Course description

Need to make a social media post, a flyer or a presentation that looks professional, but you've never studied design? This course teaches you Canva step by step, along with the simple design rules that make the difference between "home-made" and "polished".

It's a full course, not a quick list of tips. There are 10 sections and 52 step-by-step written lessons, and every lesson ends with a practical task to do in Canva. Every section has a practice pack of briefs, sample text, practice images and checklists. Throughout the course you follow a part-time shop assistant at an independent bike shop as she learns Canva from scratch and builds the shop's brand, posts, print and presentations.

What you'll learn

• Canva basics: the home page, the editor, templates, text, elements, photos and layers.
• Design basics: layout, alignment, hierarchy, colour, fonts, white space and accessible design.
• Your brand: a simple logo, colours, fonts, a Brand Kit and a one-page brand guide.
• Social media: posts, stories and carousels in the right sizes, plus a month of planned posts.
• Print: flyers, posters, price lists and business cards, with bleed and print-ready PDFs.
• Presentations and documents: clear slides, charts and multi-page reports.
• Video and working smarter: short videos, animation, captions, sharing, folders, team templates and AI tools used sensibly.

Two final projects

You'll create a brand kit and social media starter pack for your own business, club or idea, then a full event campaign with a poster, social posts and a short presentation.

Who this course is for

• Office, admin and marketing staff who are asked to "just make a quick graphic".
• Small business owners and sole traders who want to do their own designs.
• People who run clubs, charities, schools or community groups.
• Anyone who wants a practical design skill for their CV.

How the course works

Read each lesson, then do the Try it task in Canva. You only need a free Canva account: where a feature needs a paid plan, the lesson says so and shows a free alternative. Canva updates its layout often, so lessons explain what each tool does and how to find it if it moves. You keep lifetime access, so you can come back whenever you need a refresher.

What will i learn?

• Find your way around Canva and turn a template into your own design
• Use layout, hierarchy, colour, fonts and white space so designs look professional
• Make designs accessible with good contrast, readable text and alt text
• Build a simple logo, colour palette, fonts and a one-page brand guide
• Design social media posts, stories and carousels and plan a month of posts
• Prepare flyers, posters and business cards for print with bleed and PDF Print
• Create clear presentations, charts and multi-page reports
• Make short videos and animated posts, and share and organise designs with others

Frequently asked question