The questions we are asked most

The training is semi-virtual: you work through the theory online on your own schedule, then build the practical side on in-person weekends in a studio. So neither where you live nor your working hours decides whether you can study — and the practice is not left out. Groups are small: a maximum of 12 participants, and smaller sub-groups for practical work.

You get your own access to an online learning platform with teaching videos, written material, exercises and a forum, available around the clock. Your physical presence is needed only for the practical phases: three-day weekends spent working in a studio environment. Everything else can be done from home, flexibly.

In our experience yes, provided it is regular. We use the internet for communication and not only for downloading material, so contact with teachers and with the group is normal during the online phase too. A flexible schedule means you decide when you progress — not that there is less work.

Partly yes — and that is exactly why it is “partly”. Today’s computers can do what once needed a large studio, so editing, mixing and structural decisions can genuinely be practised at home, on the same software the studios use. What cannot be learned at home — how a room sounds, what microphone position changes, the phase questions in multi-microphone setups — is covered on the practical weekends in a studio.

Studying at home needs a computer with an internet connection and the basic kit for your chosen course. The detailed equipment and entry requirements are listed on each course page. If you are unsure whether the equipment you already own is suitable, write to us and we will go through it with you.

For the sound engineer training: a computer, an audio interface, headphones and a microphone for home exercises. For media composition, additionally a MIDI keyboard, which is provided during the practical phases. For media photography, a camera with fully manual controls. We provide the Pro Tools access needed for study during the course.

You work in a studio: you set up, record, mix, and we listen back to the result together. The topics build on each other — systems and signal flow, Pro Tools operation, recording, mixing, effects, mastering, film sound and live sound. The weekends run from Friday to Sunday, and practical work happens in smaller sub-groups so that everyone gets hands on the equipment.

Yes — the concept was designed for it. The online phase has no fixed timetable, so you move through the material when you have time. The practical weekends are the only fixed points you have to set time aside for, and we announce them in advance. It does take steady work, though: anyone who only prepares for the weekends falls behind.

Applications start by email: tell us which course interests you and we will send the current application material. Return the completed form as an attachment — if you fill it in by hand, please scan it. We confirm receipt once it arrives. The full process is set out on the application page.

We are confirming the next start date and the deadline that goes with it, so we would rather not present a two-year-old date as current information. Write to us and we will send the exact dates. General advice: the earlier you apply, the more certain your place, because group sizes are capped.

We send the tuition fee and the payment options — including instalments — in the current information pack. We deliberately do not display an old price, because it would be misleading. A tuition discount can be requested if you complete more than one course.

The tuition fee covers the course, and we also provide the Pro Tools access needed for study. What is down to you: your own home equipment (computer, audio interface, headphones, microphone or camera), plus travel and accommodation for the practical weekends. The current information pack itemises this.

All three programmes are on the Courses page, with the curriculum, the practical components and the entry requirements. The sound engineer training is divided into six modules, each with its own page.