Page last updated 18th May 2023

BIC Metadata & Technical Training Courses

ONIX Essentials / ONIX Essentials Plus (Online)

Overall rating 4.6 / 5 (2021-2023)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

Wonderful teaching style that made the seemingly incomprehensible, very comprehensible! …going through worked examples is always great, hints and tips on how to improve things. 
Kate Phillips
Cambridge University Press 
Such an important system that is so integral to all publishers now and I really do feel it enhanced my understanding and I have improvements to our processes that I’m looking forward to implementing
Emma Scriver
Hachette 
Best introduction to ONIX I could have hoped for, covered all the basics and provided rock-solid foundation. 
Markus Auhl
MVB GmbH 

ONIX Advanced Topics (Online)

Overall rating 4.6 / 5  (2021-2022)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

Well-constructed course and great to be able to tailor it to the needs of the attendees
Metadata Analyst
Publisher
Most effective component ‘The freedom to ask questions and get answers on specific areas of concern’
Zelah Pengilley
Taylor and Francis 
I liked that there was lots of talk about which parts of ONIX actually get used and paid attention to by publishers and retailers, which ones aren’t widely used. It’s really helpful to get an idea of where the rest of the industry is with these things, so we can update our business practices in the most effective way.
Metadata Manager
Publisher 

Thema Essentials (Online)

Overall rating 4.7/5  (2021-2022)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

This should be required for everyone using Thema!! 
Anon
Bibliographic Team, Publisher
The Trainer was very knowledgeable and clear and I liked that the course was split into theoretical and practical parts. 
Anon
Editor, Publisher 
Most effective component – ‘Hands-on, practical sessions in assigning Thema codes‘
Naoki Onodera
Mapping Consultant, JPO 

BIC Production Training Courses

Introduction to Production (Online)

Overall rating 4.2/5  (2021-2023)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

It is a good insight to production no matter what job level you are at within publishing.
Carol Caines
Emerald Publishing
The knowledge and experience of the trainer was very impressive and she conveyed that successfully and was happy to explain where there was any doubt and answer questions. 
Anon
Production Team, Publisher 
As a result (of the course) I feel much more confident handling the tasks in my job now.
Anon
Production Assistant, Publisher 

Making and Managing Monochrome (on site)

Overall rating 5/5  (2023)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

This gave me an in-depth understanding of monochrome printing, and although I had some prior experience, the course has provided me with an incredibly detailed knowledge of every single step of the process; I feel a lot more confident managing monochrome books from start to finish.
Nina Decuignierre
Hayhouse
Most effective component – ‘Hands-on examples of different finishes, seeing what can go wrong and why‘
Anon
Most effective component – ‘The practical demonstration of theoretical elements discussed. It was very informative to see all the various printing processes. ‘ 
Anon

eBook Creation: Investigated and Explained (Online)

Overall rating 4.5/5  (2021-2022)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

A very good introduction to epub, gives a good understanding of what it is, its history, and how the epub is made. 
Anon
Production Specialist, Publisher
It’s a very useful exploration of eBook creation and all the considerations publishers need to make. 
Anon
It was helpful to learn about eBook terminology, to look inside an eBook at the coding and to find out about different resources that can be used to help. 
Anon
Production Team, Publisher

eBook Creation: Advanced (Online and In Person)

Overall rating 4.75 / 5 (2021-2022)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

It was wonderful to be able to make use of the trainer’s expertise to give us advice and guidance on how to improve our ePubs. 
Anon
As we were a small group the trainer was able to tailor the afternoon to our specific questions and needs instead of a general overview – this was very beneficial as well as the small practical tasks writing HTML/XML.
Christy Beale
Boydell & Brewer
Practical understanding of XML; discussions / ideas; and useful tools and checker for the future. 
Anon

Digital Printing for Books ( On site)

Overall rating: 5 /5 (2019)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

Interesting and informative. I think a lot of people in publishing would find it interesting and useful. 
Catriona Allon
Bristol University Press 
It’s very comprehensive and really interesting to see all the processes in action.
Anon
Learning about different printing technologies – to better understand the reasons for choosing certain printing methods. 
Anon

Colour Book Production Explained 

Overall rating: 5 /5 (2019)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

I would certainly recommend [the course] to anyone in the publishing industry that I hear of who wants to have a deeper understanding of production. The trainers both had real expertise and there was no time wasted. We learned a lot and many long-standing uncertainties were resolved.
Anon
The one-to-one discussions of real-life issues was particularly useful.
Anon
Really enjoyed the teaching style – very practical and informative. 
Anon

Library Courses

EDI for Libraries (Online)

Overall rating 4.5 / 5 (2021-2022)

100% would recommend the course to colleagues.

Clear overview of EDI both for staff regularly using it and for new staff. 
Anon
Library Administrator
I think it was aimed at about the right level: enough technical examples to show what happens in the background, but not too overwhelming. 
Anon
Seeing how EDI files were structured, and a description of what things could go wrong.
Anon