LinkedIn Learning

All staff at the University of St Andrews have access to LinkedIn Learning, a robust online learning platform that helps you discover and develop business, technology-related, and creative skills through expert-led course videos.

With more than 16,000 professionally produced courses and personalized recommendations, you can discover, complete, and track courses related to your field and interests. You can also choose to add these courses and related skills to your LinkedIn profile once you've completed them

Benefits

This resource will help enable a more self-directive development culture at St Andrews, complement and enhance existing training provision and channels for learning, increase accessibility and availability, support competency-based learning across specific pathways, support digital competence for the university, enabling the digital strategic theme, providing a useful tool to empower managers and staff to have mutual input into agreed development plans.

How to access LinkedIn Learning

Whether you're looking for a training course or a quick answer to a software problem, there are over 16,000 courses and 110,000 tutorials with new releases every week.

LinkedIn Learning is available to all staff at the University of St Andrews for the duration of your work with the University.

Access LinkedIn Learning

Access LinkedIn Learning on the go with the free app available on Android and Apple.

Activate your access

When you activate your access, you need to decide whether you want to link your LinkedIn Profile to LIL. There are basically three options:

Choose to link own profile. There is no requirement to link your profile if you do not want to and you can unlink it later if you wish.

Choose to not link own LinkedIn profile.

Choose to have access without having a LinkedIn profile. You do not need to have a LinkedIn profile to be able to use LinkedIn Learning.

Important information on privacy and data

There are also some important things to be aware of re your privacy and data:

The University of St Andrews can access and retain your learning activity, such as courses views or completed. However, you are in control of what learning activity is shared with your network. Individual curators (e.g. your manager) who recommend courses or pathways to you will be able to see if you have accessed or completed them. If you do not want details of the courses you have registered for or undertaken to be shared with LinkedIn or those who are part of your LinkedIn network, then you should select second choice above (Accept invitation to LIL and do not link own profile) or the third choice (Accept invitation to LIL without having a profile).
When you create your LinkedIn Learning account your username and status (staff) are shared with the LinkedIn company. When accessing the service, you will be asked to accept the terms of the User Agreement .
If you connect your LinkedIn Learning account with your personal LinkedIn profile, the University’s LinkedIn admin will be able to see your learning data. No other data from LinkedIn profiles are accessible or shared. For further information see: Connecting your LI profile LinkedIn User Agreement and Privacy Policy. Privacy policy for LinkedIn Learning users
Your data is securely stored in Linked servers within and outwith the UK. More information is available from LinkedInSecurity and LinkedIn Subprocessors

What can you do with Linkedin Learning?

FAQs

Testimonials

Laura Masters RIS Unit Administrator and PA to the VPRCI

A photo of Laura Masters I found the Linked In Learning suite really useful, for a number of reasons. The idea of being in control of the timing of my learning and professional development was really appealing. It was great being able to dip in and out – sometimes I could dedicate an hour to it and fully immerse myself, but other times if I had a spare 15 minutes I would just watch a quick snippet of a course and by doing this, it was amazing how much I learnt and how quickly I could complete a 9 hour course without even really noticing the time it had taken me!

Another aspect that I enjoyed was the fact that it helped me understand on a basic level what other peoples’ roles are. For example, I could never be a data analyst, it just wouldn’t suit my personality or skill set. However, as with many other jobs, I had always wondered what was involved so I watched a course which explained in easy to understand language and I now appreciate and recognise where data analysts fit in to the picture.

It’s clear to see there is a lot research and money spent on the presenters and experts involved in delivering the courses – they are extremely engaging and inspirational. I would recommend this as a really powerful tool for learning. It’s possible to significantly add to your skill set and even gain qualifications whilst having complete control of the timeline of that.

Lynn Christie, Administrator, School of Psychology and Neuroscience

A photo of Lynn Christie I agreed to take part in the LinkedIn learning pilot but can’t say that I had high hopes for it – I’m not a huge fan of online learning courses – but in for a penny in for a pound! Rather than trying to tailor a package I decided to do the Management Development course that had been recommended by the University. It has 13 different sub courses ranging from Improving Listening Skills through to Navigating Environmental Sustainability, about 10 hours of learning all told. I expected just to have to listen to all the courses – which you can do – but many of them are interactive too, with additional information that can be downloaded and worked on offline. I learned quite a bit but some of the things I learned turned my preconceived ideas on their head, so unsurprisingly I was sceptical at this point. Proof would be in the pudding when having to implement a couple of them I thought, but they worked! Who said you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? Because of this I intend to carry on and have selected a few different training courses that I find personally interesting and aren’t just for my role within the University.

Give it a try but be prepared to be routine with your learning. You can dip in and out, but I would recommend allowing time to complete a sub course in one go, it helps. Don’t be afraid to try new things either. By all means try one of the University recommended pathways but add to it. Learn something new – there are 1000’s of varied courses to choose from, or just refresh older knowledge. I am now a convert to online learning platforms – you can fit your learning into your life when you want to, rather than when course availability dictates you have to. I’d be more than happy to recommend LinkedIn Learning, give it a go, you literally have nothing to lose but potentially loads to gain.

Sam Foster, IT Security Specialist, IT Services

A photo of Sam Foster During the pilot, I really wanted to investigate LinkedIn Learning as a resource to support the onboarding of new staff members in the IT security Team and explore any personal development opportunities. What I found was a huge range of content across areas of security and ICT. The level of customisation to create your own pathways and content was great – and my favourite feature was being able to set my own time-based goals, useful for helping to focus on weekly personal development targets.

Regarding my own personal development, I had been looking into gaining a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) certification. The content available has been invaluable, complimented other study material, and helped to better track my progress.

I would say it’s an opportunity not to be missed. It’s a chance to enhance your skills and follow your interests too.

Christian Engels, Lecturer, University of St Andrews Business School

A photo of Christian Engels LinkedIn Learning has been a tremendous resource for me, especially in more deeply understanding software tools like Git and Docker that can be valuable helpers in producing transparent and reproducible research. The courses take these complex subjects and break them down into bite-sized, understandable chunks that you can watch in your own time (e.g., on your phone over lunch or when waiting on a bus!). Even courses that, to be honest, sound off-putting (like learning the Linux command line) become fun to learn! Over the years I have picked up what I needed from these tools along the way, but LinkedIn Learning has really helped me deepen my understanding and lay a foundation to tackle more advanced concepts. It also feels like a real workplace benefit!

If I had to give advice to my colleagues, I'd say dive right into the platform. The variety and quality of the courses on offer are of high quality – and as long as you are not after something too niche, there's likely something for everyone to enjoy. Whether you're looking to pick up a new tool or explore something entirely new (e.g.,” How to Research and Write Using Generative AI Tools”), there may just be a course that gets you started. It's easy to use and the flexibility to learn whenever it suits you is brilliant. I genuinely think we can all get something great out of being part of it.

Mark Hood, Head of Business Architecture and Analysis, Business Transformation

An image of Mark Hood Since using LinkedIn Learning, I have managed to broaden my skill set considerably. In particular, I have found the courses on data management and new digital technologies extremely beneficial. The platform's convenience and user-friendly interface allow me to learn at my own pace, making it easier to balance work and self-improvement. It's not just about acquiring new skills, but also about gaining insights from industry experts that can be directly applied in our daily operations.

For anyone considering using LinkedIn Learning, I would wholeheartedly encourage them to do so. The platform's vast array of topics and the flexibility it offers makes it a remarkable resource. Whether you want to deepen your expertise in your current role or explore a new area, LinkedIn Learning can facilitate that growth.

University of St Andrews

OSDS