Over 200 short courses unveiled at University of Liverpool's Continuing Education programme

The new Continuing Education programme is available now from the University of Liverpool.

With over 200 short courses to choose from, the CE programme has traditionally been a one-stop shop for affordable, flexible learning, whether you want to gain new skills or simply enjoy learning.

The University of Liverpool has, from its founding has led on the provision of adult education for all – and the emphasis on lifelong learning, for personal development or for pleasure – continues to be integral to the University today. Continuing Education (CE) at the University of Liverpool provides over 200 short courses, lectures and one-day workshops covering a wide-range of subjects that provide accessible learning for everyone, regardless of their age, qualifications or experience.

The University has been providing CE courses for the community since 1889 and despite the challenges of two-world wars and the huge social, cultural, political and economic changes that have occurred since the late 1800s – the provision of adult learning activity for the general public has remained steadfast in the City. In 2018-19 roughly 2000 adult learners took a CE course during the year, on a variety of courses ranging from music production, creative writing and modern languages to English literature and art history courses – all proving popular with students.

As Academic Director Dr Glenn Godenho says “Our courses provide access to important University research and facilities without the need to commit long term. Our recent series of free talks in collaboration with the Workers Educational Association (WEA) and Wellcome Trust at the Central Library (William Brown Street) allowed us to take our cutting-edge public health research to our local community. Topics like living better with dementia and why drugs don’t work (due to antimicrobial resistance) provoked interesting group discussion and brought new perspective to issues that almost all of us will have some experience of in our lifetimes. We hope to take this initiative to more of our communities, in accessible locations, so that they are available to everyone”.

There are at present just the four remaining providers of continuing education in the UK (Oxford, Cambridge and York being the other three) – and in providing these learning opportunities the University is providing a valuable service to the region, and this is acknowledged by the high percentage of current students.

A key aspect to the provision of these activities is collaboration with a number of the City’s leading cultural institutions from galleries, libraries, civic venues and schools to provide free activity throughout the year.

Returning this September are a series of free public lecture series with NML at both the Museum of Liverpool and the Maritime Museum. Rebellion and Riots reflect upon the ‘race riots’ that shook Liverpool in 1919 and showcases current research that provides an opportunity for the public to learn more about our City’s heritage. After all, learning does not have to solely revolve around what skills an individual would gain – the opportunity to become better informed on global, national and local issues is increasingly important and an is aspect of adult learning that is often ignored.