Curriculum

Event Planning Curriculum

Penn Foster’s online Event Planning curriculum covers five courses to build essential event planning skills and knowledge to prepare for a career in the field. You'll cover how to work with vendors and clients, planning different types of events, and more.

Event Planning

Career Diploma

2 months

As low as $59/mo

Full Program Overview

1-800-471-3232 (9AM - 9PM ET)

Event Planning Curriculum

15.1 continuing education units (CEUs)
5 courses
14 exams
1 graded project

Estimated completion time:

Fast track = 2 months
Average time = 6 months

With Penn Foster, you can learn at whatever pace works best for you. Some learners will be more comfortable moving faster, and dedicating more time, and the fast track estimate will apply to them. The average track will apply to most learners who can dedicate a few hours per week to completing their coursework. The estimated completion times are based on completion times for learners enrolled in this program from May 2021 - April 2022, excluding withdrawals.

In this course, you’ll develop the necessary skills to ensure your success in the program. You’ll learn how you can improve your study skills, so you’re able to use a number of tools that will help you to be successful.

Objectives:
- Identify skills needed to be a confident and independent online learner.
In this course, you’ll learn the role of the event planner and the typical services provided by event planners. It’s important to understand how to evaluate your business idea and set yourself apart from the competition. You’ll examine the importance of professionalism and manners and how to contract with clients and vendors. Finally, you’ll learn about typical event styles and themes, event marketing and promotion, and ways of organizing and controlling events.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to:
- Evaluate whether your business idea is lean enough
- Learn new ways to explore the business activities of your competitors to your advantage
- Understand the reasons for doing market testing designed to fail fast
- Describe the difference between investment funding and donation funding
- Evaluate which qualities of an entrepreneur you already possess
- Explain the difference between crowdfunding and angel investors
- Define the term event planning
- Recognize the different types of event planners
- Identify the various roles necessary for planning an event
- Summarize the difference between the terms certificate and certification
- Identify and distinguish among the three categories of event planning
- Explain the differences among the various ways event planners may bill for their services
- Recognize the importance of professionalism when meeting with a potential client
- Recognize the importance of a written proposal and the key items that should be included in a proposal
- Identify the steps to follow in the closing meeting
- Explain the importance of comprehending the event budget, the event size, and the event style
- Identify the parts of a contract that can be negotiated before it’s finalized
- Understand your role in walking the client through the development of the budget
- Comprehend the importance of having event insurance and liability
- Recognize why the timeline is important to the success of the event
- Explain the difference between style and theme
- Recognize how the storyboard can aid in creating the vision for the event
- Identify the importance of the connection between a team and a successful event
- Recognize the importance of the client’s review
In this course, you’ll learn the event planner’s role in determining the guest list, securing a venue, and sending invitations. Documentation and record keeping is extremely important. You’ll discover the different types of vendors that event planners work with and learn about finding and interviewing appropriate vendors for events, reviewing samples of work, asking for references, and saying thank you. The budget is another critical part of the event business. You’ll learn about the menu, the registry and methods for receiving and safeguarding gifts during events.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to:
- Identify the planner’s role in developing the guest list
- Explain how the guest list drives the budget
- Describe the process for selecting a venue
- Outline the steps involved in implementing a plan of action for an event
- Explain the importance of event record keeping
- Explain the selection and timing needed to “get the word out” about the event
- Summarize the process of developing and implementing an event schedule
- Summarize the steps in finding vendors
- Describe the importance of vendor references
- Explain why it’s important to build rapport with vendors
- Describe why it’s important for you to say “thank you”
- Describe the importance of the timeline in the vendor-hire process
- Explain how to select flowers for different occasions
- Outline the importance of the budget in the selection of food and beverages
- Summarize the role played by photography in documenting an event
- Describe why good record keeping is important when receiving gifts
In this course, you’ll learn about organizing fundraising events, dealing with host committees and sponsors, and planning live auctions. You’ll learn about planning for early life events, including baby showers, B’rit Milah, B’rit Bat, baptisms, christenings, and dedications. You’ll study planning for other life events and rituals, including Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, quinceañeras, anniversary parties, and birthday parties, including sweet sixteen parties. Finally, you’ll learn about things to consider when selecting destination locations, including popular destinations, planning and budgeting, legal requirements, and important travel tips for clients.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to:
- Describe the mechanics involved in planning a fundraiser
- Explain how you can utilize pro bono work to get your name out there
- List and define the three primary types of organizations
- Describe the importance of sponsors in fundraising
- Summarize social media’s role in a fundraising plan
- Explain how creativity can be advantageous in planning fundraisers
- Identify and describe different types of early life events
- Summarize the complexity involved in shower events
- Identify and describe the first life events of the Jewish faith
- Identify and describe the Christian baptismal ceremony
- Describe the differences between “baptism” and “christening”
- Identify and describe cultural reasons for rituals
- Summarize three major rituals
- Compare a quinceañera to a sweet sixteen
- Describe the religious significance of Jewish and Catholic rituals
- Describe the complex planning involved in coming-of-age rituals
- Identify other parties that are part of life’s cycle
- Describe the importance of establishing connections with other local planners as well as vendors
- Identify popular locations for destination events
- Summarize the procedure for selecting a destination location
- Identify the steps in planning a destination event
- Explain how to develop a destination package for a client
In this course, you’ll learn how to start and run a successful business. You’ll examine the business plan, researching other event planning businesses, and the importance of business etiquette and protocol. You’ll discover the importance of marketing and networking, including social media and other online tools; you’ll also learn about hiring reliable assistants. Finally, you’ll complete a project-based assignment to demonstrate the strength of your writing skills as well as the development of contracts, timelines, and other important written documentation.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to:
- Explain why you should start your own business
- Describe the qualities of a successful event planner
- Outline the steps needed to start and grow an event planning business
- Describe the benefits of continuing education
- Explain why you should—and shouldn’t—give your services away for free
- Describe the importance of networking and marketing
- Explain how important an assistant can be to your success
- Explain the role of the Internet and social media for business operations and marketing
- Outline how to build and market a website
- Demonstrate what you’ve learned in this program
- Demonstrate the ability to analyze a variety of event planning scenarios and develop appropriate courses of action for each
- Demonstrate the strength of your writing skills. Remember, as an event planner, you’ll be in constant written communication with different people in a variety of ways—through email and social media tools, as well as via the development of contracts, timelines, and other written documentation.

Note: We reserve the right to change program content and materials when it becomes necessary.