Study Information
Read this page to get an idea of cost of books and reference materials, hours of study and Tuition Periods. When you enrol on our courses, you receive a Guide giving specific information in these areas. The following, therefore, is only basic.
Cost of Books and Reference Materials
Taster Course and Foundation Course
There is no need to buy any books for the Taster Course, and Modules 1, 2 and 3a of the Foundation Course. A short reading list is recommended for the Foundation Course. You will need some reference materials for Module 3b of the Foundation Course, details of which are given when you enrol. The total cost of essential reference materials is likely to be in the region of £40, and can be less, depending on where you buy them.
Diploma Course
You will need some essential reference materials for calculation, astronomy, midpoints and history. The total cost is likely to be in the region of £120, but could be less depending on where you buy them. It is also possible that you bought some of the reference materials you need if you have done Module 3b. That would reduce the cost.
Hours of Study
Taster Course
It is likely to take you between one and two hours to complete each exercise.
Foundation Course
The estimated time for completing all three modules is twelve to eighteen months, or four to six months per module – assuming that you are working or have other responsibilities. It is likely to take you two to eight hours to complete an exercise. Some may not take very long at all, while others may take longer; especially those involving a birth chart analysis.
Diploma Course
To complete all five of the Diploma Course modules is likely to take about six months per module which adds up to two and a half years. It is possible to cover the Diploma Course in a shorter time-span, but it does depend on commitment, time available and your other responsibilities. The average study time is likely to be between three and twelve hours per exercise. Birth chart analyses, forecasting, and the projects you are asked to cover, do take longer than the other exercises.
Tuition Periods
The tuition period is six months per module (except for the Taster Course). This means that your tutor will mark all the tutor-assessed exercises in this period. When this period has run out, and there are remaining tutor-assessed exercises, you are sent an invoice to cover the tutoring if you want to finish the module. You are then allowed a further six months to complete the module, when you have paid. This does not apply to the Taster Course.
Taster Course
The tuition period is four months, and it will cease after this period.
Foundation Course Extension fees for tuition
You pay £10 per remaining tutor-assessed exercise for the first period of six months’ extension. For the second six months’ extension, the fee is £15 per remaining tutor-assessed exercise. If there is a third six months’ extension period, the fee is £20 per remaining tutor-assessed exercise.
Diploma Course extension fees for tuition
For the first six months’ extended tuition period, the fee is £15 per remaining tutor-assessed exercise. If you need a second six months’ extension period, the fee is £20 per remaining tutor-assessed exercise. Finally, if you need a third six months’ extension period, the charge is £25 per remaining tutor-assessed exercise.
An extra £10 administration charge is added to each extension fees’ invoice whether you are enrolled on a Module on the Foundation or Diploma Course. There may also be an extra fee if the course material has been updated substantially since your first tuition period has lapsed. This is unlikely to be more than £15.
Lengthening the tuition period
There may be genuine exceptional circumstances which prevent you from completing a module within the timescale given. There are specific circumstances when the college can extend the tuition period to eight months, or grant a further tuition period without charge. These exceptions are explained in the Guides to the Foundation and Diploma Courses sent to you when you enrol.