to book training
1) Request a quote to confirm training cost
If you have not already asked us for a quote, please request a quote.
2) Ask for available dates
Please contact us to check which dates may be available for your required course and location.
3) Reserve some dates
The next step is to reserve some dates.
You can usually reserve dates for a few days before confirming your booking.
4) Book your dates
Once the dates have been reserved with the trainer, we will email you a booking form for the specific training on the requested dates.
Before sending the booking form we will need to know:
- Which dates you prefer
- Which courses are required
- Any additional details or changed details since you received a quote
4) Return the booking form
Return the booking form with the required information.
If we didn’t already send you an invoice with the booking form, we will now send you an invoice for the training.
5) Pay for the training
When we have received the completed booking form and your payment, your booking will then be confirmed.
Please visit the Booking Training page.
Payment
Payment will be required in advance of the training start date.
Payment is usually due 21 days in advance of the training start date.
Or for later bookings (less than 4 weeks ahead of training start date), payment will be due when confirming the booking (usually within 1 – 7 days of invoice).
Payment by BACS is preferred.