Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Smart Event Academy
Who is this program for?
This program is for anyone who is interested in a career in event tech project management. Ideal participants:
– Are tech-inclined, but not technical
– Are well-organized
– Stay calm under pressure
– Are clear communicators that are comfortable translating concepts to different audiences
– Like the cyclical nature of events
What if I'm not technical?
The program is specifically designed for non-technical event professionals. Easy-to-use event tech combined with in depth training videos means even if you’ve never touched a reg system in your life, you will be able to follow along.
What are the course prerequisites?
There are no business or technical pre-requisites to take a course. The course is delivered in English and there is both video and written content. Natural curiosity, love of problem-solving, and desire to learn new things is all you need to succeed.
I deliver in person events. Is this still relevant?
Yes, absolutely! As long as your in person event has any digital components – registration, speaker management, exhibitor management, content management – you will benefit. The in-person/digital inter-relationship is often missed in event planning, and this course addresses that directly.
What type of real-world experience will I get taking this course?
In the Foundations course we take a mock event style approach to learning to take you from event brief to event delivery, using real event tech. You’ll get to build and manage your own event from start to finish, including some of the most familiar gotchas. We’ll get you as close to a real event as we can without you stepping foot on the show floor.
I already work in events, will this program be valuable for me?
If you are curious to learn more about how the in person components of an event intersect with registration, session and speaker management, the expo and more, then this program will be valuable to your event management career.
My organization uses different tech, will this program be relevant?
Yes, this program will. The concepts remain the same, independent of the tech. While the event tech is an integral part of this program, this is not a technical event tech training program. The digital event strategy and concepts taught in this program will translate to any event tech stack.
What do you mean by event tech?
In this case, event tech means the online components — from the marketing site to registration to the content system to the schedule builder to the digital venue — that’s required to deliver an event.
A/V (audio visual) and production are not a part of this program beyond integration tips and tricks.
Course details and time commitment
How long is the program?
The core training program is six weeks, followed by a 90-day mentoring program. However, you have lifetime access to the community, so the learning never stops.
What is the course format?
The Foundations course consists of:
– Six-week online, self-paced course with weekly live Q&A calls and some small group exercises
– 90-day mentoring program with weekly live Q&A calls
– Lifetime access to an online community of event tech pros that is here for you 24×7
When does your next cohort start?
New cohorts start every couple of months. Sign up here to get on the waitlist.
How much time should I expect to spend per week?
The Smart Event Foundations course is designed as an intensive to help professionals quickly get up to speed. You can expect to spend roughly 3-5 hours per week on course material, including homework.
What happens if I get behind?
Life happens and people get behind. While this course is designed to get people up to speed quickly, we know that keeping up with the material may not be possible for everyone.
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Which means that the weekly live calls are not tied to any specific lesson. And you have an additional 90 days once your six weeks is up to finish getting through the material and complete the quizzes so you can get your certificate.
What happens if I don’t get through the material in six weeks?
You have another 90 days post course completion to finish up.
What happens if I miss a live Q&A call?
All calls are recorded and are available to be watched at any time.
How does the mentoring program work?
The 90-day mentoring program follow the six-week learning program, and consists of weekly live Q&A calls (plus your lifetime access to the community).
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These calls are your chance to marry what you learned in the course with what you are seeing in the workplace.
Will I lose access to the course material?
You will be removed from the course at the end of the mentoring program. However, you will have lifetime access to the online community.
Can I binge watch the course?
Of course. Lessons for the week are released on Mondays.
When are new lessons released?
Lessons for the week are released on Mondays.
Enrollment and payment
How much does the Smart Event Academy cost?
The Foundations course costs $3,495 USD. However, for those who register early for the pilot program, pricing is $1.795 USD.
What payment methods do you accept?
For individuals, we support payment by credit card.
For organizations, we support payment via credit card, ACH, or wire transfer.
Do you offer payment plans?
 Yes, we support payment plans. For individuals taking advantage of the early bird pilot pricing and paying via credit card, we offer two equal payments of $1,100 USD.
As an individual, can I sign up?
You bet. And with a cohort-based learning model, you’ll start meeting industry peers on the very first day.
Can I enroll my entire team?
You can. We offer group registration programs and support organizational-friendly payment options like ACH and wire transfer.
What is your refund policy?
We offer a full refund before the end of the first week of your cohort. After that time, no refunds will be issued.
Can I buy seat(s) now and take the course later?
Yes, you can purchase seats now and have up to one (1) year from the time of payment to send someone through the course.
Can you help me convince my manager to pay for the course?
You bet, and we find that many companies are happy to cut onboarding time and expenses via specialized training. We have created a proposal template that lists the course benefits that you can provide to your manager. Click here to download a copy.
Quizzes and certificates
Are there quizzes?
Yes, there are required online quizzes after many of the topics and lessons.
What do I need to do to get my certificate of completion?
You must complete all of the course material and receive an average score of 80% or higher on the lesson and module quizzes.
What is the deadline for the quizzes?
As this is a self-paced course, you can take the quizzes at your own pace. We recommend taking each lesson or module quiz as close as possible to when you completed the material.
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In order to earn your certificate of completion, you must complete all quizzes by the end of the 90-day mentoring period.
Can I retake a lesson or topic quiz?
Yes. You can take a quiz up to three times.
Is there a final quiz?
Yes, these is. In order to earn your certificate of completion, you must complete your event platform homework assignments, average 80% on the lesson and topic quizzes, and achieve a 75% grade on the final exam.
Do I need to pass each quiz to move on to the next module?
No, you can continue on to the next module without passing the quiz.
Is this a certification program?
You will receive a SEF certificate upon completion if you complete all of the course material and receive an average score of 80% or higher on the quizzes.
About the instructor
Who teaches this course?
The course is taught by Jen Santos, a 30-year tech veteran with more than a decade leading event tech at some of the world’s largest companies.
Technical questions
Where do I access the course?
The course takes place right here on https://smarteventacademy.com with the live Q&A taking place on Zoom. Once you are enrolled, you’ll get an overview of the online learning and community platform.
I’m having troubles logging in to the course platform. Who do I contact?
Please reach out to support@smarteventacademy.com. Including error messages and screen shots will help immensely.
Can I download the course to my laptop?
Throughout the program you will receive worksheets, documents, and playbooks to download and make yours. However, the course videos are not downloadable.
