Training and Courses
Sanctions SOS has a well established history of designing and delivering quality sanctions training courses. We have worked with a number of training providers to create their own sanctions training courses and/or review existing training courses. Addition have delivered training on behalf of a number of organisations.
How do Sanctions SOS online courses and certificates work?
At Sanctions SOS we have two very distinct online offerings for training, the Sanctions SOS Masterclass Training Series, and the Sanctions SOS Certified Courses.
We launched our first online training course in 2024 in the format of one of our Masterclass Training Series. Our wider Certified Course offerings will hopefully be launching in 2025.
The Sanctions SOS Masterclass Training Series is a training programme that see's each course provide curated required reading, an Overview Manual, and five weeks of tutor-led seminars. The Masterclass Series provides an overview of the topics and explores some of the most pertinent issues in more depth. It presents an opportunity to share knowledge and experience through the tutor led- seminar discussion. The seminar are broken down into section of tutor-led teaching and group discussions. Those completing the Masterclass Series, receive a certificate of attendance and 2 credits toward a Sanctions SOS diploma, as well as six taught CPD hours, and up to 18 hours structure CPD.
The Sanctions SOS Certified Courses are divided into three categories. All of our sanctions courses involve a number of case studies and examples of real life sanctions in action.
At the more introductory level we will be offering Foundation Level courses, which are designed based on students having some sanctions knowledge and experience but looking to gain an understanding of various areas of sanctions work as a building blocks for more detailed knowledge.
Within the Foundation Level courses there are two Foundation Plus Level courses, these two courses are designed to cover a wider area of work addressing the key components of sanctions and sanctions compliance.
At Practitioner Level we offer two course again these are on sanctions and sanctions compliance. The focus of the sanctions course is much more on understanding how and why sanctions are used, the design of sanctions regimes, the different types of sanctions measures, and common issues across sanctions work such as proliferation finance, terrorism finance, sanctions evasion and enforcement. The sanctions compliance courses are much more focussed on managing and mitigating sanctions from a risk perspective . These course explore issues such as control frameworks, beneficial ownership, incident management, regulatory reporting, and the management of blocked and frozen assets.
How do these courses work in practice, we would envisage that those working on sanctions within a public sector role or with a more academic interest would undertake the Practitioner Level Sanctions course and the Foundation Plus Level Sanctions Compliance course. In this way students will gain in-depth understanding of sanctions, whilst understanding what the impact is from a compliance perspective. For those working in the private sector or more focussed on sanctions compliance we would suggest undertaking the Practitioner Level Sanctions Compliance course, and the Foundation Plus Sanctions course. This combination will provide in-depth sanctions compliance knowledge and a strong overview and understanding of how sanctions are created and work.
The final level of taught Sanctions SOS courses is the Expert Level courses, which are detailed courses on a particular area of sanctions work. These courses are designed to give significant insights and create deep knowledge of the subject matter.
All Sanctions SOS Certified Courses are assessed with certificates being awarded for successful completion of the courses at the grade achieved through the assessment. As well as the qualification and certificate, students will gain credits based on the level of the qualification. The credit system is important in granting access to our final qualification which is the Sanctions SOS diploma. Once a student has built up enough credits they may look to complete a Sanctions SOS diploma in sanctions. More information about the Diploma can be found below.
Masterclass Training Series
Sanctions SOS offers an Online Masterclass Training Series across a number of subjects. These series are designed to deliver broad online learning on the various topics of the subject with a series of five tutor-led discussion seminars run across five consecutive weeks. The first session in 90 minutes in length, each following session is an hour. As well as this students are have access to curated learning materials drawn from a number of sources, and an overview manual. These documents form the weekly required reading. The Masterclass Series is delivered through Zoom meetings, and Dropbox for accessing the materials.
Currently the Masterclass subjects offered are:
Sanctions Compliance (launching October 2024)
Counter-Proliferation (launching Q1 2025)
The Online Masterclasses run one per Sanctions SOS Term over the course of the year. We also vary the time of the tutor-led sessions across the terms to cater for different time zones.
Online Masterclass training series are priced at £375 + VAT (where applicable) , and are worth 2 credits. Those completing the Masterclass Series, receive a certificate of attendance and 2 credits toward a Sanctions SOS diploma, as well as six taught CPD hours, and up to 18 hours structure CPD.
For more information on the online masterclass training series see the relevant page on this website.
Foundation Level Courses
Foundation Level course are the entry level courses that Sanctions SOS will offer. These courses are designed to give the building blocks of sanctions knowledge, as well as some specific knowledge around a number of topics such as how to use Open-Source Intelligence in sanctions. As well as the Foundation Level courses there are two Foundation Plus Level courses covering an Introduction to sanctions, and an Introduction to sanctions compliance.
Foundation Level courses are priced at £550 + VAT (where applicable) , and are worth 2 credits.
Foundation Plus Level courses are priced at £650 + VAT (where applicable), and are worth 3 credits.
Practitioner Level Courses
Practitioner Level courses are designed to provide an general in-depth study into all things sanctions related. We will be offering two Practitioner Level courses, which will focus on firstly Sanctions, and secondly Sanctions Compliance. These two courses are designed to dovetail with the opposite courses at Foundation Plus Level. However you do not need to do these other courses in order to undertake the Practitioner Level courses. It is also important to note that whilst the Sanctions Course is largely focussed on the concepts of sanctions design, how they are negotiated and created, and concepts such as sanctions evasion, proliferation finance, cyber and ransomware, it does also cover some sanctions compliance concepts such as control frameworks, regulatory reporting and incident management. The key difference is this is more of an overview and less of a deep dive on these subjects. Likewise the Sanctions Compliance course is a deep-dive in all matters of sanctions compliance, from writing a sanctions policy, to risk assessments, designing the control framework, incident management and regulatory reporting. However, the course also covers issues such as the background and history of sanctions, common measures used in sanctions regimes, and a look at geo-politics.
Practitioner Level course are priced at £1450 + VAT (where applicable), and are worth 4 credits.
Expert Level Courses
Expert Level course are the deep-dives into specific sanctions issues and topics designed to give students a comprehensive knowledge and understanding of that topic. These courses will include deep-dives into the likes of UN sanctions, EU sanctions, how the US and UK use sanctions, and Sanctions use in Africa. The Expert Level courses will also include deep dives into a number of topics such as a course on the subject of sanctions evasion, one on proliferation finance, one on humanitarian and unintended consequences of sanctions. Expert Level courses will also look at a number of specific sectors such as the financial sector or maritime sector. The Expert Level courses are designed to provide in-depth knowledge and understanding of the topic to create real subject matter experts.
Expert Level courses are priced at £550 + VAT (where applicable) , and are worth 2 credits.
What's with the Credits?
As we have already seen the credit system is important for students seeking to do a Sanctions SOS Diploma. Each course a student successfully completes will see the awarding of a number of credits. When a student has amassed 9 credits they will be able to apply to do a Sanctions SOS Diploma. In this way we ensure that the student seeking to do the Sanctions SOS Diploma, is both truly devoted to learning and development and has the necessary sanctions expertise to undertake the Diploma.
Sanctions SOS Diploma
The Sanctions SOS Diploma is different to how many other training establishments run a Diploma Level certificate. For us the awarding of a Sanctions SOS Diploma is both an indicator of someone who is committed to learning and development and who has become a genuine sanctions subject matter expert. Therefore students can only undertake the Sanctions SOS Diploma when they have amassed enough credits, through the completion of other Sanctions SOS courses.
The Sanctions SOS Diploma is designed as a final thesis to evaluate the student's expertise on a specific area of sanctions which interests them and which they have built expertise in. When a student enrols to do the Diploma, they will indicate the specialist area of sanctions work that they would like o do their thesis on. They will then be matched with a Sanctions SOS tutor with relevant experience who will supervise them in he completion of their thesis. The diploma will require the completion of a 15,000 word thesis on the subject, with the exact thesis question to be agreed between the student and supervisor. Providing the student is successfully awarded their Diploma, following assessment of their thesis, the thesis will be published in the students name under the banner of Sanctions SOS as a White Paper.
During the course of the completion of the thesis the student will have a number of one-to-one tutoring sessions, as well as the opportunity to submit drafts of parts of the thesis for review and advice prior to the assessment of the thesis itself. It is envisaged that the Diploma will take six months to complete, but the length may vary depending on the student.
The Sanctions SOS Diploma is priced at £300 + VAT (where applicable).
What is the Sanctions SOS In-Person Training Programme?
We are proud to announce that our In-Person training programme will be launching this year. The In-Person training programme will offer the combination of sanctions learning, and networking opportunities with other sanctions professionals. The programme is aimed at both new and experienced sanctions professionals.
The training courses will vary in type and style and include the use of immersive scenarios where appropriate.
The programme will see course delivered in a number of locations and if you believe there would be demand in your location please get in touch and let us know.
Training Offered and schedule
We launched our In-Person training programme in December 2023, and since then it has proved both popular and useful for attendees. Costs will vary course to course based on location, size and length.
The In-Person training is currently made up of the following courses:
Sanctions Compliance Immersive Training
In 2024 we will be launching an additional in-person training courses, these will be:
Counter-Proliferation Immersive Training
In 2025 we will be launching two further in-person courses:
Sanctions Investigations; how to conduct sanctions investigations and build cases
Sanctions Evasion; identifying, managing and mitigating the risks
Our In-Person training is run throughout the year, most courses are split between being delivered in Manchester and London. We aim to deliver the course across our three terms with approximately four sanctions compliance courses a year for example.
Credits
Every attendee of an In-Person training course will receive a certificate of attendance
Attendees at an In-Person training course will gain a number of credits, dependent on the course, that can be used towards our Diploma programme.
For more information:
For more information please see our dedicated page to In-Person training on this website .
Organisations whose staff have attended our training
