CIM Foundation Certificate in professional & digital marketing

Level 3 | A-Level |6 SQA
Kickstart your marketing career
Build essential skills and confidence to thrive in today’s digital landscape. Gain a globally recognised CIM qualification and take your first step into the world of professional marketing.

Learn with nesma and get 3 modules for the price of 2! 

and more ...

Accredited qualification

Digital Marketing Institute
Format
Live online
On Demand
Cohort start dates
January, April
June, September
Duration
8 weeks
CIM Membership
Required (£65)
Course fee

£810 +VAT
Plus Institutional fees
Course Tutors
Jo Dolezal, David Colley
*Team discounts and payment options available

Get a recognised qualification

Join a 300,000 strong digital marketing community!

Over 75,000

Learners

5.0 (62 reviews) 

Why learn with nesma ?

We offer personalised learning that adapts to your changing situation at work and home, and more tutor hours to make sure you achieve your learning goals faster! 

Plus using our exclusive SkillsView™ and dedicated advisors, we work with you to help you build learning pathways to help you get that promotion! 

To learn more about the nesma Way!  ...watch our video!


Write your awesome label here.
Write your awesome label here.

Unique offers for this programme: 

We provide a unique range of offers to support your learning experience when completing this qualification:
  • 3 modules for the price of 2 - 
    Access to learn all modules of the course.
  • Free access to the Skills Lounge for revision sessions and networking.
  • Free course to get you off to a fast start!
  • Career support - Meet recruiters & get CV support.

Course description

Launch your digital marketing journey with the CIM Foundation Certificate. Develop core digital skills, learn essential online marketing techniques, and build confidence to support successful campaigns.

With nesma, you’ll receive expert tutor guidance, hands-on learning, and a clear route to your first recognised digital marketing qualification.

Ideal for beginners eager to enter the digital marketing world and establish a strong foundation for career growth.
Write your awesome label here.

What you'll learn

Core marketing principles - build a solid foundation in marketing fundamentals.
Campaign planning – learn to design and deliver effective marketing campaigns.
Digital & traditional skills – gain practical skills across multiple marketing channels.
Data & insight basics – understand how to use data to inform marketing decisions.

Your course includes

  • 12 weeks of expert-led live online classroom sessions
  • Interactive quizzes and practical assignments
  • Revision session with tutors 
  • Live online learning with lifetime access 
  • Qualification Certificate

Your fast track to a marketing career!

This course is designed for anyone starting or growing a career in marketing—from school leavers and career changers to assistants and business owners.

The course covers all the essentials to support and deliver effective marketing campaigns across digital and traditional channels.

We’ll give you the knowledge to confidently understand customers, choose the right channels, and apply the marketing mix to real-world situations.

When you’re done, you’ll be ready to contribute to marketing teams or run your own campaigns with a globally recognised qualification.

We’ll get you qualified faster and with more support than any other study centre.

Modules

  • Marketing essentials
  • Content marketing
  • Marketing Insights

All of our learners gain access to the nesma learning hub via your own homepage.

From here you can access all of your courses, materials and activities, see your progress and work with other students. 

The platform provides broader benefits including skills passport, activity badges, and access to skills intelligence, offers and news!

Aims

You’ll gain the core skills, practical knowledge, and confidence to succeed in a professional marketing or digital marketing role.

In short, you’ll become a CERTIFIED marketing professional, ready to support campaigns, engage customers, and add value to any marketing team.

Certification exam 

To complete the course, you’ll take two online assessments—one for each module. Each assessment includes 45 questions to complete in 90 minutes, with a mix of multiple choice, scenario-based, and single best answer formats. Achieve 60% or higher in each assessment to pass and earn a CIM Award for each module—building towards your full Foundation Certificate.


We’ll set you up with a sample test and provide a focused revision session shaped around the topics you and your cohort want to revisit. By the end, you’ll be confident, exam-ready, and on your way to becoming a certified marketing professional.

CIM Membership  & Assessment Fees

We handle all the admin – you focus on learning
We’ll arrange your CIM membership (£65) , register you for assessments (£125 per module), and help you prepare with practice tests and revision sessions.
Plus, as a CIM member, you gain exclusive access to industry insights, practical toolkits, expert webinars, networking events, and career support resources—all designed to accelerate your marketing career and keep you connected to a global community of marketing professionals.
Write your awesome label here.

Download your brochure now!

Share it!

Get a discount when you book together!

Persuade your boss

Incentives to fund your
learning inside!

Who is it for?

This course is designed for aspiring marketers and professionals starting their marketing journey who want to build practical skills and a strong foundation.

It’s ideal for school leavers, career changers, assistants, and small business owners seeking recognised marketing credentials and confidence to support campaigns across channels..  If your not sure talk to us  

Course tutors

Jo Dolezal

Marketing Strategy & Digital Communications Expert

Jo is a senior tutor for nesma and an experienced marketing consultant with expertise in strategy, digital marketing, and communications. As founder of Dolezal Consulting and a Chartered Marketer, she brings over 20 years of hands-on experience helping businesses create and deliver effective marketing strategies. Her teaching blends practical insights with academic rigour, empowering learners to apply their knowledge to real-world challenges. Jo plays a key role in guiding students through CIM qualifications, making complex marketing concepts clear and actionable.

David Colley

 Branding & marketing communications specialist 

David is a seasoned branding and marketing communications expert with a PhD and extensive academic experience. Formerly a Senior Lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University, he combines deep theory with practical insight to help CIM students master branding strategy and deliver impactful campaigns. His background in design authenticity and community engagement enriches his teaching, making complex concepts relevant and actionable for marketers.

Learning outcomes


Course content

Pathway to achieving your qualification

To achieve the CIM Level 3 Foundation Certificate in Professional and Digital Marketing, you only need to complete two modules (24 credits). With nesma, you get access to all three modules, so you can broaden your skills and knowledge. If you decide to take the third assessment, you can easily upgrade to the Extended Certificate (36 credits) by paying the additional assessment fee (£125).

1.Marketing essentials (mandatory module)

Master core marketing principles, the marketing mix, and how marketing drives customer satisfaction and business success.
Learning outcomes
  • Understand what marketing means, why it’s important, and how it helps keep customers happy.
  • Learn about the marketing environment and how customers make buying decisions.
  • Get to know the marketing mix, how it works in different types of businesses, and how to measure marketing success.
Find out more about what you’ll learn in Marketing essentials →

2. Content & channels and/or

Discover how to create engaging content and choose the right channels to reach your audience effectively.
Learning outcomes
  • Learn about different online and offline marketing channels and how they’re used to connect with customers.
  • Discover the types of content you can create and what influences the best choices for your audience.
  • Understand how to pick the right mix of channels and content to deliver a successful marketing campaign.
Find out more about what you’ll learn in Content and channels →

3. Marketing insights 

Explore how to gather insights, understand customers, and use data to shape smarter marketing decisions and stronger relationships.
Learning outcomes
  • Learn about market research methods and how to turn data into actionable insights for better decision-making.
  • Understand what drives customer behaviour and how it impacts marketing success.
  • Explore the customer journey and how insights help build stronger relationships
  • Discover how to use a marketing audit to set effective objectives and make recommendations.
Find out more about how this module develops your marketing insight skills →

What our learners say

Helped secure a payrise!

Since completing my course, I have been able to take on more solo projects surrounding SEO and more paid advetising responsibiities.  This helped secure a payrise.

Step up your game!

Your commitment, passion, and delivery were really amazing. We had a great start and the speed as well as intensity with which we rolled out globally over 3 years was unbelievable.

Concise and practical content

I learned a lot and now feel ready to implement these techniques into my organisation. 

Very Professional!

It was an excellent training program, and I am very pleased. The instructors were very knowledgeable, and the content was relevant to our industry.

Simple to understand!

Armed with the knowledge and techniques obtained from your school, I feel more equipped to navigate the challenging social aspects of the real world and become a professional in my field of choice.

Excellent Training Program!

The presenters were amazing. They were engaging, timely, and knowledgeable

5% off for nesma students and alumni!

If you have registered or attended a course
with us before, copy/ use the promo code
on the right when you enrol*
*We will of course verify you have previously learnt with us
Use promo code:

nesmaAlumni2025

Still not sure?  Talk to an advisor now 

Write your awesome label here.

Courses