There’s absolutely no substitute for a good degree from a reputable university – and BCU is a good one.
If I were looking to employ a young designer and had a choice of two candidates (it would be many more), if one had a good degree and the other a series of udemy (or similar) courses. the latter would almost certainly end up firmly on the NO pile. An actual university course will teach you many things that self-directed online learning never will.
in addition, the whole entrance process will give you (if perhaps, painfully honest) a good idea of whether you have the requisite talent in the first place.
Once you have done all this, you then need four or five years of studio experience before you can even think about calling yourself a professional designer. It’s a long, hard slog, but there are no short cuts, unless you want to spend your life bottom-feeding on completion sites with the legions of self-taught who haven’t a clue what they are doing – but think they do.
I know what I am saying is fairly blunt, but it is a tough market out there. It always was, but at least when I started out, I was competing against other qualified designers. Now it is even tougher because you need to be noticed in armies of ignorant eager optimists, who think graphic design is a cool, easy-come-by career. It isn’t. It involves lots of all-nighters and silly deadlines, but do it right and it’s a very rewarding career. Try and take the shortcuts and you’ll need a second job stacking shelves to make ends meet.
Do it the right way. Good luck.