Do people consider OU degrees

[EverythingRightNow]

I was wondering do people consider OU degrees real degrees? One thing that gets me is I'm into arts and crafts, you essentially get a brief & work from it, why don't they do Arts OU that are funded the same way?

It would work in a similar fashion where you touch base with a tutor periodically.

My friends laughed when I suggested getting an OU degree as I should aim for a real one instead. Is this general consensus?

The snobbery on here is astounding. How many professions actually care about where you did your degree?

Loads.

Degrees are not all the same. Maths from a top university, which requires A or A* at A level in Maths and Further Maths, is of course going to be much more rigorous than a bottom ranked provincial new university where you can get in with a grade C in maths.

The calibre of entrants, and of those leaving with 2:1 degrees from each university, are not the same. I know that's not popular, and many claim that all degrees are externally moderated and therefore must be equal, but they are not.

Some universities allow resits or resubmissions, some cap grades in resits, some don't allow any. Some do open book exams, some give out the exam questions in advance; just some examples of how standards are different between universities.

They are not all the same.

That said, I think OU degrees often show other qualities that are valuable.

In my recruitment I'm mostly concerned with what people have done in the last 2-3 years at work than in which class degree they were awarded or where they did it.

I would think more highly of a mature single parent student who'd worked their way from a sink estate comp to do an OU degree than some privileged teenager floating through private school and Oxbridge.

Recruiters in the elite professions who have gone through Oxbridge themselves will of course regurgitate the myth that an Oxbridge degree necessarily displays superior achievement. I don't think the case is proven.

Totally agree with your first paragraph EastMidsmummy.
But disagree with the second - I'm in an 'elite profession' but I'm actively trying to change it by recruiting in a more diverse and open-minded manner. Prove to me what you can do, not where you went to school 😁 (NB totally agree that not everyone in my industry feels the same, but it is changing...)

youarenotkiddingme
I'm surprised many think it's not the same?
Surely if graduate with a 2:1 in maths it's the same whatever uni it came from?

It depends what you mean about "the same". The same degree qualification on paper? Yes, they are the same level of undergraduate degree.

The same syllabus? Undoubtedly not.
The same academic focus? Extremely varied?
The same exposure to industry? Definitely not.
The same time spent with academics? Totally different.
The same measurement of academic progress? Varied.
The same opportunities to research? Completely different.
The same toughness to get through it? No, not at all.
The same kudos with employers and other academic institutions? Utterly different.

Because of the above, no, in interpreting the capabilities of a candidate for their expertise in maths, a graduate with a 2:1 in maths is not the same whatever uni it came from.

No, I don't consider an Open University degree to be as good as a real degree. An OU degree can take years of on/off study, it's not the same as dedicating three years of one's life to study.

An OU degree is better than none at all of course, and the fact that most people see it as a kind of hobby is not a bad thing - there are far less constructive hobbies out there (fishing, sewing, ice-skating for example).

It depends what you want the degree for. If you just want to be able to say "I've got a degree" then it's easier, cheaper and quicker just to buy an honourary degree online. If you want to learn a subject seriously, commit to a proper degree. If you just want something to do in your spare time, OU may be the way.

That's a seriously patronising post, chelledawg

Have you studied or taught on both types of degree?

Wow ChelleDawg2020 I take it you have years of extensive experience in both sorts of institution and speak with first hand knowledge. How thoroughly unenlightened. Laughable really.

Chelledawg. Have you ever studied with the OU?! Do you have a degree also from another institution as to make an informed comparison?

If not, you may be exhibiting a conformatery bias, based on previous ideas which feeds into a cognitive dissonance regardless of any information you believe to be true regarding higher education.

Open uni rocks.

I don't really understand what's wrong with sewing, fishing or ice skating either, unless that's part of the whole wind-up thing

@HerSymphonyAndSong

@ConciseandNice

@solarisIsAClassic

Haha a whole email notification just for that!

I have degrees from an RG, a redbrick and the OU. I've been hiring people for most of my 35 year career.

Yes, to a point, degrees - and where they are from - matter. An OU degree is viewed as rigorous and demanding as a bricks & mortar Uni degree. In addition, the fact that the candidate is likely to have juggled study with work and family demonstrate extra, desirable skills. I'm a bit more dismissive of what I judge to be less demanding degrees from "weaker" institutions - and that comes from experience.

More important is what people have done in their lives, what their attitude to work is, and how much they can prove to me they want, and will be good at, this job. Degrees are no longer the passport they once were.

Yes, an ou degree is, certainly in my profession, as respected as one from a good university. Ou courses tend to be very good and they require a greater degree of independence and discipline than a normal course. People saying otherwise should join the rest of us in 2017.

As someone who has a degree from a respected uni and has completed numerous OU courses, I'd say they are respected in different ways and it really does depend on what course it is.

Don't for one minute think OU courses are an easy cop out. My last one involved residentials and "atyending" online lectures and groups.

In my experience, when qualifications come up in job interviews etc they are always more impressed by the OU stuff as it shows a commitment to continual learning. Lots of people go to uni because it's the done thing or becsuse they're nit sure what else to do. To take on extra learning when working, raising children etc shows more consideration and effort.

I'm planning on going back to uni and it may end up being a distance course eitger through the OU or another uni.

Just to add, I know the NHS has utilised OU courses for it's staff including putting them on their masters courses.

I did part of an OU degree whilst dc was a toddler, and from that I went on to do an undergraduate degree at Oxbridge (~7yrs ago)

Funnily enough, they saw it as a "proper" degree...

I did an OU degree. My tutor also worked as a tutor as a Russell Group university. I was once given 74 for an assignment (a first at any other uni, a 2:1 at OU where you need 85 for a first). I questioned it. It turned out she had forgotten the grade system was different at OU, and had marked in accordance with the normal grade system. She gave me 85, a bare first. By that account the OU is surely somewhat harsher than the Russell Group uni, or certainly on par. It's obviously only one anecdote but I don't think it's fair to say the OU is necessarily easier.

Another anecdote; I got straight As in my A levels (before the A* was introduced) and could have gone to a top uni if I hadn't made silly decisions. I genuinely struggled to keep up academically with the OU, it wasn't easy at all!

I wish someone had told me and my husband that OU degrees aren't 'real' degrees! Goddamnit!

DH and I both studied whilst working full time and I had started a small business, plus going on to have a large family in a short space of time, and three international moves. We are doing tremendously well (still abroad) and living a wonderful lifestyle that would not have been afforded to us otherwise. We continue to study with the OU, but take it in turns, because being away from family and having no support/help at all, working full time jobs and I am still running my own business, plus, all of our children are still aged 9 and under, we felt that we both couldn't commit simultaneously.

Our employers (across several countries) have been nothing but impressed at our drive, determination and success, and continue to be supportive.

And tell your friend to stop pissing on your parade. You go ahead, and be proud of yourself!

Another one here with a degree and masters from a b&m RG uni, and a BSc and MSc from the ou.

The ou is hard, hard work. I learnt loads. I worked far harder than when I went to uni originally.

And I'm far prouder of my ou achievements.

And anyone I've spoken to about my OU degrees, friends, acquaintances, in interviews, in a professional capacity, anyone, had been impressed. No one has considered them lesser degrees. Or "just a hobby".

The OU is an amazing institution.

Something else to add to OU studies - Because the lecturers and fellow students are mostly in work, it is an absolutely fabulous networking system. I've been offered a non exec director role through an OU contact as well as several other opportunities.

Countdowntofour I started OU before I was pregnant with DS2 and have just graduated. Doing it part time (over 6 years) meant the workload was manageable - equated to 2 or 3 hours study a night once the kids were asleep. As I really love the subject it was actually fun rather than a chore! They were also very accomodating and let me do my exam at home for the module when DS was a newborn: they sent an invigilator to my house and said I could break to feed him if I needed to. Although in the end he had a freakishly long sleep through the whole exam!

Oh, and I am just about to start my MA at very well regarded brick uni, so an OU degree must count for something in the academic world at least.

I'd definitely check out their Open learn website, and maybe register for a short online course on www.futurelearn.com/ in a subject that interests you. That will at least give you an idea of how easy you will find it to set aside regular time for study.

An interesting point is that some professions all take the same terminal exam - marked independently of the uni it doesn't matter which uni you originally started at.

I've also got two degrees from highly ranked bricks & mortar unis but found the ou courses I've done much more rigorous and rewarding.

I also did several courses with OCA (Open College of the Arts) (drawing, music) and again I found it excellent. They also teach to degree level.

You need to look at the OCA. I'm doing a textiles degree with them (not as a first degree) and loving it.

www.oca.ac.uk/