While some agents look at real estate continuing education (CE) as a check-the-box requirement in remaining licensed, others view it as an opportunity for professional development and lifelong learning. For the latter class, it doesn’t get much better than McKissock Learning, which is essentially the Rolls Royce of online CE. Not everyone needs a luxury CE experience, but for professionals who want to elevate their CE experience, McKissock Learning offers all the bells and whistles.
I took McKissock Learning out for a test drive and am ready to offer my opinion on the learning platform, features, and pricing. I also have a few alternatives if McKissock Learning doesn’t sound like the right fit for your education needs.
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My Verdict on McKissock Learning
McKissock Learning is one of the best continuing education providers in the industry because it views CE as more than just checking a box—it’s an opportunity to learn, grow, and develop as a professional. If you’re already a Colibri student (they are under the same brand and it’s helpful to keep all of your education in one place), or you’re the over-achiever type, McKissock is the ideal CE partner for you.
It’s not for everyone as they tend to be more expensive than other CE providers, but their packages are so packed with features (extra webinars, access to top-notch instructors, informational videos, and a learning library with job aides like scripts and worksheets) that it’s much more than just CE—it’s an investment in your career.
What Is McKissock Learning?
Founded in 1990, McKissock Learning has provided premier online real estate education to more than 2 million professionals. In 2014, McKissock joined several other real estate education providers under the Colibri umbrella of brands. Colibri Real Estate handles prelicensing for salespeople and brokers and McKissock focuses on continuing education. The flexible, online courses are interesting, easy to complete, and come with a slew of additional features. Plus, the instructors are top-notch and have crucial real-world experience.
McKissock Pricing
Because each state has such varied requirements, McKissock’s pricing can be a little complicated. Also, CE courses can be taken a la carte, which can make McKissock’s packages hard to compare to other providers.
McKissock’s CE Plus is really a membership that gives students access to all of the CE courses. Instead of picking and choosing the electives in the a la carte option, students have access to every single CE course as well as the bulk discount. You’ll also get access to webinars and a toolkit for educating clients. Finally, you can get extra training in sales, negotiation, marketing, and technology, as well as discounts on other professional training resources.
The package prices are slightly higher than comparable schools like The CE Shop and Kaplan, but about on par for the individual classes. Here are the price breakdowns for California, New York, and Texas to give you an idea of what you might pay.
| California | |
| CE Plus Membership | |
| Single CE Course | |
| New York | |
| CE Plus Membership | |
| 22.5-hour Renewal Package + NAR Ethics | |
| 22.5-hour First-time Renewal Package + NAR Ethics | |
| Single CE Course | |
| Texas | |
| TX CE Plus Membership | |
| 18-hour Renewal Package + NAR Ethics | |
| 18-hour Broker Responsibility Renewal Package + NAR Ethics | |
| Single CE Course | |
Key Standout Features
The McKissock Learning system is ideal for busy professionals who need a flexible, online course. In many states, students can choose between a live-online option or a correspondence-style course that they complete at their own pace, and sometimes it’s a mix of both. In California, for example, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) courses are livestreamed but the rest of the CE courses are correspondence style.
Experienced Instructors
Over the years, McKissock has gained a reputation for providing quality education through experienced instructors. While other schools also brag about their instructors, it’s rare to get actual insight into the faculty and their qualifications. Here’s a glimpse at the quality of instructors that McKissock retains:
Professional Development
McKissock’s value proposition is providing a whole host of features within its continuing education packages. Their CE Plus memberships are perfect for professionals who want to use CE as an opportunity to grow in their careers, instead of rushing through the course because their CE hours are due next week.
Imagine you need to fulfill seven hours of elective courses (if you’re in Texas, for example). You could choose two and get your requirement done. But what if several courses look interesting? Maybe you want to learn more about fair housing, helping buyers find their dream home, get market insights, and get a crash course in working with investors. With the membership you get access to every CE course in your state. So while you might not have to take all of those courses, you can take as many as you want.
The single-state CE Plus membership includes:
It’s also possible to purchase a multi-state package that would include all of the CE courses required for any of the states in which you hold a license, a really excellent value. If the packages are not what you’re looking for, you can always take your required CE courses a la carte.
McKissock Alternatives
If McKissock Learning doesn’t sound like the right fit for you and your continuing education needs, consider one of our other top picks:
| CE Providers | Best For | State Coverage | Pricing From |
|---|---|---|---|
| McKissock Learning | Realtors who want the best overall provider with great agent support and a wide variety of courses | 50 | $19 |
| The CE Shop | Agents who want the largest selection of CE courses on the market | 50 | $25 |
| Kaplan | Agents who want video-integrated CE courses with an accessible instructor | 25 | $19 |
| 360training Agent Campus | Those prioritizing affordability and flexibility | 32 | $25 |
| Aceable Agent | Texas Realtors looking for mobile-friendly, interactive CE courses | 3 | $26 |
The 5 Best Real Estate Continuing Education Providers
The Bottom Line: Is McKissock Learning Worth the Money?
Yes. If you’re the type of agent who loves to dig deep into real estate content, soak up webinars and video seminars, sharpen your skills with worksheets and scripts, and engage with top real estate education thought leaders, you’re going to get the most out of McKissock Learning.
But even if you’re not that agent, the a la carte options makes CE courses affordable and you still get the excellent instructors and flexible online schedule. Plus, you’d be part of the Colibri group of brands, which means that all of your real estate education could be all in one place for easy reporting to your state licensing board. In fact, if your state allows automatic submission of test scores and class attendance, Colibri will take care of all of that for you.
Methodology: Why You Can Trust My Review
To ensure that all our readers land on one of the best real estate continuing education providers, I evaluated McKissock Learning based on:
Read more about our methodology here.
Bringing It All Together
Do you have experience with McKissock Learning? Have any questions, comments, or advice for McKissock students? Leave us a note below!
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