Non award bearing

Aims of the course

• to give participants an introduction to, and overview of the screenwriting process
• to equip participants with the knowledge and tools to develop and write a short screenplay following a step-by-step approach
• to encourage and enable participants to develop their writing skills (in order to write a short screenplay)

Target audience

• participants new to writing for the screen
• creative writers from other disciplines looking to learn about screenwriting
• screenwriters looking to improve their knowledge/understanding of the nuts and bolts of screenwriting

Schedule (this course is completed entirely online)

Orientation Week: 19-25 February 2024

Teaching Weeks: 26 February-31 March 2024

Feedback Week: 1-7 April 2024

Teaching Week 1 - Ideation

By studying this week participants should have:

• a solid overview of the screenwriting process
• a knowledge and understanding of how to generate a screen narrative idea
• an understanding of the function of a premise
• a knowledge and understanding of how to write a premise
• an opportunity to write a premise
• an opportunity to pitch a premise
• an understanding of how screen narratives differ from other forms of (creative) writing

Teaching week 2 - From premise to outline

By studying this week participants should have:

• an overview of the meta-elements of a screen narrative: character, theme, and story
• a knowledge and understanding of how to develop a character by identifying a 'want', 'flaw', and 'need'
• an understanding of how to write an effective character profile
• a knowledge and understanding of how to identify and develop a unifying and universal theme within their writing
• a knowledge and understanding of the ten story types and how to apply them 
• an understanding of the function of the one-page outline
• an opportunity to apply the above to the writing of a one-page outline

Teaching week 3 - From outline to step-outline

By studying this week participants should have:

• an understanding of how to structure a screen narrative
• a knowledge of the structural frameworks as applied to short film narratives
• an understanding of how to use Active Questions to structure a screen narrative for audience engagement
• an overview of visual storytelling
• an understanding of image systems and visual metaphors
• an understanding of the function of a step-outline

Teaching week 4 - From step-outline to draft zero

By studying this week participants should have:

• a knowledge and understanding of the functions of dialogue in a screen narrative
• an understanding of the functions of subtext in a screen narrative
• an understanding of the do's and don'ts of writing dialogue
• an understanding of how a scene works
• an understanding of how to write an intriguing/engaging opening
• an understanding of how to utilise setting to enhance tension and atmosphere
• an understanding of the function of a draft zero short screenplay
• an opportunity to write and develop a draft zero short screenplay

Teaching week 5 - The rewriting process

By studying this week participants should have:

• an overview of the rewriting process
• an understanding of structured rewrites and their function
• an understanding of the function and process of giving and receiving feedback
• a knowledge and understanding of how to enhance mood/atmosphere through sound (effects)
• a knowledge and understanding of how to write effective transitions
• an understanding of how to stress test a screenplay
• an understanding of tone

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day (although some tutors may try to schedule times where participants can be online together for web seminars, which will be recorded so that those who are unable to be online at certain times are able to access material).

Virtual Learning Environment

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards etc).

Certificate of participation

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say

"Rick is a excellent tutor- his feed back on my ELLa story was most appreciated- I would take another class from him."

"In the beginning, my primary goal has been to enhance my writing skills and become a better storyteller. Along the way, I have delved into the fundamentals of screenwriting, gaining valuable insights into formatting techniques and the art of crafting a more immersive and well-rounded narrative."

Entry requirements

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language in order to get the maximum benefit from the course.

Fees

The course fee includes access to the course on our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a Certification of Participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.

VAT does not apply to course fees and there is no service charge (gratuities to domestic staff are left to your discretion).

Bursaries

The Cambridge University Press (CUP) Bursary Fund offers a bursary of 50% of the course fee to applicants who teach in a UK state school or state-funded further education institution, applying to study a day school, weekend course or online course.

Aims of the course

• To raise participant's financial awareness, confidence and skills.
• To enable participants to engage more successfully with finance specialists.
• To support students considering a career or secondment in finance.

Target audience

This course is for you if you answer 'yes' to any one of these questions:

• Would your personal finances benefit from more understanding and attention?
• Do you interact with finance specialists, but not always fully understand them?
• Are you considering a career or secondment in finance?

No prior knowledge is required or assumed.

This course is at an entry level compared with our intermediate course 'Understanding Finance in Organisations' , and our most advanced course 'Financial decision-making in practice'.

However, you are welcome to follow these courses in any order that suits your personal schedule. Many participants have followed two - or all three - of these courses in different orders.

Learning objectives

• Improve your personal financial situation by applying selected insights from the course.
• Enjoy greatly improved interactions with financial specialists.
• Determine whether a secondment or career in finance is appropriate for you.

Schedule (this course is completed entirely online)

Orientation Week: 20-26 May 2024

Teaching Weeks: 27 May-30 June 2024

Feedback Week: 1-7 July 2024

Teaching Week 1 - Why it pays to increase your financial wordpower

Purpose: To gain a sound appreciation of the importance of the specialist language of finance and the need to translate it into practical and jargon-free insights. Create a dynamic personal system to record, link, apply and expand this broadening and deepening understanding.

Learning objectives:

• To appreciate the fundamental importance of identifying and defining financial concepts.
• To recognise that many common words have specialised meanings in finance.
• To recognise that financial terms may mean different things in different contexts.
• To identify and explain relevant examples.
• To create an appropriate expandable personal register of the concepts your are learning, concise definitions, and notes of your significance for your own professional work or personal finance.

Teaching Week 2 - Capital and Capitalism

Purpose: To grasp the fundamental importance of capital as a factor of production, and the role and legitimate perspectives of the providers of capital in the economy and society. 

Learning objectives:

• To appreciate the meaning and importance of capital.
• To explain why capitalism considers that the providers of capital are entitled to benefits.
• To identify and explain relevant examples.
• To add these and related concepts to your personal register of financial concepts, including the significance for your own work or personal finances, or both.

Teaching Week 3 - Assets, liabilities, net worth and equity

Purpose: To develop a sound understanding of why all financial assets for one person are also financial liabilities for another, and connect this essential insight with the important financial concepts of net worth and equity. 

Learning objectives:

• To understand the meaning and importance of assets and liabilities.
• To appreciate that every financial asset is also a financial liability, and why this is so important.
• To identify the meaning and importance of net worth and equity, the relationship between each of them, and their relationship with assets and liabilities.
• To produce and explain relevant examples.
• To add these concepts to your personal register with the significance for your own work or personal finances, or both.
• To identify a maximum of three personal action points from their work on the course to date, and note them in your personal register, together with targeted completion dates.

Teaching Week 4 - Interest and financial returns

Purpose: To gain comfort and confidence about interest and rates of return, including simple calculations and qualitative appreciation of directions of influence in more complex situations.

Learning objectives:

• To appreciate the meaning and importance of interest, rates of interest, return and rates of return, including the relationship between these important concepts.
• To successfully undertake simple calculations of interest and return.
• To understand the significance of compound interest and return.
• To appreciate how rates of return can be calculated from forecast and historic cash flows and their timing.
• To add these and related concepts to your register of financial concepts, including your personal significance.

Teaching Week 5 - Risk and financial risk

Purpose: To introduce the fundamentally important concept of financial risk, connect it with general and personal insights from Weeks 1 to 4 of the course, and identify key personal action points.

Learning objectives:

• To understand the meaning and importance of risk and financial risk, and the relationship between them.
• To appreciate the relationship between risk and expected financial returns.
• To chose appropriately between simplified case study alternative investments.
• To understand the potential benefits of diversification, and also its limitations.
• To add these concepts to your register with their your personal significance.
• To identify a maximum of three additional personal action points from your work on the course to date, and noted them in your personal register, together with target completion dates and an accountability process.

Study commitment and Certificate

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

There will be an optional interactive one-hour webinar each week. All webinars will be recorded and shared on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day. 

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards, etc).

Certificate of Participation

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say

"The level of detail in both the content and discussion forums was outstanding. Prior to this course, there had been aspects within finance which I had struggled with (such as interest rates), but Doug explained it so thoroughly and in depth that now I feel confident in discussing and attempting them. The content, layout and progression of the course was also presented in an enjoyable format which created interest and allowed for deeper understanding."

"Thank you kindly Doug for being dedicated to ensure that the contents of this course are well understood by your students. I really appreciated all of the additional information you provided to further our knowledge and go in depth into certain topics. I learned much more than anticipated in this class."

"This has been my first virtual learning experience and has exceeded by far all my expectations."

"Thank you Doug for your excellent tutorship within this course. Your personalised learning experiences has made it an incredibly educative and enjoyable process. I have gained not only a better understanding of the basics of personal finance but also a higher level of confidence when it comes to approaching what were once daunting calculations now made simple. "

Entry requirements

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language in order to get the maximum benefit from the course.

Fees

The course fee includes access to the course on our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a Certification of Participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.

VAT does not apply to course fees and there is no service charge (gratuities to domestic staff are left to your discretion).

Bursaries

The Cambridge University Press (CUP) Bursary Fund offers a bursary of 50% of the course fee to applicants who teach in a UK state school or state-funded further education institution, applying to study a day school, weekend course or online course.

Aims of the course:

This course is for you if your answer to one of these questions is Yes:

• Do you interact with financial specialists at work, and want to communicate better with them?
• Are you self-employed, or considering self-employment?
• Are you considering a career or secondment in finance?

Target audience:

This course is for you if your answer to one of these questions is Yes.

1.    Do you interact with financial specialists at work, and want to communicate better with them?
2.    Are you self-employed, or considering self-employment?
3.    Are you considering a career or secondment in finance?

Target audience:

No prior knowledge or experience of finance is assumed or required.

This course is at an intermediate level between our introductory finance course 'Essential finance', and our most advanced course 'Financial decision-making in practice'. However, you are warmly welcome to follow these courses in any order that suits your personal schedule. Many participants have followed two - or all three - of these courses in different order.

Learning outcomes:

As a result of the course, within the constraints of the time available, students should be able to:

1. Enjoy collaborating with finance colleagues and specialist financial advisors
2. Appreciate and improve the financial dimensions of any self-employed work they do
3. Learn whether a secondment or career in finance likely to be enjoyable for them

Course content overview:

As a result of the course, participants should be able to understand and work with the financial aspirations and concerns of their employers, investors, customers and suppliers, including both internal and external financial considerations and trade-offs.

Topics will include:

• Financial reporting and accounts
• Financial planning and forecasting
• Making friends with spreadsheets
• Financial decision making
• Getting your proposals considered
• Next steps, including personal actions arising and accountability for doing them

Schedule:

Orientation Week: 8-14 April 2024

By studying this week the students should have:

•  Become familiar with navigating around the VLE and from VLE to links and back
• Tested their ability to access files and the web conferencing software and sorted out any problems with the help of the eLearning Helpdesk
•  Learnt how to look for, assess and reference internet resources
• Used forums to introduce themselves to other students
• Contributed to a discussion forum to introduce themselves to other students and discuss why they are interested in the course, what they hope to get out their studies, and also to respond to any News items sent out on behalf of tutor.

Teaching Weeks: 15 April-19 May 2024

Week 1 - Financial reporting and accounts

Participants will gain a sound appreciation of the meaning and practicalities of financial reporting and accounts, together with its key terminology and conventions. By studying this week the students should have:

• Understood the key conventions of the five primary financial statements in the financial reports of a large organisation, and the links between them.
• Appreciated and applied the important accounting concepts of recognition, disclosure, depreciation, and amortisation.
• Understood and worked with accruals, provisions, debtors, creditors, and other receivables and payables.
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Week 2 - Financial planning and forecasting

Participants will grasp the fundamental importance of financial planning and forecasting, via mini-case studies. By studying this week the students should have:

• Understood the key conventions of budgets, forecasts and variance analysis, including examples of favourable and adverse variances.
• Understood and applied the concepts of gross and net profit, EBITDA, direct and indirect costs, and contribution.
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Week 3 - Making friends with spreadsheets: This week we'll aim to improve the reliability and speed of your financial modelling work to support and deepen understanding of financial reporting, forecasting and decision making. By studying this week the students should have:

• Appreciated the enormous potential of Excel to increase the speed, reliability and presentation of financial analysis.
• Understood the fundamental importance of structuring Excel workbooks.
• Learned the most important of Excel’s native functionality.
• Understood the important differences between navigation, selection and editing.
• Used the keyboard when appropriate, in place of the mouse. 
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Week 4 -  Financial decision making

Participants will gain comfort and confidence with the practice and theory of financial decision making. By studying this week the students should have:

• Appreciated the meaning and importance of production and pricing decisions, and scarce resource analysis.
• Understood and applied payback and discounted cash flow analysis.
• Integrated this understanding with their work in Weeks 1, 2 and 3. 
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Week 5 -  Getting your proposals considered

This week we'll appreciate why and how financial decision makers require proposals to be presented for consideration, and will apply this understanding in a self-chosen case study. By studying this week the students should have:

• Understood the reasons why financial decision makers need particular information about operational proposals, presented in conventional ways.
• Connected this understanding with their learning from Weeks 1 to 4 of the course.
• Deepened and broadened their practical appreciation of these concepts, by applying them to a self-chosen case study. 
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Feedback Week: 20-26 May 2024

Purpose

• Assessment of student learning, including optional personal action plans and accountability process
• Assessment of student satisfaction 
• Encouragement of further study

Study commitment and Certificate:

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

There will be an optional interactive 1 hr webinar each week. All webinars will be recorded and shared on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and this course does not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day.

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards, etc).

Certificate of Participation

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say: 

"Doug is an excellent tutor and I would recommend him and the course to my colleagues and friends. He has time for everyone and gives so much of it, especially to those students who struggle. He also works well with introverts as he does with extroverts - a skill that many do not have."

"I particularly like the Treasurer's Wiki. I have found this resource most helpful and the section on Spreadsheets. I also enjoyed the webinars and the one on one support that Doug provided. He has a very calm and reassuring manner, and his knowledge of the financial world is astounding."

"More than my expectations! I am so astounded by the amount of resources that were provided, and extra/optional info and tasks were very helpful too. This course gave me so much more than money's worth!"

Entry requirements

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language in order to get the maximum benefit from the course.

Fees

The course fee includes access to the course on our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a Certification of Participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.

VAT does not apply to course fees and there is no service charge (gratuities to domestic staff are left to your discretion).

Bursaries

The Cambridge University Press (CUP) Bursary Fund offers a bursary of 50% of the course fee to applicants who teach in a UK state school or state-funded further education institution, applying to study a day school, weekend course or online course.

Aims of the course

• To improve relatively experienced participants' financial confidence and skills.
• To enable participants to work successfully with finance specialists on significant projects.
• To support participants considering a career or secondment in finance.

Target audience

This course is for you if your answer to one or more of these questions is Yes:

• Do you want to collaborate successfully with financial specialists on a significant project?
• Would you benefit from improving your understanding of small business finances?
• Are you considering a career or secondment in finance?

No prior knowledge or experience of finance is assumed or required.

This course is at a relatively advanced level compared with our introductory course 'Essential finance', and our intermediate level course 'Understanding finance in organisations'. However, you are warmly welcome to follow these courses in any order that suits your personal schedule. Many participants have followed two - or all three -  of these courses in different orders.

Learning outcomes

The course will offer participants the opportunity to:

• Enjoy collaborating with finance colleagues and specialist finance advisors.
• Appreciate and improve the financial dimensions of any self-employed work they do.
• Learn whether a secondment or career in finance is likely to be enjoyable for them.
• Get more of their proposals approved by financial specialist decision-makers.

Schedule (this course is completed entirely online)

Orientation Week: 19-25 February 2024

Teaching Weeks: 26 February-31 March 2024

Feedback Week: 1-7 April 2024

Teaching Week 1 - Markets and our place in them

Purpose: To gain a sound appreciation of markets, how the capital liabilities of organisations are assets in financial markets, and why communication with markets is so important. 

Learning objectives:

• To understand the interaction of perceptions or organisational risk with the market mechanism.
• To appreciate how organisations' capital instruments are originated, and transacted in the market.
• To understand the fundamental importance of appropriate communication with the market.
• To attempt related self-assessment learning activities on the VLE.
• Contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Teaching Week 2 - Shareholder value and other stakeholders

Purpose: To grasp the fundamentally important concept of shareholder value, and its relationship with the interests of other stakeholders in organisations. 

Learning objectives:

• To understand the key concept of shareholder value, its measurement and management.
• To appreciate the perspectives of other stakeholders in organisations.
• To understand how organisations and authorities seek to reconcile the interests of different stakeholder groups.
• To attempt the related self-assessment learning activities on the VLE.
• To contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Teaching Week 3 - Making better friends with spreadsheets

Purpose: To further improve the reliability and speed of your spreadsheet work to support and deepen your understanding of shareholder value, risk management and the presentation of proposals.

Learning objectives:

• To apply some of the enormous potential of spreadsheets to increase the speed, reliability and presentation of financial work.
• To increase the use of spreadsheets native functionality.
• To apply data table and chart analysis.
• To increase use of the keyboard when appropriate, in place of the mouse or trackpad.
• To attempt the related self-assessment learning activities on the VLE.
• To contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Teaching Week 4 - Risk management

Purpose: To gain comfort and confidence with risk identification, risk management and risk reporting. 

Learning objectives:

• To appreciate the meaning and importance of risk identification, risk management and risk reporting.
• To work with selected measures of risk.
• To apply your understanding to a mini case study.
• To integrate this understanding with your work in the first three weeks of the course.
• To contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Teaching Week 5 - Getting your proposals accepted

Purpose: To appreciate how to optimise the analysis and presentation of your proposals to maximise the prospects for acceptance. To apply this understanding in a self-chosen case study.

Learning objectives:

• To deepen your appreciation of the reasons why financial decision makers need detailed information about operational proposals, presented in conventional ways.
• To connect your understanding with your learning from weeks 1 to 5 of the course.
• To apply your deeper and broader appreciation of these concepts to a self-chosen case study.
• To contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Study commitment and Certificate

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

There will be an optional interactive 1 hr webinar each week. All webinars will be recorded and shared on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, and week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and this course does not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of day.

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards, etc).

Certificate of Participation

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say

"The courses have been structured in a way to support learners coming from very different backgrounds. The weekly topics were comprehensive, the language very clear and understandable. The forum chats and the weekly webinar gave me the chance to easily interact with the other participants, share opinions, ask questions, and gave me the feeling to be part of a class, which I greatly appreciate. Special credit goes to the tutor, Doug Williamson, whose enthusiasm has created a very positive and questioning atmosphere. He answered all our questions, provided multiple additional resources to allow us to go more in depth into some of the topics, and made the learning experience very enjoyable."

"I found Doug very approachable and friendly to work with. He is always in a positive mood with a good sense of humour. Whenever I had questions or wanted to discuss anything with him he would always get back to me in very quick time with great resources to share which I greatly appreciated."

"The course was well structured with technical concepts translated into simple language and easy format. There is a section focusing on using excel sheets for financial modelling, basics that could help anyone with their personal or organisational finance. I found the inclusion of the personal project - developing a financial model cum value proposition for any business idea of our choice - very useful, nicely collating all the information in the earlier sections."

Entry requirements

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language in order to get the maximum benefit from the course.

Fees

The course fee includes access to the course on our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a Certification of Participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.

VAT does not apply to course fees and there is no service charge (gratuities to domestic staff are left to your discretion).

Bursaries

The Cambridge University Press (CUP) Bursary Fund offers a bursary of 50% of the course fee to applicants who teach in a UK state school or state-funded further education institution, applying to study a day school, weekend course or online course.

Aims of the course

• To raise participant's financial awareness, confidence and skills.
• To enable participants to engage more successfully with finance specialists.
• To support students considering a career or secondment in finance.

Target audience

This course is for you if you answer 'yes' to any one of these questions:

• Would your personal finances benefit from more understanding and attention?
• Do you interact with finance specialists, but not always fully understand them?
• Are you considering a career or secondment in finance?

No prior knowledge is required or assumed.

This course is at an entry level compared with our intermediate course 'Understanding Finance in Organisations' , and our most advanced course 'Financial decision-making in practice'.

However, you are welcome to follow these courses in any order that suits your personal schedule. Many participants have followed two - or all three - of these courses in different orders.

Learning objectives

• Improve your personal financial situation by applying selected insights from the course.
• Enjoy greatly improved interactions with financial specialists.
• Determine whether a secondment or career in finance is appropriate for you.

Schedule (this course is completed entirely online)

Orientation Week: 8-14 January 2024

Teaching Weeks: 15 January-18 February 2024

Feedback Week: 19-25 February 2024

Teaching Week 1 - Why it pays to increase your financial wordpower

Purpose: To gain a sound appreciation of the importance of the specialist language of finance and the need to translate it into practical and jargon-free insights. Create a dynamic personal system to record, link, apply and expand this broadening and deepening understanding.

Learning objectives:

• To appreciate the fundamental importance of identifying and defining financial concepts.
• To recognise that many common words have specialised meanings in finance.
• To recognise that financial terms may mean different things in different contexts.
• To identify and explain relevant examples.
• To create an appropriate expandable personal register of the concepts your are learning, concise definitions, and notes of your significance for your own professional work or personal finance.

Teaching Week 2 - Capital and Capitalism

Purpose: To grasp the fundamental importance of capital as a factor of production, and the role and legitimate perspectives of the providers of capital in the economy and society. 

Learning objectives:

• To appreciate the meaning and importance of capital.
• To explain why capitalism considers that the providers of capital are entitled to benefits.
• To identify and explain relevant examples.
• To add these and related concepts to your personal register of financial concepts, including the significance for your own work or personal finances, or both.

Teaching Week 3 - Assets, liabilities, net worth and equity

Purpose: To develop a sound understanding of why all financial assets for one person are also financial liabilities for another, and connect this essential insight with the important financial concepts of net worth and equity. 

Learning objectives:

• To understand the meaning and importance of assets and liabilities.
• To appreciate that every financial asset is also a financial liability, and why this is so important.
• To identify the meaning and importance of net worth and equity, the relationship between each of them, and their relationship with assets and liabilities.
• To produce and explain relevant examples.
• To add these concepts to your personal register with the significance for your own work or personal finances, or both.
• To identify a maximum of three personal action points from their work on the course to date, and note them in your personal register, together with targeted completion dates.

Teaching Week 4 - Interest and financial returns

Purpose: To gain comfort and confidence about interest and rates of return, including simple calculations and qualitative appreciation of directions of influence in more complex situations.

Learning objectives:

• To appreciate the meaning and importance of interest, rates of interest, return and rates of return, including the relationship between these important concepts.
• To successfully undertake simple calculations of interest and return.
• To understand the significance of compound interest and return.
• To appreciate how rates of return can be calculated from forecast and historic cash flows and their timing.
• To add these and related concepts to your register of financial concepts, including your personal significance.

Teaching Week 5 - Risk and financial risk

Purpose: To introduce the fundamentally important concept of financial risk, connect it with general and personal insights from Weeks 1 to 4 of the course, and identify key personal action points.

Learning objectives:

• To understand the meaning and importance of risk and financial risk, and the relationship between them.
• To appreciate the relationship between risk and expected financial returns.
• To chose appropriately between simplified case study alternative investments.
• To understand the potential benefits of diversification, and also its limitations.
• To add these concepts to your register with their your personal significance.
• To identify a maximum of three additional personal action points from your work on the course to date, and noted them in your personal register, together with target completion dates and an accountability process.

Study commitment and Certificate

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

There will be an optional interactive one-hour webinar each week. All webinars will be recorded and shared on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day. 

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards, etc).

Certificate of Participation

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say

"The level of detail in both the content and discussion forums was outstanding. Prior to this course, there had been aspects within finance which I had struggled with (such as interest rates), but Doug explained it so thoroughly and in depth that now I feel confident in discussing and attempting them. The content, layout and progression of the course was also presented in an enjoyable format which created interest and allowed for deeper understanding."

"Thank you kindly Doug for being dedicated to ensure that the contents of this course are well understood by your students. I really appreciated all of the additional information you provided to further our knowledge and go in depth into certain topics. I learned much more than anticipated in this class."

"This has been my first virtual learning experience and has exceeded by far all my expectations."

"Thank you Doug for your excellent tutorship within this course. Your personalised learning experiences has made it an incredibly educative and enjoyable process. I have gained not only a better understanding of the basics of personal finance but also a higher level of confidence when it comes to approaching what were once daunting calculations now made simple. "

Entry requirements

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language in order to get the maximum benefit from the course.

Fees

The course fee includes access to the course on our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a Certification of Participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.

VAT does not apply to course fees and there is no service charge (gratuities to domestic staff are left to your discretion).

Bursaries

The Cambridge University Press (CUP) Bursary Fund offers a bursary of 50% of the course fee to applicants who teach in a UK state school or state-funded further education institution, applying to study a day school, weekend course or online course.

This course has been endorsed by the Board of Executive and Professional Education, University of Cambridge.

Aims of the course:

Students will benefit from:

1. Knowledge and understanding of life coaching
2. Awareness and role of a life coach
3. Developing practical ability in the skills of life coaching
4. Designing and managing a structured life coaching programme
5. Demonstrating critical awareness of the legal and ethical considerations of life coaching
6. The richness gained from working with a group of like-minded colleagues from different locations around the world

Target audience:

• Those considering becoming life coaches
• Those interested in learning more about life coaching
• Coaches in training
• Working coaches

Learning outcomes:

As a result of the course, within the constraints of the time available, students should be able to:

1. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of life coaching 
2. Understand the role of a life coach
3. Conduct a simple life coaching session 
4. Know how to design and manage a structured life coaching programme
5. Understand the legal and ethical considerations of life coaching
6. Appreciate the importance of ongoing development and supervision 
7. Be aware of and manage boundaries safely

Course content overview:

1. The core skills of coaching 
2. Subjects brought to life coaching
3. The role of the life coach
4. Personal development and readiness for life coaching 
5. Running a life coaching practice 

No prior coaching experience is necessary, although students would normally be working within organisations or working professionally with organisations.

Schedule (this course is completed entirely online):

Orientation Week: 4-10 September 2023

Week 0 Preparing to study this course 

Purpose: This week introduces students to the VLE and studying online. It will emphasise the central role of discussion in doing philosophy, and the importance of the forums to the course, and establish a good atmosphere for discussion amongst the group

Learning outcomes: By studying this week the students should have:

• Become familiar with navigating around the VLE and from VLE to links and back
• Tested their ability to access files and the web conferencing software and sorted out any problems with the help of the eLearning team
• Investigated the ICE Online Resources repository
• Learnt how to look for, assess and reference internet resources
• Used Qmail to introduce themselves to other students and discuss why they are interested in the course and what they hope to get out their studies.
• Contributed to a discussion forum in response to News item sent out on behalf of the tutor.
• Completed some background reading suggested by the tutor

Teaching Weeks: 11 September-15 October 2023

Week 1 The core skills of coaching

Purpose: The focus of Week 1 is to explore the core skills of coaching. 

Learning outcomes: By studying this week the students should have:

• Knowledge and understanding of core coaching qualities and skills 
• Understanding of a coaching model 

Week 2 Subjects brought to life coaching

Purpose: The focus in Week 2 is on typical subjects brought to life coaching and how to work with these. It will also explore the twin concepts of awareness and responsibility

Learning outcomes: By studying this week the students should have:

• Knowledge and understanding of common topics brought to coaching sessions
• Knowledge and understanding of the concepts of awareness and responsibility 
• Taken part in a coach practice session with a fellow student 

Week 3 The role of life coaching

Purpose: Week 3 focuses on the role of the life coach. It will explore the legal and ethical responsibilities within coaching and also how the coach can create a safe environment. 

Learning outcomes: By studying this week the students should have:

• Knowledge and understanding of the legal and ethical responsibilities within coaching 
• An understanding of the importance of boundaries
• Knowledge and understanding of the importance of creating a safe environment – both for the client and the coach 

Week 4 Personal development and readiness for life coaching

Purpose: The focus in Week 4 is on personal development and readiness for life coaching:

• Life coaching competencies, which will build upon general coaching competencies 
• Exploring the relationship between the coach, client and co-created reality
• Practice coaching session

Learning outcomes: By studying this week the students should have:

• Greater awareness of life coaching competencies and their current ‘level’
• Deeper understanding of the coach / client relationship and the co-created reality
• Taken part in a coach practice session with a fellow student 

Week 5 Running a life coaching practice

Purpose: Week 5 focuses on more of the practical aspects of running a life coaching practice. It also stresses the importance of supervision for the coach and supervision / ongoing development. 

Learning outcomes: By studying this week the students should have:

• Knowledge and understanding of the practical aspects of running a life coaching practice. 
• Understanding of the concept of supervision and its relevance for coaching. 
• Appreciation of the ongoing need for continuous personal and professional development. 
• Reflections from the second coach practice session 

Feedback Week: 16-22 October 2023

Week 6 What next?

Purpose:
•    Assessment of student learning
•    Assessment of student satisfaction 
•    Encouragement of further study

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day (although some tutors may try to schedule times where participants can be online together for web seminars, which will be recorded so that those who are unable to be online at certain times are able to access material).

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards,etc).

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say:

"Keith was a great tutor and an excellent coach. He was very professional, caring, supportive, and most importantly, very patient. He listened with full attention, fully engaged with students and helped them to develop and explore the issues and options available to solve the issues. I really enjoyed working with Keith over the period of this course."

"This course exceeded my expectations. I am very impressed with both the instructor, Keith, and the content. It was an incredible platform to start my coaching career. I would highly recommend this course to anyone who is interested in coaching or even personal development."

"Just impressed even from the begining about Keith' s skills and knowledges.....we all came as individuals at the course, than in a few days only, he managed to build a team out of us. He run the course in a very professional way, smooth and relaxed..... I feel happy and lucky being part of Keith's life coaching course , and having him as tutor, too."

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our online courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

For information on bursaries for this course, please see http://www.ice.cam.ac.uk/info/bursaries

This course has been endorsed by the Board of Executive and Professional Education, University of Cambridge.

Aims of the course:

The Executive Coaching online course has been designed to increase your knowledge of executive coaching and its role in organisational development. Develop your understanding of how and when to use executive coaching appropriately and your skills in designing, planning and carrying out a structured executive coaching programme. This course also offers a fantastic opportunity to work with a group of like-minded colleagues from different locations around the world and build your professional networks within the field.

Who can apply?

There are no entry requirements for this course and no prior coaching experience is necessary. We welcome applications from anyone with an interest in executive coaching. The course is designed to be open access for an international audience and to be studied anytime, anywhere; there are no required specific lecture or seminar times pre-scheduled making study time at your leisure.

Learning outcomes:

The learning outcomes for this course are based upon development of:

• knowledge and understanding of executive coaching, its role in organisational development and when and how to use it appropriately
• awareness of the role of an executive coach
• practical ability in the skills of executive coaching
• understanding of the legal and ethical considerations of executive coaching
• design, plan and carry out a structured executive coaching programme
   

Course content overview:

Content for the Executive Coaching online course is expected to include the following:

• The four elements of executive coaching
• Executive coaching and leadership development
• The role of the executive coach
• Legal and ethical responsibilities
• Developing awareness and responsibility
• Coaching and consulting
• Peer coaching online
• Executive coaching competencies
• Discussion forums

Schedule (this course is completed entirely online):

Orientation Week: 4-10 September 2023

Week 0 

• personal introductions
• useful reading
• introducing the four considerations of executive coaching
• personal objectives
• personal executive coaching skills audit

Teaching Weeks: 11 September-15 October 2023

Week 1 The role of coaching

• the organisational context for executive coaching - understanding the organisation
• what is executive coaching? Its purpose and role
• When and how might executive coaching be used?
• coaching and other interventions, such as mentoring, training and leadership development programmes

Week 2 Personal readiness: the role and responsibilities of the coach

• the skills and behaviours required for effective executive coaching
• individual roles and responsibilities
• coaching session (1)

Week 3 Working with the individual executive

• working with difference
• contracting and relationship management
• working with stuckness
• feedback from coaching session (1)

Week 4 Ethics, codes of conduct and supervision

• ethical responsibilities
• codes of conduct
• supervision
• coaching session (2)

Week 5 Working with stakeholders

• feedback from coaching session (2)
• working with multiple stakeholders
• maintaining distance, being involved
• supporting and restraining forces
• leadership within the organisation

Feedback Week: 16-22 October 2023

Week 6 Feedback week

• your questions
• next steps
• action planning
   

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day (although some tutors may try to schedule times where participants can be online together for web seminars, which will be recorded so that those who are unable to be online at certain times are able to access material).

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards,etc).

Certificate of Participation

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say:

"Keith's knowledge and experience in the field is apparent. He encouraged discussions both online and during the webinars, keeping us connected virtually."

"I really enjoyed the content of this course: the diverse reading material, the live seminars, the coaching practices with colleagues and the discussions that brought a great diversity, new experiences, open-minded approach!  All that gave me a great basis & direction to my initiation on the Executive Coaching journey."

"The online seminars were conducted in a very helpful manner and a professional standard. The recordings were available to catch up on missed sessions."

"This course has by far exceeded my expectations. The wealth of information, the thorough discussions, the seminars and readings have been invaluable resources. I am looking forward to putting all your teachings to good use but I am saddened that this class is already almost over. What an adventure! "

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our online courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

For information on bursaries for this course, please see http://www.ice.cam.ac.uk/info/bursaries

Aims of the course:

This course is for you if your answer to one of these questions is Yes:

• Do you interact with financial specialists at work, and want to communicate better with them?
• Are you self-employed, or considering self-employment?
• Are you considering a career or secondment in finance?

Target audience:

This course is for you if your answer to one of these questions is Yes.

1.    Do you interact with financial specialists at work, and want to communicate better with them?
2.    Are you self-employed, or considering self-employment?
3.    Are you considering a career or secondment in finance?

Target audience:

No prior knowledge or experience of finance is assumed or required.

This course is at an intermediate level between our introductory finance course 'Essential finance', and our most advanced course 'Financial decision-making in practice'. However, you are warmly welcome to follow these courses in any order that suits your personal schedule. Many participants have followed two - or all three - of these courses in different order.

Learning outcomes:

As a result of the course, within the constraints of the time available, students should be able to:

1. Enjoy collaborating with finance colleagues and specialist financial advisors
2. Appreciate and improve the financial dimensions of any self-employed work they do
3. Learn whether a secondment or career in finance likely to be enjoyable for them

Course content overview:

As a result of the course, participants should be able to understand and work with the financial aspirations and concerns of their employers, investors, customers and suppliers, including both internal and external financial considerations and trade-offs.

Topics will include:

• Financial reporting and accounts
• Financial planning and forecasting
• Making friends with spreadsheets
• Financial decision making
• Getting your proposals considered
• Next steps, including personal actions arising and accountability for doing them

Schedule:

Orientation Week: 23-29 October 2023 

By studying this week the students should have:

•  Become familiar with navigating around the VLE and from VLE to links and back
• Tested their ability to access files and the web conferencing software and sorted out any problems with the help of the eLearning Helpdesk
•  Learnt how to look for, assess and reference internet resources
• Used forums to introduce themselves to other students
• Contributed to a discussion forum to introduce themselves to other students and discuss why they are interested in the course, what they hope to get out their studies, and also to respond to any News items sent out on behalf of tutor.

Teaching Weeks: 30 October-3 December 2023

Week 1 - Financial reporting and accounts

Participants will gain a sound appreciation of the meaning and practicalities of financial reporting and accounts, together with its key terminology and conventions. By studying this week the students should have:

• Understood the key conventions of the five primary financial statements in the financial reports of a large organisation, and the links between them.
• Appreciated and applied the important accounting concepts of recognition, disclosure, depreciation, and amortisation.
• Understood and worked with accruals, provisions, debtors, creditors, and other receivables and payables.
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Week 2 - Financial planning and forecasting

Participants will grasp the fundamental importance of financial planning and forecasting, via mini-case studies. By studying this week the students should have:

• Understood the key conventions of budgets, forecasts and variance analysis, including examples of favourable and adverse variances.
• Understood and applied the concepts of gross and net profit, EBITDA, direct and indirect costs, and contribution.
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Week 3 - Making friends with spreadsheets: This week we'll aim to improve the reliability and speed of your financial modelling work to support and deepen understanding of financial reporting, forecasting and decision making. By studying this week the students should have:

• Appreciated the enormous potential of Excel to increase the speed, reliability and presentation of financial analysis.
• Understood the fundamental importance of structuring Excel workbooks.
• Learned the most important of Excel’s native functionality.
• Understood the important differences between navigation, selection and editing.
• Used the keyboard when appropriate, in place of the mouse. 
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Week 4 -  Financial decision making

Participants will gain comfort and confidence with the practice and theory of financial decision making. By studying this week the students should have:

• Appreciated the meaning and importance of production and pricing decisions, and scarce resource analysis.
• Understood and applied payback and discounted cash flow analysis.
• Integrated this understanding with their work in Weeks 1, 2 and 3. 
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Week 5 -  Getting your proposals considered

This week we'll appreciate why and how financial decision makers require proposals to be presented for consideration, and will apply this understanding in a self-chosen case study. By studying this week the students should have:

• Understood the reasons why financial decision makers need particular information about operational proposals, presented in conventional ways.
• Connected this understanding with their learning from Weeks 1 to 4 of the course.
• Deepened and broadened their practical appreciation of these concepts, by applying them to a self-chosen case study. 
• Attempted the related self assessment quiz questions on the VLE.
• Contributed constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Feedback Week: 4-10 December 2023

Purpose

• Assessment of student learning, including optional personal action plans and accountability process
• Assessment of student satisfaction 
• Encouragement of further study

Study commitment and Certificate:

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

There will be an optional interactive 1 hr webinar each week. All webinars will be recorded and shared on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and this course does not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day.

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards, etc).

Certificate of Participation

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say: 

"Doug is an excellent tutor and I would recommend him and the course to my colleagues and friends. He has time for everyone and gives so much of it, especially to those students who struggle. He also works well with introverts as he does with extroverts - a skill that many do not have."

"I particularly like the Treasurer's Wiki. I have found this resource most helpful and the section on Spreadsheets. I also enjoyed the webinars and the one on one support that Doug provided. He has a very calm and reassuring manner, and his knowledge of the financial world is astounding."

"More than my expectations! I am so astounded by the amount of resources that were provided, and extra/optional info and tasks were very helpful too. This course gave me so much more than money's worth!"

Entry requirements

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language in order to get the maximum benefit from the course.

Fees

The course fee includes access to the course on our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a Certification of Participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.

VAT does not apply to course fees and there is no service charge (gratuities to domestic staff are left to your discretion).

Bursaries

The Cambridge University Press (CUP) Bursary Fund offers a bursary of 50% of the course fee to applicants who teach in a UK state school or state-funded further education institution, applying to study a day school, weekend course or online course.

Aims of the course

• to give participants an introduction to, and overview of the screenwriting process
• to equip participants with the knowledge and tools to develop and write a short screenplay following a step-by-step approach
• to encourage and enable participants to develop their writing skills (in order to write a short screenplay)

Target audience

• participants new to writing for the screen
• creative writers from other disciplines looking to learn about screenwriting
• screenwriters looking to improve their knowledge/understanding of the nuts and bolts of screenwriting

Schedule (this course is completed entirely online)

Orientation Week: 4-10 September 2023

Teaching Weeks: 11 September-15 October 2023

Feedback Week: 16-22 October 2023

Teaching Week 1 - Ideation

By studying this week participants should have:

• a solid overview of the screenwriting process
• a knowledge and understanding of how to generate a screen narrative idea
• an understanding of the function of a premise
• a knowledge and understanding of how to write a premise
• an opportunity to write a premise
• an opportunity to pitch a premise
• an understanding of how screen narratives differ from other forms of (creative) writing

Teaching week 2 - From premise to outline

By studying this week participants should have:

• an overview of the meta-elements of a screen narrative: character, theme, and story
• a knowledge and understanding of how to develop a character by identifying a 'want', 'flaw', and 'need'
• an understanding of how to write an effective character profile
• a knowledge and understanding of how to identify and develop a unifying and universal theme within their writing
• a knowledge and understanding of the ten story types and how to apply them 
• an understanding of the function of the one-page outline
• an opportunity to apply the above to the writing of a one-page outline

Teaching week 3 - From outline to step-outline

By studying this week participants should have:

• an understanding of how to structure a screen narrative
• a knowledge of the structural frameworks as applied to short film narratives
• an understanding of how to use Active Questions to structure a screen narrative for audience engagement
• an overview of visual storytelling
• an understanding of image systems and visual metaphors
• an understanding of the function of a step-outline

Teaching week 4 - From step-outline to draft zero

By studying this week participants should have:

• a knowledge and understanding of the functions of dialogue in a screen narrative
• an understanding of the functions of subtext in a screen narrative
• an understanding of the do's and don'ts of writing dialogue
• an understanding of how a scene works
• an understanding of how to write an intriguing/engaging opening
• an understanding of how to utilise setting to enhance tension and atmosphere
• an understanding of the function of a draft zero short screenplay
• an opportunity to write and develop a draft zero short screenplay

Teaching week 5 - The rewriting process

By studying this week participants should have:

• an overview of the rewriting process
• an understanding of structured rewrites and their function
• an understanding of the function and process of giving and receiving feedback
• a knowledge and understanding of how to enhance mood/atmosphere through sound (effects)
• a knowledge and understanding of how to write effective transitions
• an understanding of how to stress test a screenplay
• an understanding of tone

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day (although some tutors may try to schedule times where participants can be online together for web seminars, which will be recorded so that those who are unable to be online at certain times are able to access material).

Virtual Learning Environment

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards etc).

Certificate of participation

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say

"Rick was fantastic. He makes complicated processes simple and divides big projects into achievable steps. He also went above and beyond what the course required in terms of reviewing assignments. I feel very lucky to have had so much professional advice on my work."

"In the beginning, my primary goal has been to enhance my writing skills and become a better storyteller. Along the way I have delved into the fundamentals of screenwriting, gaining valuable insights into formatting techniques, and the art of crafting a more immersive and well-rounded narrative."

Entry requirements

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language in order to get the maximum benefit from the course.

Fees

The course fee includes access to the course on our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a Certification of Participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.

VAT does not apply to course fees and there is no service charge (gratuities to domestic staff are left to your discretion).

Bursaries

The Cambridge University Press (CUP) Bursary Fund offers a bursary of 50% of the course fee to applicants who teach in a UK state school or state-funded further education institution, applying to study a day school, weekend course or online course.

Aims of the course

• To improve relatively experienced participants' financial confidence and skills.
• To enable participants to work successfully with finance specialists on significant projects.
• To support participants considering a career or secondment in finance.

Target audience

This course is for you if your answer to one or more of these questions is Yes:

• Do you want to collaborate successfully with financial specialists on a significant project?
• Would you benefit from improving your understanding of small business finances?
• Are you considering a career or secondment in finance?

No prior knowledge or experience of finance is assumed or required.

This course is at a relatively advanced level compared with our introductory course 'Essential finance', and our intermediate level course 'Understanding finance in organisations'. However, you are warmly welcome to follow these courses in any order that suits your personal schedule. Many participants have followed two - or all three -  of these courses in different orders.

Learning outcomes

The course will offer participants the opportunity to:

• Enjoy collaborating with finance colleagues and specialist finance advisors.
• Appreciate and improve the financial dimensions of any self-employed work they do.
• Learn whether a secondment or career in finance is likely to be enjoyable for them.
• Get more of their proposals approved by financial specialist decision-makers.

Schedule (this course is completed entirely online)

Orientation Week: 4-10 September 2023

Teaching Weeks: 11 September-15 October 2023

Feedback Week: 16-22 October 2023

Teaching Week 1 - Markets and our place in them

Purpose: To gain a sound appreciation of markets, how the capital liabilities of organisations are assets in financial markets, and why communication with markets is so important. 

Learning objectives:

• To understand the interaction of perceptions or organisational risk with the market mechanism.
• To appreciate how organisations' capital instruments are originated, and transacted in the market.
• To understand the fundamental importance of appropriate communication with the market.
• To attempt related self-assessment learning activities on the VLE.
• Contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Teaching Week 2 - Shareholder value and other stakeholders

Purpose: To grasp the fundamentally important concept of shareholder value, and its relationship with the interests of other stakeholders in organisations. 

Learning objectives:

• To understand the key concept of shareholder value, its measurement and management.
• To appreciate the perspectives of other stakeholders in organisations.
• To understand how organisations and authorities seek to reconcile the interests of different stakeholder groups.
• To attempt the related self-assessment learning activities on the VLE.
• To contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Teaching Week 3 - Making better friends with spreadsheets

Purpose: To further improve the reliability and speed of your spreadsheet work to support and deepen your understanding of shareholder value, risk management and the presentation of proposals.

Learning objectives:

• To apply some of the enormous potential of spreadsheets to increase the speed, reliability and presentation of financial work.
• To increase the use of spreadsheets native functionality.
• To apply data table and chart analysis.
• To increase use of the keyboard when appropriate, in place of the mouse or trackpad.
• To attempt the related self-assessment learning activities on the VLE.
• To contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Teaching Week 4 - Risk management

Purpose: To gain comfort and confidence with risk identification, risk management and risk reporting. 

Learning objectives:

• To appreciate the meaning and importance of risk identification, risk management and risk reporting.
• To work with selected measures of risk.
• To apply your understanding to a mini case study.
• To integrate this understanding with your work in the first three weeks of the course.
• To contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Teaching Week 5 - Getting your proposals accepted

Purpose: To appreciate how to optimise the analysis and presentation of your proposals to maximise the prospects for acceptance. To apply this understanding in a self-chosen case study.

Learning objectives:

• To deepen your appreciation of the reasons why financial decision makers need detailed information about operational proposals, presented in conventional ways.
• To connect your understanding with your learning from weeks 1 to 5 of the course.
• To apply your deeper and broader appreciation of these concepts to a self-chosen case study.
• To contribute constructively to the related discussions on the VLE.

Study commitment and Certificate

Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.

There will be an optional interactive 1 hr webinar each week. All webinars will be recorded and shared on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).

While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, and week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and this course does not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of day.

Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards, etc).

A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.

What our students say

"The courses have been structured in a way to support learners coming from very different backgrounds. The weekly topics were comprehensive, the language very clear and understandable. The forum chats and the weekly webinar gave me the chance to easily interact with the other participants, share opinions, ask questions, and gave me the feeling to be part of a class, which I greatly appreciate. Special credit goes to the tutor, Doug Williamson, whose enthusiasm has created a very positive and questioning atmosphere. He answered all our questions, provided multiple additional resources to allow us to go more in depth into some of the topics, and made the learning experience very enjoyable."

"I found Doug very approachable and friendly to work with. He is always in a positive mood with a good sense of humour. Whenever I had questions or wanted to discuss anything with him he would always get back to me in very quick time with great resources to share which I greatly appreciated."

"The course was well structured with technical concepts translated into simple language and easy format. There is a section focusing on using excel sheets for financial modelling, basics that could help anyone with their personal or organisational finance. I found the inclusion of the personal project - developing a financial model cum value proposition for any business idea of our choice - very useful, nicely collating all the information in the earlier sections."

Entry requirements

This course is open to everyone, and you don’t need any previous knowledge or experience of the subject to attend.

Our short courses are designed especially for adult learners who want to advance their personal or professional development. They are taught by tutors who are expert in both their subjects and in teaching students of all ages and experiences.

Please note that all teaching is in English. You should have near-native command of the English language in order to get the maximum benefit from the course.

Fees

The course fee includes access to the course on our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), personal feedback on your work from an expert tutor, a Certification of Participation (if you complete work and take part in discussions), and access to the class resources for two years after your course finishes.

VAT does not apply to course fees and there is no service charge (gratuities to domestic staff are left to your discretion).

Bursaries

The Cambridge University Press (CUP) Bursary Fund offers a bursary of 50% of the course fee to applicants who teach in a UK state school or state-funded further education institution, applying to study a day school, weekend course or online course.