After working for her security company for ten years, Sian Doherty was recently promoted to full time Operations Director this summer, and with that promotion came a drive to expand her knowledge base outside of her remit.
Enter: The Security Institute BTEC Level 5 Diploma in Security Management, delivered by PerpetuityARC Training. It had the key elements Sian was looking for: a recognisable qualification, flexibility, career progression opportunities, plus the all-important knowledge expansion.
She says: ‘I looked into various training options as I wanted something that would open doors for career progression whilst broadening my knowledge. I had previously done a year of CPD training with The Security Institute then saw the courses they were running on the website with PerpetuityARC Training.’ Opting for the BTEC Level 5 Diploma, she soon started her learning journey.
Initially, Sian found the course challenging having not written an academic essay for a number of years. But within the very first module, she found herself taking a real-life scenario from her job role and applying it to her learning assignment: ‘I was able to apply my working knowledge to my studies almost immediately, and then consistently throughout, which really assisted with my understanding of the topic.’ With many students concerned about knowledge application on a training course, the modernism and flexibility of the Diploma means this isn’t a problem for its learners.
As any student will tell you, all academic courses come with wider academic reading and research, but for Sian this was not a problem: ‘It was nice to read journals and academic literature, even trade magazines. It exposed me to different knowledge pools and areas of literature I might not otherwise have engaged with. So the course was doing exactly what I wanted it to do: broadening my knowledge base.’
Whilst the Diploma brought about its personal challenges, learning such an in-depth topic during a pandemic brought professional ones too, but Sian wasn’t deterred: ‘I competed this Diploma in the pandemic. Our company couldn’t stop working, if anything, our workload increased. So the flexibility this course offered was vital. When I needed an extension on my assignments for example, it was possible, and it really helped me to manage my different workloads.’
She also highlights the level of support received, especially for those who are concerned about academic writing: ‘There are guides as part of the course and the feedback from the first assignments will help how you shape the others.’ She adds: ‘No-one has academic experience until they give it a go. There are different means of support you can turn to if you need it.’
Despite these challenges and the added responsibility that a more senior role brings, Sian was still able to complete the entire course within a year, working steadily towards the prescribed deadlines. ‘Time management is really key’, she says, ‘be flexible in your working – do a bit every week – or dedicate time for each module around your work commitments. Find whatever works for you.’
Overall it’s been a positive learning experience for her and the value of having a formal accreditation is already shaping her role: ‘It’s definitely helped short term in my current role. In the long term I can see myself doing more qualifications. The Security Institute is highly respected. Having this qualification under my belt puts me in good stead in the industry.’
Her final words of advice? ‘Enjoy the course’, she says, ‘studying can sometimes be tough but actually it’s enjoyable, especially if you can relate it to your role or career development.
Find out more information on PerpetuityARC Training’s Security Institute courses here.