Are you thinking about asking for support for further study?
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Are you thinking about asking for support for further study?
It’s the time of the year where appraisals are taking place in many organisations. One of the things you might be considering is whether to use this opportunity to ask your manager whether your organisation would fund you to do further study leading to more qualifications. If that’s true for you, there are a few things to consider.
The easiest study programmes to gain support for, are those that act as an “entry ticket” into a role. This might include a CIPD qualification to be a HR professional or a Masters Degree to achieve your CEng. For the organisation, it is a sensible investment and, in the case of CEng, may well lead to you being charged out to clients at a higher hourly rate.
It’s more challenging when you want to pursue a qualification that doesn’t lead to an obvious and immediate jump in performance. For example, you may be interested in studying for an MBA that delivers value over the longer term and may help you with the next stage of career progression. Where there is no obvious short-term business benefit, the request will be scrutinised very closely. Some organisations cap the number of people they will sponsor through additional qualifications and so competition for the money is tough.
It doesn’t help that the person you are trying to persuade to sponsor your request (your manager) actually might prefer that you aren’t given the support! If you are successful in undertaking further study, it will potentially leave you distracted from your work, needing time off, and may even involve a drawdown from their own budget. Added to which, managers know that many people who undertake further study use it as a vehicle to change organisations. So you can understand why a manager’s instinctive reaction is to say no!
So what can you do? Here are two questions to consider before approaching your manager:
Qualifications can be a really good way of advancing your career – but make sure it’s the right strategy for you. If you love studying it may be a great option – but there are other equally valuable ways of progressing your career more quickly.
The easiest study programmes to gain support for, are those that act as an “entry ticket” into a role. This might include a CIPD qualification to be a HR professional or a Masters Degree to achieve your CEng. For the organisation, it is a sensible investment and, in the case of CEng, may well lead to you being charged out to clients at a higher hourly rate.
It’s more challenging when you want to pursue a qualification that doesn’t lead to an obvious and immediate jump in performance. For example, you may be interested in studying for an MBA that delivers value over the longer term and may help you with the next stage of career progression. Where there is no obvious short-term business benefit, the request will be scrutinised very closely. Some organisations cap the number of people they will sponsor through additional qualifications and so competition for the money is tough.
It doesn’t help that the person you are trying to persuade to sponsor your request (your manager) actually might prefer that you aren’t given the support! If you are successful in undertaking further study, it will potentially leave you distracted from your work, needing time off, and may even involve a drawdown from their own budget. Added to which, managers know that many people who undertake further study use it as a vehicle to change organisations. So you can understand why a manager’s instinctive reaction is to say no!
So what can you do? Here are two questions to consider before approaching your manager:
- Is further study the best investment of my time right now? Find out whether there are other things that will advance your career more quickly than completing a qualification. For example, if you’re doing an MBA you’ll likely be investing 8 hours a week of your own time in study. If you invested that time in taking the initiative to carry out a ‘name-making’ project or trial – would it be quicker and more noticeable to senior management? Would it yield results that would build your reputation as a mover and shaper, and look great on your CV?
- If it is the right investment for me, how do I show it’s going to add value? There are three approaches you can take. Firstly think big picture: does this fit with the strategic direction of the company? For example, if you know the company wants to move in a particular direction but there’s a skill shortage, it will increase your odds of success. Secondly, can you show any immediate benefits? Are there ways you can use the contacts you make, to carry out active benchmarking with other organisations? Could you carry out a key project as part of your qualification? Thirdly, focus on your development needs. Has the business already identified specific development needs that this course of study will help with?
Qualifications can be a really good way of advancing your career – but make sure it’s the right strategy for you. If you love studying it may be a great option – but there are other equally valuable ways of progressing your career more quickly.