never heard of it before

my mate was unemployed for a couple of months and he got sent on  the edcl by the job centre.

ECDL is a very valid qualification. To be able to teach computers especially at a corporate level you have completed your ECDL. Most of the course is common knowledge for people who are computer literate but there is also a lot of other things that are quite handy. I have to do a brush up as the ECDL is taught on XP versions of Windows & now we have 7 so just a refresher probably.

Is there a speed limit?

very slow

Don't get me wrong, it taught me all I wanted to know about spreadsheets. However the qualification was unneccessary, unrecognised, and irrelevant and the so called experts seemed at best baffled.

Hmmmmm, maybe I could pass!

Don't know about speed limits but owing to my attitude I received a couple of endorsements.

I did this - no idea about scams (me a lil innocent baby0

I have ECDL and although I knew a lot of the stuff on the course I did find it helpful.

It's not a scam - it's run by a recognised body. It was the qualification that the NHS trained their staff to.


However - it got bogged down by paperwork, both at its administrative offices and at the centres where it was taught. Also it is a bog standard qualification which simply isn't good enough in the workplace - for example - it taught you how to do a mail merge, but nothing about how to lay out a business letter.


And finally - IT moves at such a pace now, so all the recognised qualifications mean nothing:ECDL, CLAIT, RSA, ask any employer if they would be impressed if they saw these qualifications on a CV and most would say No.


Not that I know owt about it

The people who ran our recognised body ended up in gaol. I'm more interested in the movement of money. I know that the government gave out grants to groups and individuals which theoretically was spent on training. The fact that the NHS were caught up in this doesn't surprise one.

Sorry Joe ... cant help you there ... it had never occured to me that it could be a scam.

It doesn't really matter.   As I said it was something that came up in conversation last night. The things we were interested in were how it appeared out of nowhere, how it disappeared equally as quickly, and where the money went!

.... and where the money came from!

I think it changed its name to 'International Computer Driving Licence'.  They used to run courses at our local college.  A lot of people started the course but not many finished it.  I don't think it was a scam, though.

**Considers setting up Cosmos Computer Driving Licence**

If it was not run by the British School of Computing, then you were being ripped off. The BSC (or is it BCS?) are the only legalised body to issue ECDL certificates.



And this is their website.



http://www.bcs.org/

As far as up here in Scotland it's been on the go for several years and is still on offer in colleges and universities....and the NHS are still looking for people to have or be working towards an ECDL. I got mine via the University of the West of Scotland and am considering doing the advanced modules.

Not sure what money you're talking about.

Computers are now a vital aspect of everyday working life. Learning how to use word processing and spreadsheets (like Microsoft Word and Excel) can give people the ability to do their jobs more effectively - and help them find jobs!

European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL)

Recognised in over 120 countries around the world ECDL is the world's fastest growing IT skills qualification.

With ECDL people learn how to use applications such as word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, the internet and email as well as other important aspects of computers.

We also have ECDL Advanced which takes people's skills to a higher level and are a benchmark of excellence and ECDL CAD, covering the core requirements of 2D Computer Aided Design.

It was an unneccessary qualification and I know that the directors would not waste money. So there must have been a tax or grant angle to it.

Everytime for example, I wanted to go on an atomic absorption course they didn't have any money. Yet they had sufficient money to send  several hundred and the works cat on this one.

Probably because the ECDL cost peanuts compared to the half dozen legs and arms required for the Atomic Absorption one.

Indeed! I still glow in the dark.

there are computer training companies that will hire you on the spot if you have completed your ECDL (with a little test of course). They then send you out to other companies to intensively train staff. Pays bloody good

Here's the one we have to do..

http://www.certiport.com/PORTA...fault.aspx?tabid=229

Really relevant skills we have to demonstrate , such as picking the correct URL for the US time agencies website from a multiple choice selection. I don't know how I've managed to do my job so far without this valuable training .

So you're saying it's more like a pyramid sales thang?