Online Courses for Restoration and Conservation

Throughout the entire course, the Hornemann Institute team will be available to answer your questions about the learning materials, and sometimes our authors themselves will answer your questions. It is not possible for us to answer further questions about the subject matter.

The e-learning team of HAWK supports you with technical questions regarding the learning platform.

The courses allow you the greatest possible flexibility in terms of learning location, learning time and learning speed. For those in employment, travel costs and downtime at the workplace are reduced, while for others there is room for family activities.
In contrast to print media, the content can be continuously adapted to the current state of knowledge. Motivation is increased by the fact that learning progress can be tracked through learning controls. A further advantage of the medium is the quick access to further information on the internet.

In addition to HAWK students, the courses in continuing vocational education and training are open to all persons who are involved in the protection of cultural property on a full-time or part-time basis. The target group is not restricted to any one profession or to Germany. All those who wish to undertake further training on an academic basis are admitted. The only requirement is Internet access.

The courses are usually available to participants for around 8–10 weeks, running alongside the summer and winter semesters. Learning times usually range from 30 to 45 hours per course. Thanks to their length, you can choose whether to learn a little more each day throughout the week or to focus intensively on the content in larger blocks, e.g. at weekends.

In HAWK attendance classes, authors at the HAWK use their courses according to their learning objectives. Some lecturers offer their students the courses to deepen an ongoing course, others for follow-up work. Many use them to learn theory in order to have more time for practice in the classroom. Some use the courses to prepare, for example, career changers, so that all students have a similar basic knowledge and a greater practical component is possible for the course.
For external students, some courses may be credited towards their studies at the Faculty of Building and Conservation.

The tutors advise the authors on the delimitation of the subject, the scope and structure of the course, the use of media and on the design of learning controls and tests. They proofread the authors' texts and supervise the implementation of the content provided by the authors, including learning controls, in the learning environment moodle. If necessary, they also create additional multimedia content, check the external internet links and the technical functionality of the courses and their media before each course.

Moodle was chosen, among other reasons, because it is very popular internationally and the institute was founded as an international training institute.

E-publishing, due to its high multimedia content and the associated high level of maintenance, poses more challenges than print media. At the Hornemann Institute, the number of courses, their multilingualism and the range of content are additional factors.
The HAWK has taken up the challenge by employing Barbara Hentschel and Christine Fiedler, two very skilled academic restorers from two different restoration disciplines, as tutors. The increasing involvement in the teaching of the HAWK also promotes the quality of the content. Finally, we have been able to attract many authors for whom the preservation of cultural assets is a personal concern and who therefore support the updates. Any update and correction requests of the authors will be incorporated into the courses as quickly as possible.

25% discount on the participation fees will be granted to

- Students from other universities (upon presentation of proof),

- Members in training (RiA) of the VDR e. V. (upon presentation of proof),

- HAWK alumni upon presentation of a diploma.
 

Institutions registering three or more persons for the same course get 20% discount.

The discounts are not cumulative.

The following can be of interest for you, if you reside in Germany:
- Companies and self-employed professionals in Lower Saxony can receive financial support for the further education of their employees through the "Further Education in Lower Saxony" programme. Funding is provided for expenditure on qualification and/or personnel expenses.
- With "Bildungsscheck", North Rhine-Westphalia supports individuals as well as small and medium-sized enterprises.
 
Further tips:
- You can find funding opportunities in other federal states, for example, via the "Search Engine for Continuing Education".
- The German Federal Employment Agency supports further education, for example, through so-called "education vouchers" or within the framework of a "measure for activation and professional integration" (AVGS).
- Ask your employer for a leave of absence for your further eductaion: this is not a direct financial support, but it can be an enormous relief.
- Check with your tax office whether you can deduct your participation from your taxes as income-related expenses.