ANDREW: Yes, I’ve already looked at it. In fact, I thought the information on course content was really useful, but I’m afraid I’m a bit confused by all the different ways you can do the course: full-time intensive, part-time, and so on.

MONICA: Well, let’s see if I can help. I think each course type has its advantages and disadvantages, so it really depends on you – your own study habits, and your financial circumstances, of course. Are you working at the moment?

ANDREW: Yes. I’ve been working in the administration section of the local hospital for the last _Q21 three years. And before that, I worked in the office of a computer engineering company for two years. So, I’ve got about five years of relevant work experience. And what I’m hoping to focus on is Personnel Management.

MONICA: I see. And are you planning to leave your current job to study, or are you thinking about just taking a year off?

ANDREW: I want to know what my options are, really. I don’t want to quit my job or anything and my employers are keen for me to get some more qualifications but obviously, it would be better if I could do a course without taking too much time away from work.

MONICA: Right, so you don’t really want to do the full-time course, then?

ANDREW: No, not really. It’s also a question of finances. You see, my office have agreed to pay the _Q22 cost of the Course itself, but I would have to take unpaid leave if I want to study full-time and, well, I don’t think I could afford to support myself with no salary for a whole year.

MONICA: OK. Well, you have two other possibilities: you could either do the part-time course- that would be over _Q23 two years and you wouldn’t have to take any time off work – or you could do what we call a ‘modular’ course. You could do that in eighteen months if you wanted – or longer, it’s quite flexible and it would be up to you.

ANDREW: Mmm. So what does the part-time course involve?

MONICA: For that, you would join an evening class and have a lecture twice a week. Then, you’d have to attend a seminar or discussion workshop one weekend a month.

ANDREW: What kind of coursework would I have to do?

MONICA: Well, it’s a mixture. You’d be expected to write _Q24 an essay each month, which counts towards your final assessment. You have a case study to do by the end of the course, which might involve doing a survey or something like that, and also you need to hand in a _Q25 short report every four weeks.

ANDREW: So, that’s quite a lot of work, then, on top of working every day. It sounds like a lot of studying – and really tiring.

MONICA: Yes, you certainly wouldn’t have much free time!

ANDREW: What about the ‘modular’ course? What would I have to do for that?

MONICA: That’s where you get the opportunity to study _Q26 full-time for short periods. That way you can cover a lot of coursework and attend lectures and seminars during the day. And each module lasts for _Q27 one term, say, about twelve weeks at a time. There are obvious advantages in this – the main one being that you can study in a much more _Q28 intensive way, which suits some people much better.

ANDREW: And how many of these ‘modules’ would I have to do to get the diploma?

MONICA: The current programme is _Q29 two modules – and then you have to choose _Q30 a topic to work in more depth – but you can base that on your job, and so you don’t need to be away from the office, and how long it takes is up to you.

ANDREW: The important thing is that you don’t have to study and work. You can focus on one thing at a time.

MONICA: Yes, I can see that. It certainly sounds attractive! It would be more expensive, though. I mean, I’d have to support myself without pay for each module.

ANDREW: That’s true, so that might be a problem for you. Look, why don’t you talk this over with your employers and …

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