There's a middle ground between courses designed by people with absolutely no background in instructional design, and formal university programmes.

Coursera has thousands of relevant courses offered online by bricks-and-mortar institutions, many of which confer academic credit or appear on lists of alternative credentials. Even the UX Professional Certificate - one of the few not to be offered by a leading university (it's run by Google) - appears on the ECTS register and is worth about 17 academic credits in the UK.

Each course on the Coursera has been assessed for its value, and has been validated as meeting the standards for being a good course. A full Specialization, such as a Professional Certificate, will cost about £300 depending on how fast you work through the material (it took me five months).

If you're willing to contribute just another $100 or so to your work-allocated budget, you can get a professional qualification from a government-accredited awarding body.

For example, the Chartered Institute of Marketing - regulated by the Privy Council (a group of advisors to the King) and Ofqual (national exams regulator) - offers standalone modules in market research for about £500, offered online through local colleges. The 170-hour module is assessed by written assignment. It typically takes 4-6 months and provides the foundation for any UX Researcher to learn survey and interview skills.