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| Diploma in Journalism/Short Story Writing - ICS (International Correspondence School, Pennsylvania, the USA in 2000 to 2001 |
Paul believes that education and learning can be achieved anywhere and any time but it will depend on the person's willingness to learn. It is either by books and other reading materials, schools, and a home study program. He was a product of a home study program. He started his creative writing course with The Writers Bureau in Manchester, London from 1998 to 1999 by mail and also took up Journalism and Short Story Writing course by mail with the ICS (International Correspondence School, Pennsylvania, the USA in 2000 to 2001.
He said that a home study program is best for people who have no time to go to school and who are busy working.
He had enjoyed the training during the course. He found that it's a first-class comprehensive course written by successful professional writers. He had enjoyed the caring, constructive help from his expert tutors who're all published writers.
Paul was attracted to the four excellent guarantees to safeguard his interests: A full refund of his tuition fees if he had not earned by the time he had finished the course, the course has 15 days inspection and evaluation, there's the refund of 5 sterling pounds for each assignment not properly corrected and if his English was found not good enough for the course, the Writers Bureau will refund the money he had paid in full.
Also, read my other published articles
The course has a flexible study program to suit Paul. There were twenty individual writing assignments for his practice and guidance. With most of his assignments, he will be writing material that can be submitted for publication. There're specialists who helped him and guided him on how to sell his writing. The best way that he studied the course anywhere in the world where there's a postal service as all study material, returned and corrected assignments and etc. were sent off to him by air.
Paul also had the choice to pay his tuition fees by installments. He could have the choice to study and to progress at his own speed to suit his circumstances. During the course, Paul was given six specialist handbooks and an 80-minute cassette tape.
For the whole course, he spent at least 680 sterling pounds - this includes expenses Paul had spent for postal services when sending off his assignments back to the Bureau for corrections plus other miscellaneous expenses. The course was actually designed for two years though he finished it for only one year.
The whole course was divided into two parts: Writing non-fiction and Writing fiction. During the course, Paul received 30 modules with twenty assignments. Fifteen of the course modules were for non-fiction writing and the other fifteen were for fiction writing.
Aside from the 30 modules he received from the course for his practice and guidance.
Paul also was provided six bonus handbooks written by remarkable authors. These handbooks are totally helpful for him with those 30 modules which until now he is using as his references for his blog and blogging hobby.
The two very important people Paul knew at the Writers Bureau were no other than Mr. E.H. Metcalfe, the principal, and Mrs. Diana Nadin, the Director of Studies - who actually have encouraged him to pursue his tutorial course on creative writing.
Mr. Metcalfe has worked in home-study training and distance learning since 1962 and this has involved him in a substantial amount of technical and non-fiction writing. His experience with many thousands of students has convinced him that to achieve success with a home-study course Paul would need a comprehensive, thorough, high-quality course, caring, conscientious tutors, and regular application.
Mr. Metcalfe has gathered around Paul a first-class team of writers and tutors to provide him the first two. And for the third, he encouraged Paul to take full advantage of the very personal tuition service and teaching - the institution offers to him.
Mrs. Diana Nadin was an honors degree graduate in English from Nottingham University and she has worked in home-study tuition since 1978. Her experience has given her a deep insight into student needs and how to help students progress with their studies.
She said, "It is particularly important that a student has competent, conscientious tutors throughout his course." Here Mrs. Diana is at her best. She takes particular care to select just the right tutors to help the students. Thus anyone can rely on Mrs. Diana and her tutors - to give him the sort of caring tuition service that can make all the difference between failure and success.
After the course, Paul has applied what he learned from his tutorial course. He started his blog and blogging hobby and also wrote for other publishing sites like HubPages, Triond, Wikinut, and Expertscolumn at that time. (To be continued in part 8)
