Shaw Academy Review

Note: We receive a commission for purchases made through the links on this site. Our sponsors, however, do not influence our editorial content in any way.

Shaw Academy is based out of Dublin and was founded in 2013 by Adrian Murphy and James Egan. The goal of the academy is to bring low-cost education to everyone around the world. Its courses are interactive, an area where many of its competitors are lacking. In 2016, Shaw Academy had more than 1.84 million students, and it is still growing quickly. It has also formed partnerships with prestigious companies such as Adobe, GoDaddy, Vodafone and Naukri.com.

How Does Shaw Academy Work?

To access courses through Shaw Academy, you need to either sign up for the free 30-day trial or purchase a membership for $49.95 per month. Since taking advantage of the free trial is the smarter option before getting out your credit card, we recommend starting there.

To sign up for the free trial, click on the “Start Your Free Trial” button located in the center of Shaw Academy’s home page. From here, you will be asked what you want to learn today. When you click on a category that you’re interested in, the available courses will appear. Not every course qualifies under the free trial offer, so you may need to shop around a bit before you find one that is free and that you want to take.

Once you’ve completed the sign-up process for the risk-free trial, you will have access to the class you’ve chosen for the next 30 days. If you like what Shaw Academy has to offer, you can then become a member and access all of its courses.

What Makes Shaw Academy Stand Out?

Unlike other online learning portals where courses are prearranged and video lectures are always prerecorded, Shaw Academy’s courses are all held live. If you’re worried about flexibility, don’t be. The courses are held on multiple days of the week and at multiple times throughout the day. Also, the lectures are recorded, so you can always go back and watch them. The other area where Shaw Academy stands out is its fostering of interaction among teachers and students.

Common Shaw Academy Reviews

To be fair, Shaw Academy is fairly new and hasn’t stacked up as many reviews as some of its competitors. On TrustPilot.com, there were only five Shaw Academy reviews with a combined score of 2 out of 5 stars or 4.9 out of 10. Either way you look at it, Shaw Academy received a poor score on this particular website. Overall, the complaints seem to center around extra or hidden costs and lots of upselling on the part of Shaw Academy.

One customer complained about everything having to cost extra. He said, “… the worst thing is everything is extra. If you want notes it’s extra, if you want your final assignment checked its extra and if you want a certificate it’s extra. Last thing is their phone calls. They will keep texting and calling you to get you joined in their yearly pass. Their tutorials and presentation are great. I would have joined if these extras didn’t exist.”

Another customer said, “Their basic discounted courses are just there to generate leads to up sell their monthly membership program rather than being of any real value. Some basic google searching on the subject matter will provide more information than what you are going to get in return for your $10 Groupon intro course.”

On the other hand, there were some positive Shaw Academy reviews as well. One customer said, “For me, it was clear that the course is aimed at people that are just beginning to learn about nutrition. It covers the basics really well and the concepts taught are easy to understand for someone just getting started.

That said, I still learned quite a lot. Even if you are a whiz at nutrition, I can guarantee that you’ll still get some solid value out of the course. Just like I did.

The teacher, Michelle, was truly brilliant. Her nice British accent is easy on the ears (but also means that the live lessons are in the middle of the night, Australian time) and she has a great way of explaining things and getting you to take action to improve your nutrition. Because that’s what we’re here for, right?”

Is Shaw Academy for Me?

If the idea of taking one or more courses a month excites you, then Shaw Academy may be for you for the simple fact that it offers access to thousands of courses for one monthly membership price. This can turn out to be a huge money saver if you’ve been paying for each course you take on a competitor’s site.

Another reason to consider Shaw Academy is if you are looking for more contact with your instructor. Students tend to feel more connected to the lecturer due to Shaw Academy’s distinct method of offering live lectures. In fact, the courses are designed to foster interaction between students and educators, student and tutors, and students and students.

For people who are busy, Shaw Academy allows all of its courses to be completed at the student’s discretion. You don’t always have to be available for the live sessions, making it easy to complete the courses on your own time. Having access to the educational portal 24/7 is also convenient for busy students of Shaw Academy. You can take exams and quizzes as well as review materials and replay videos any time of day.

If English is not your first language, you can take advantage of courses offered in different languages.

If you’re looking to hone your existing skills or gain some new ones, Shaw Academy is also for you. Have you always wanted a diploma in nutrition, or are you interested in learning more about child nutrition? Perhaps you need to hone your household budgeting skills with a fresh course from Shaw Academy. For whatever reason you need to learn a new skill, Shaw Academy can provide the instruction you need for a low monthly price. There is no pressure to complete courses by a certain time, and you can cancel at any time. This is education with no long-term commitment.

About the Author

Jeff Hindenach

Jeff Hindenach is the co-founder of Versus Reviews. He graduated from Bowling Green State University with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism. He has a long history of journalism, with a background writing for newspapers such as the San Jose Mercury News and San Francisco Examiner, as well as writing for The Huffington Post, New York Times, Business Insider, CNBC, Newsday and The Street. He believes in giving readers the tools they need to get out of debt.