Upskill with a short course

Unlock your potential in just a few weeks

Build in-demand career skills and knowledge with Open University short courses and microcredentials.

Upskill with a microcredential

Microcredentials are professional development short courses designed to help you build in-demand career skills.  They focus on building knowledge in fast-moving sectors such as sustainability or IT.

This is a new emerging area of higher education. These are not degree programmes but do carry formal academic credit as well as workplace relevance. Created by world-class OU academics, often in collaboration with leading industry partners, these 10–12 week courses are designed to provide specialist skills in a specific area of work. They are an ideal route to your next job promotion or career move into a new growth sector.

Our microcredentials take 10–13 hours of weekly study and reflection. As learners work through the course, they can share ideas and experiences with their co-learners. On passing a final assessment, the learner is awarded 10 or 15 academic credits which could be used in the future towards an OU qualification.

Business management: project management 

Business management: financial accounting for non-financial roles 

Business management: fundamentals of management accounting 

Business management: people management and leadership  

Climate change: transforming your organisation for sustainability 

Cisco: Python programming (OpenEDG) 

Drivers or eligible family members can now have access to flexible education with 100% course fees covered by Uber

Study a short course

If you only have a few hours a week but still want to learn something new, consider taking a short course with The Open University. On offer is a variety of courses in business, management, marketing, languages, film, media, and more.

So if you want to learn Spanish, improve your creative writing, or enhance your business skills, these courses are a great starting point.

You can learn at your own pace, whether you’re a beginner or have some experience. These courses are designed with online bite-sized learning and practical exercises to help you apply your new knowledge. Most courses require 10-50 hours of study, and they’re flexible – you can easily catch up if you miss a week due to work or go on holiday.

On successful completion of the course, you’ll receive a certificate of completion to go alongside your new skill or understanding.

Managing a budget 

Analytical thinking for problem solving 

Start your own business 

Introduction to digital marketing 

An introduction to artificial intelligence 

Foundations of UK immigration law (OISC Level 1)

Studying with the OU

How do I register on a microcredential?

To register for a fully funded place on an Open University microcredential, you will need to:

You can only register for the next microcredential course start date, and you will need to check your eligibility and complete your application before the deadline.

For more support or information about Open University microcredentials, please contact our Uber Registration Team: UBER-registration@open.ac.uk

How will I study a microcredential?

Microcredentials are studied entirely online via the OU’s platform. You’ll share ideas and experiences with other learners, building skills, confidence, and knowledge.

 The course is available for you to work through in your own time and complete at your own pace, as long as you complete the final assessment by the specified date. To get the best learning experience we recommend you work through the course week by week, as this will help you make the most of interactions with co-learners and ensure you don’t miss out on discussions or announcements. If you miss a week or fall behind, you can continue to access earlier weeks’ learning materials and catch up.

 Learners are supported by an on-course mentor who has an excellent understanding of the course subject; their role is to guide discussions and answer questions.

On passing a final assessment you will receive academic credit which could be used in the future towards further study.

Can microcredentials be used towards university qualifications?

Potentially, yes. Microcredentials are stand-alone short courses designed to meet specific learner and employer needs. Those awarded by The Open University have academic credit value at either undergraduate or postgraduate level, and, if appropriate, this may be used towards selected OU qualifications. For more details, including eligible qualifications, visit Counting microcredentials towards OU qualifications. 

The credit awarded may potentially be used at another university, subject to the agreement of the receiving institution.

How do I register for a short course?

To register for a fully funded place on an Open University short course, you will need to:

 For more support or information about Open University short courses, please contact our Uber Registration Team: UBER-registration@open.ac.uk

Drivers or eligible family members can now have access to flexible education with 100% course fees covered by Uber

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Drivers or eligible family members now have access to flexible education with 100% course fee coverage

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