Event Planning Training

Which Online Event Planning Courses are Best?

"What event planning training do I need to start my career?"
"What online event planning courses should I take?"
"Which event planning certification courses are best?"
"What do you think of the _____ course?"

Of course, these are very legitimate questions, and ones that you should be asking. And yet, this is one of the most frustrating questions to me.

This is frustrating for me for a number of reasons:

• First and foremost, I hate to recommend (for or against) any event planning training course unless I know, first-hand, what it's like. But, since I am well established in my career, I simply do not need to take any courses! So how can I, in good conscience, say one course is better than the other?

• Every single one of my readers is coming from a different place. My advice to a person just graduating high school is going to be different than my advice to a person who is in her mid-50's and is trying to change careers. For more on whether further education is the right step for you, be sure to read my advice on schooling on the Event Planning Courses page.
  
  
• Along the same lines, my advice about what event planning training you need changes according to your personal goals. My advice to someone who wants to be a wedding planner is entirely different than my advice to someone who wants to be a corporate meeting planner.

• Perhaps most importantly, my answer is dependent on your personal expectations of what you will get out of taking an event planning training online course. If you think that, by taking an online course, you will be guaranteed a job, then you are going to be sorely disappointed, and my advice would be to not waste your money.

  If, however, you are planning out your career and see that some courses might offer you some basic information that you need to learn to get started, then an online event planning training course might fulfill your expectations.
  
  

With that being said, it is still only fair for me to try to recommend some event planning training courses to the best of my ability. Below are some courses that, based upon their websites, I do or do not recommend.

But before we go any further, I'm going to do a shameless plug for my own online Event Planner Course. I actually created this course out of reluctance; it wasn't something I really wanted to make time to do. However, after hundreds of my subscribers and readers kept writing into me, asking which event planning training courses to take, I began to investigate the courses that are available out there.

And I was stunned, shocked, and disappointed to see what companies are putting out there and calling it a course....not to mention the insane prices they charge for it. I looked into course after course; and I kept finding the same crap (pardon the French). They teach you nothing more than how to plan weddings or kids' birthday parties; and then slap on an exorbitant fee, and call it a course! Worse yet, they convince you that you need their "certification" to begin your career; when in reality most of these certifications mean nothing to your future employers.

Let me tell you a secret that none of these companies want me to tell you....you simply can not make a living planning birthday parties and corporate luncheons. To create a successful career in event planning, you need to focus on large-scale events and corporate meetings, conventions, and incentives.

And making a living as a wedding planner is difficult and not recommended (keep reading the info below to find out why).

And yet, every single course out there focuses on weddings and parties.

And so, I decided it was time to create my own event planning training course; a course that focuses on real-life skills to apply to real-life, successful event planning.

• Event Planner Course: How to Plan Events
  This course will focus on the elements needed to plan large-scale events and corporate meetings, conventions, and incentives. It will teach you why this should be your focus, as well as the nuts and bolts of how to do it.

  Trust me, I'm not saying bad things about other certifications just to get you to buy my course; the reality is I created my event planning training course because there aren't any courses out there I felt comfortable recommending!

Before we go any further, please understand that these are my own personal opinions, based upon nothing other than the school's website and their syllabus (if it's available on the website). I have no personal connections with or against any of the following schools; and do not personally know anyone who has taken these courses.

I have a few "pet peeves" that always stick out to me as "red flags" when investigating an event planning training course; and think they are great guidelines for you to keep in mind when doing your research.

I would be very, very cautious (and most likely would recommend you stay away from) any course that focuses on the following:

• Wedding Planning. To read more on why I don't believe Wedding Planning is a viable career path (and if it is, then it should be treated as such, and not grouped together with event planning), read more about wedding event planners.
  
  
• Party Planning as a career. I talk more about this on my party event planners page. Basically, it is very, very difficult to make a living planning "parties" (as opposed to large events or corporate meetings and incentives).

  Especially in this tough economy, why would Mrs. Jones pay you to plan her 6-year-old's birthday party? More importantly, how much is she willing to pay? I can guarantee that Microsoft has a bigger budget for its planners than Mrs. Jones does for a birthday party.

• Starting your own event planning business at the end of the course. This topic just about makes my head spin off. It completely blows my mind that anyone would ever promise you that you can start a company doing something you've never done before. For more on this topic, please read my page on starting an event planning business.
  
  
• Getting your event planning certification at the end of the course. Certification is not a short-cut to education and experience; and all beginner-level "certifications" promise more than what they're worth. There aren't any beginner level certifications that mean anything to any potential employer, other than the fact that you took the initiative to learn something about the industry. To read much more about this, be sure to check out the Event Planner Certification page.

If you approach these event planning training courses with realistic expectations, then they might be worth it. But what makes me angry is that they promise you things that you won't, in reality, get out of the course; for example, making a great living planning birthday parties, or that you'll be capable of starting your own business right away.

That, to me, qualifies as a scam.

Again, please remember that my opinions of these courses are based strictly upon my experience in the industry, and what the event planning training course promises on their website. If you go into these courses with realistic expectations of gaining nothing more than basic knowledge, then they might be worth your time. However, I find the cost to be much higher than what they are worth.

• QC School of Event and Wedding Planning:
  Despite the professional-looking website, two "red flags" jump out at me right away.

  First of all, any organization that groups event planning and wedding planning together just doesn't understand the business. Anyone who considers herself a true event or meeting planner never classifies her responsibilities in the same group as wedding or party planners.

  Secondly, I always steer clear of any course that promises you that you can start your own event planning business by the end of the course. This is a complete lie; no amount of schooling can prepare you for the reality of owning your own event planning business.

  Finally, a quick glance at the course syllabus shows that this company is all about wedding planning, and are merely trying to expand into event planning training. The course outline is divided into six segments, or "units." Three of the six units are dedicated solely to wedding planning. Of the other three, only two line items refer to corporate meetings and events, fund raisers, or other types of events.

  So, based upon my preliminary research, I would say a resounding NO if asked whether I recommend this school.
  
  
  

• U.S. Event Guide:
  I like that they separate out wedding planning from event planning, unless you choose to combine the two courses. However, once again I cringe whenever I read that "you can start your own event planning business" by the end of their course, even though you've never planned a single event. It simply blows my mind.

  Also, be aware that their CEP (Certified Event Professional) designation is theirs and theirs alone. It means nothing to anyone outside of their company, as far as I know. If you have that on your resume, it will show your employer that you care enough to take a course; which can, admittedly, put you ahead of someone else who didn't take the course. On the other hand, it's not like the employer is going to jump and down in glee, thankful that you took the course and therefore know everything there is to know about event planning.

  Nothing, simply nothing, beats experience.

  Therefore, I do like that they offer hands-on experience (they call it "Real World Experience"), although without chatting with them I am not sure what this means. Does this mean you get to shadow a planner for one day? If so, forget it. Does it mean they'll place you in a three-month internship? If so, then it's worth looking into.

  The course outline holds some promise; I like that they emphasize contracts, how to actually plan an event, and how to work with vendors. However, once again, it scares me that they spend so much time talking about how to start your own business, how to name it, and so on. That is something you can't be thinking about for at least 3 or 5 years down the road.

  It also concerns me that they do focus on birthdays, family reunions, and children's parties. The only corporate function they mention is "Corporate Luncheons." I'm sorry, but if you want to make a true living, you will be managing large, week-long, corporate meetings. I hardly consider a meeting with 3,000 attendees, 200 breakout rooms, and multi-stage production a "party" or a "corporate luncheon."

  This course is much more reasonably priced than QC, but I still think you aren't getting what you need to start a career in event planning.
  
  

• The International School of Hospitality:
  Finally! A school I feel confident recommending. This is an actual, reputable event planning training school, with what seems to be true training in event planning management. It has a physical campus in Las Vegas, but you can also sign up for online courses as well.

  Of course, the tuition is a bit more than the other online courses; but this school seems to offer true, legitimate information and training; as well as internship placement.

  Please remember I don't have any direct experience with this school, so please do your research. Ask questions, and ask for referrals of alumni. However, I definitely think that if you are serious about pursuing your event planning career, TISOH is worth looking into.
  
  
  

• U.S. Career Institute:
  Again, this seems to be more of a wedding planning course than event planning; they just throw the term "event planning" out there to snag in event planner hopefuls.

  It's not even worth looking any further; I refuse to recommend any course that thinks wedding planning and event planning are the same thing. If wedding planning is your goal, then you can look further into it; but that's not my specialty so I can't recommend it. For serious event planning candidates, look somewhere else.
  
  
  

• Universal Class:
  This course, at first glance, held a little hope. I like that they seem to explore contracts, budgets, and handling clients and vendors. However, again the emphasis seemed too heavy on birthday parties, bridal showers, and weddings. If you have any hope of becoming a true event planner, keep looking.