FAQ - Frequently asked questions about distance learning courses

Haufe Akademie 's distance learning courses are ideal for people who want to acquire specialist knowledge and put it into practice, but want to be free to organize their learning conditions as they wish. You can learn flexibly and stress-free with completely free time management - when and where you want.

Distance learning courses have numerous advantages over other forms of learning: you can learn flexibly and stress-free with completely free time management, when and where you want. Only in the case of distance learning courses with online seminars are you bound by time for the individual dates of the online seminars, as these take place with our trainers on a fixed date in a virtual classroom. Apart from that, however, you determine your own learning pace and intensity.

Our courses also offer significant economic benefits: you save on travel costs and avoid absenteeism. You also increase your career opportunities and can improve your professional position with the Haufe Akademie.

The method of implementation - as purely self-study - sets a clear example for HR manager. The independent development of a subject area demonstrates good organizational skills, great independence and a high level of commitment.

You will receive our course content in digital form. For some courses, you will also receive the documents in printed form by post approximately seven days after the start date. On the start date, you can access all learning units digitally in your personal online learning environment and download them as PDF files if required. There you will also find all other additional offers such as extensive work aids, modern e-learning, interactive learning controls to check your own level of knowledge and information on the online community to exchange ideas with other participants.

It is not possible to give an exact estimate of the learning time to be planned, as this depends on many factors. As a guide, we recommend that you allow approximately five hours per week for continuous learning progress. In principle, however, you determine your own learning pace. This is one of the key advantages of distance learning. The learning time indicated on the website is a roughly calculated guideline for working through the course content.

The online learning environment is available to you for 12 months from the start date. This means you have one year to work through the content of the course. You alone determine your learning pace during this period. You can therefore take as much time as you need to read and work on the learning units. If required, we are happy to offer you a one-off extension of six months free of charge.

In principle, we offer the greatest possible degree of flexibility with our distance learning courses, i.e. you determine your own learning pace according to your individual needs and time capacities. Depending on the total number of learning units of your course, the course can be completed within four to six months, with a learning duration of approx. five hours per week. between three and a half and six months, with a learning duration of approx. five hours per week. However, you are free to decide when you complete which learning unit and how much time you spend on it.

The online learning environment is available to you for 12 months from the start date. This means you have one year to complete the course content. If required, we will be happy to offer you a one-off extension of six months free of charge.

After the regular access period of 12 months, the distance learning course can be extended once for six months free of charge. Further extensions are possible for a fee. Please contact our customer service (service@haufe-akademie.de).

At the end of a learning unit, there is usually a learning check to test your own level of knowledge. You can do this flexibly at any time and repeat it as often as you like. In this way, you receive prompt feedback on your learning success and can keep an eye on your progress at all times.

As a participant our distance learning courses, you will receive access to your personal online learning environment. There you will find all additional content such as learning assessments, work aids, sample solutions and e-learning. You will also be invited to join an online community to exchange ideas with other participants at the start of the distance learning course.

For almost all distance learning courses, you can book an additional exam - sometimes after attending one or more (face-to-face) seminars. Either at a reduced price right at the beginning as a complete package or optionally after completing the distance learning course. Further information and prices can be found on the website of the respective distance learning course. For some distance learning courses, an optional final exam is already included in the price.

For interactive exchange with other participants, we offer an online community for all distance learning courses. There you will receive up-to-date information, additional knowledge, interesting specialist articles and can get in personal contact with our tutors.

Haufe Akademie 's distance learning courses are based on a modern blended learning concept. Our written materials are supplemented by a modern online learning environment with numerous digital learning materials. This is web-based learning content that you can complete at your own pace. All e-learning courses are available in your personal online learning environment.

Thanks to intensive cooperation with leading experts from the field, our distance learning courses always reflect the current state of knowledge. The content of our learning units is reviewed and updated at regular intervals by leading subject matter experts . In addition, the professional quality and topicality of selected distance learning courses is also guaranteed by extensive university certifications. You can always access the latest documents in your online learning environment.

Our authors are practitioners and experts from business and academia. They ensure that the content and focus are precisely tailored to the needs of the learners and that the transfer of what has been learned into everyday working life goes smoothly. The didactic concept was developed by experienced educators to provide you with optimal support for independent learning.

For courses that are delivered with printed material, you do not need Internet access to read the learning units or to acquire the specialist knowledge. However, additional content such as extensive work aids, modern e-learning and interactive learning checks to test your own knowledge are only available to you via the online learning environment. This additional content cannot be accessed without Internet access. Furthermore, it is not possible to use the online community or take part in the online seminars and e-exams without Internet access.

For courses that are delivered without a printed document, constant Internet access is an advantage for the learning experience. To enable offline learning, we also offer all learning units/modules as PDF downloads.

We therefore recommend Internet access to make full use of all the learning content of our distance learning courses.

The learning content of our distance learning courses is stored in digital form in your personal learning environment and can therefore also be accessed on the move. In individual cases, it may be necessary to install a corresponding app for optimal viewing.

Almost all of our distance learning courses have online seminars. Online seminars are virtual events that take place at a fixed time with trainers . Various dates are offered throughout the year for all topics, for which you can register independently via your online learning environment. Participation in the online seminars is optional and not compulsory in order to successfully complete the distance learning course.

The invoice amount is due after the start of the distance learning course. We offer an installment payment model for all distance learning courses. In the case of payment by installments, the invoice amount is due in three installments every four weeks. The first installment is due on the start date.

If you complete the distance learning course privately as a self-payer and not financed by your employer, you can deduct the costs from your taxes as an employee. The prerequisite is that the further training serves your professional advancement in the profession you have learned or in the event of a career change. If this is the case, you can claim the expenses as income-related expenses in your income tax return. As a company, you can deduct the costs of further training for your employees as a business expense for tax purposes. You can obtain further information on the procedure from your tax advisor.

At the end of your distance learning course, you will receive a confirmation of participation from us, which documents your participation and lists the contents of the course. If you successfully complete the optional examination during your distance learning course, you will also receive a graded certificate. You will increase your career opportunities and improve your professional position with the Haufe Academy certificate.

Distance learning courses from a private training provider are not directly comparable with a state-recognized training course. With a distance learning course from the Haufe Akademie , you receive high-quality continuing education created by recognized experts from science and business. The authors' high level of technical and didactic expertise results in first-class continuing education products. As a result, Haufe Akademie courses are highly accepted in all companies.

All our distance learning courses are state-approved and certified by the Central Office for Distance Learning in Cologne (ZFU). In a thorough procedure - regulated by the Distance Learning Protection Act - experienced experts check the course concept and content with regard to technical and pedagogical quality standards. You can therefore be sure that you are working with intensively tested, high-quality material that meets the state quality requirements.

In addition to ZFU certification, some of our distance learning courses are also tested and certified by (technical) universities or other educational institutions. This means that these distance learning courses undergo an intensive examination of their technical and didactic content as part of a so-called certification process, the quality of which is confirmed and thus certified by a reputable educational institution. In this way, we guarantee the high professional quality of our content.

As a certified "Registered Education Provider" by the PMI® (Project Management Institute), the Haufe Akademie is authorized to award contact hours and PDUs (Professional Development Units) for participation in seminars, training courses and e-learning. You can also earn PDUs with the Project Management distance learning course. Further information on PMI® certification can be found here.

In principle, you can send us an e-mail with your questions at any time. We are in close contact with the authors and subject matter experts to answer technical questions.