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Summer Schools, Short Courses and CPD

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Get the skills you need

Our high quality short courses, summer schools and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) opportunities are designed to develop the key skills you'll need in your professional or academic career.

Explore our portfolio of programmes across our three faculties:

 

Arts and Humanities

Led by experts across the field of Arts and Humanities, our practical professional development courses offer specialist training across a range of areas. Develop your skills, tools and expertise to take your career to the next level.

Essex Human Rights Online Summer School
The Essex Human Rights Centre is delighted to present its pioneering and popular summer school on human rights taught by an interdisciplinary faculty of renowned academics and practitioners.
Human Rights Leadership lab
Taught online over 6 x 4 hour sessions, the Human Rights Leadership Lab is a supportive and reflective learning space to develop your leadership presence, skills and impact
International Law in Armed Conflict
Suitable for human rights practitioners, professionals from government and international bodies, as well as post-graduate students and academics seeking knowledge in this field, this four-day in-person course is designed to provide the foundations for understanding the role of international law in situations of armed conflict.
Effecting Change: ending coercion in mental health settings and effecting social reforms to address distress
This two-day Summer School is a short course taught by leading experts and practitioners, focusing on two key themes: ending coercion in mental health settings and effecting social reforms to address distress. It builds on the first and second CICSI Summer Schools, held in 2023 and 2024, which explored the themes of de-medicalizing mental distress and the social context of mental distress, respectively.
Human Rights and Local Government
Taught online, 9 hours over 2 weeks (3 sessions per week), the Human Rights and Local Government is a practical development course designed for local government officials and councillors, local community groups, and anyone interested in local policy-development and human rights. You will acquire concrete tools and skills to practice human rights at the local level.
Understanding the Complexities of Working Online
The University of Essex presents a training programme which will explore the dynamics, challenges, and opportunities of working online.
Taming your imposter: supporting female leaders in developing greater self-acceptance
The University of Essex presents a group coaching course where participants will work with a coach to face their imposter, gain self-awareness around their identity, develop greater self-acceptance, and take positive actions for long-lasting change.
Law and Technology: ‘Human Rights in the Digital Age’
The Essex Law School presents The Law and Technology: ‘Human Rights in the Digital Age’ short course which consists of 9 seminars of 90 minutes each over 2 weeks.

Science and Health

Our portfolio of courses offers flexible study options. Many of our courses are credit-bearing and have been developed in partnership with local providers, ensuring you are equipped with the necessary skills required in industry.

Health and Social Care CPD
The School of Health and Social Care delivers CPD programmes for qualified professionals in health and social care. Our staff are both academically and clinically qualified and many are practising clinicians. We provide you with training that is not just clinically relevant but based on current research and our years of experience.
Sport, rehabilitation and exercise science CPD
Our School of Sport, Rehabilitation and Exercise Sciences runs CPD courses in musculoskeletal assessment, practice and sonography, which can be taken as a PG certificate, PG diploma, or an MSc.
Programming and data science
The Faculty of Science and Health have worked in collaboration with partners including Suffolk County Council and East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT) to develop short courses that support digital skills that focus on digital transformation through the use of data.

Social Sciences

Building on our academic and practical expertise, we offer a range of CPD opportunities to enable you to continue your personal and professional development.

Essex Summer School in Social Science Data Analysis
The Essex Summer School in Social Science Data Analysis provides world-leading social science methods training to postgraduate research students by offering instruction from an internationally renowned faculty.
Psychosocial and Analytic Studies CPD modules
You can take a selection of non-credit bearing modules at our Department of Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies on a CPD basis and we also offer a number of other courses and sessions.
Qualitative Interviewing and Analysis Using MAXQDA
Our two-day intensive qualitative research course, run by the Department of Sociology and Criminology, introduces you to the practicalities of conducting qualitative interviews and how to use MAXQDA to analyse the resultant qualitative data.
First Steps in Data Literacy: Exploring Crime Statistics
Our one-day introductory course will equip you with the skills necessary to understand and critically evaluate quantitative information, including reports from the Office for National Statistics and academic literature on crime and policing.
Data Skills Foundations at ESS
Designed for professionals seeking to enhance their data analysis capabilities, this suite of interactive practical professional development courses gives participants the opportunity to work with datasets and develop skills to apply data-driven decision-making in various contexts.
Accounting and Global Development
The Essex Accounting and Global Development School proposes a cutting-edge online programme designed to address the unique accounting and development challenges and opportunities faced by non-Western economies. Enrol on the full course of 18 hours or choose to study 3 hour individual modules that are of relevance to you.

Cross-faculty

Essex Business School Summer Sessions
With Essex’s Business School Summer Sessions, you’ll have the chance to study fascinating undergraduate modules with our expert academics, explore England and make new friends from all over the world.

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