University continuing education courses provide a good opportunity for people with an interest in archaeology to study part-time and gain academic recognition.
Courses are now designed to provide vocational opportunities and academic awards are available.
At most universities, students do not have to take awards if they do not wish to do so, and there are still some courses which are of the traditional type, without awards. Courses for leisure interest are also offered by the Workers' Educational Association and by some local education authorities. The new award-bearing courses are particularly useful for people wishing to enter archaeology as mature students who may have been working for some years and wish for a change of direction. Most of these courses are recognised by the universities as contributing to the entry requirement for BA or BSc degrees. Some may even grant exemption from parts of the first year undergraduate syllabus for those with appropriate awards.