Study with OpenUniversity

[diamondsr4u]

Hi
Am looking in to starting a bachelors degree with open university. Has anyone here done any courses with them? How did you find it?
If I go ahead I will be doing it part time, so 6 years. Is it recognised as a actual degree? Am sure it is right. I've just started looking in to it, I had know idea that you don't need any qualifications to start a degree course with them.
Is there any helpful information anyone can give me ? Thanks

I will be starting stage 2 with the OU in October 2021, having done stage 1 a couple of years ago. You can take up to 16 years to complete.

Yes' it's an 'actual' degree, and no, acceptance onto a degree course isn't usually dependent on prior learning.

You need to be pretty self-motivated though. Do you have a lot of other commitments? I don't know whether you've done a degree elsewhere in the past but my understanding is that you don't usually have to self-fund for undergrad unless your earnings are over £25,000 pa.

I am in year 2 of 6 with the OU.

The £25,000 earnings is for repayment of the loan not for funding. Repayment is 9% of earnings above £25k.

I really enjoy studying. It is a full degree and highly valued by employers. I was promoted recently and it was my self motivation and ability to learn from home that put me ahead of other candidates.

I'm on year 5. It's hard working full time, being a mum and getting the study in but it will be worth it. I'm on the countdown to finishing now - 1 more module after this one. 9 assignments to go!! And yep- a recognised degree.

The £25,000 earnings is for repayment of the loan not for funding. Repayment is 9% of earnings above £25k.

Hmm. That wasn't what I was told. I'm in Scotland, don't know if that makes a difference. I haven't actually applied for funding though, I self-funded the first year.

Fantastic that your degree has helped you in your job. I'm doing mine for 'fun' - it won't help me in my career. It's basically the degree I should have pursued first time round.

I started studying with them in October and so far it's been pretty good. I work full time so my degree is part time, but because I already have a degree in another social science they've done what's called 'credit transfer', so it'll only be five years for me instead of six.

The first few assessments are designed to introduce you to academic writing slowly and there's lots of support to help with this. The feedback I've had from my tutor has been really helpful.

As I earn less than £25k I applied for a grant to cover the cost, I'm in Scotland so I'm not sure if the process might be slightly different for the rest of the UK, but all the info is on the website.

I'm in Scotland, don't know if that makes a difference. Yes, it makes a big difference.

All English students at a conventional university, no matter how small their income, have to pay course fees of at least £27000 for a 3 year course. Loans are available, which are repaid as a percentage of income once your income is over a certain amount.

Is it recognised as a actual degree?

Mainly, yes - but there are some sectors where it wouldn't be, so if you're doing it to pursue a partcular career path it would be wise to check first

I can't recommend them enough. I'm studying level 2 now with 3 modules on the go.
The materials and support are amazing but it is hard work. I'm lucky enough to be a sahp to school age kids and I still find it hard sometimes to give it enough time!
So satisfying through as those results come and you bank one module and then another and then another...
Everyone should have the chance to experience education as an adult, it's truly amazing

@Butchyrestingface

The £25,000 earnings is for repayment of the loan not for funding. Repayment is 9% of earnings above £25k.

Hmm. That wasn't what I was told. I'm in Scotland, don't know if that makes a difference. I haven't actually applied for funding though, I self-funded the first year.

Fantastic that your degree has helped you in your job. I'm doing mine for 'fun' - it won't help me in my career. It's basically the degree I should have pursued first time round.

I'm in Scotland, currently in year 4 of 6. Because I live in Scotland and earn under a certain amount (I think it's 25000) then I don't pay fees.

I'm on year 5 out of 6. I also did an Access course before as I thought it would help having been out of education for years, though it is not essential.
I would highly recommend it and it is definitely a proper degree. I'm not doing it for a career but if I was I would check before starting what qualifications are needed in your chosen sector.

I think it's important to point out how much of your time it will take up. Completing my first year needed the commitment of twenty hours a week on average.

Go for it OP. In my experience they over estimate how much time is required but that's an individual thing. For level 1 and 2 I never spent 20 hours a week on it (and still passed with good grades). I'm doing two level 3 modules now because I'm not working and I just want to get it done. The work is markedly a step up from before but still manageable. Really look into the degree you want to do and make sure you understand what is required of you and you'll be fine.

I've been studying since 2016 and in my penultimate year now. It was enjoyable at first but I'm struggling with motivation this year alongside work and kids. It definitely gets a lot more intense in the later stages but is a recognised degree and respected by employers do definitely worth doing.

Interesting . Has anyone actually done a degree in retirement ? I am 60 and could have gone to uni but never did . I would love to do a degree if possible.

I'm another one who started in 2016 and is now in year 5 out of 6. For the most part, it's been a great experience. Course materials are really accessible and well designed, you can study from anywhere you can get online, so at home, at work, on holiday etc. Yes, it is a real, proper degree and you'll get a BA, BSc or whatever at the end if you complete it! No you don't need any previous experience to do a degree, but look at the course requirements and make sure you're confident you can meet them. If you don't have any experience of tertiary level study and/or you haven't done any formal education in a very long time you might want to do an access course for a year first, just to make sure you're up for a full degree. If you've already got a degree in something else, or you're confident that you can cope, go for it. You don't need to have 20 hours per week free every week, but the deadlines often fall at inconvenient times like straight after kids go back to school after holidays, so sometimes you have to be quite organised/disciplined. It's great though - I've learned SO much and I'm a much more dedicated student now that I was when I did my first degree.

I am in year 1 of a 6 year p/t course and very envious of those nearly finishing!

I am studying Business, really enjoying it, work p/t but wanted to do something for myself and sadly realised fitness wasn't going to be it.

DS1 (18) started his degree this year too (Law) so we talk about our grades / feedback etc.

I did one between 2011 and 2017.
It is a massive investment of time and thanks to lots of advance warning i got my family on board first, and outsourced my share of the cleaning and other household duties. (the offer was: we get a cleaner or you DCs take it over at the normal rate of a cleaner. The DCs took me up on that)

I was lucky that at my work i could take an hour lunchbreak if i wanted so i took my books and worked for an hour in a meeting room most lunchtimes, and did reading and watched videos / listened to audios on my public transport commute. I worked most evenings for an hour or so and tried to get in 8 hours over a weekend.

You have to be absolutely committed, but it is a great feeling when you have finished.

I completed three modules towards a Natural Science degree, started in 2016, I planned to do it while in a job that suited well for childcare in the hope of moving on once kids were older. A change in circumstances means I've put it on hold for several years but I loved my time doing the course. Needed tons of commitment as I had a job doing 30 hours a week plus my kids were 6 and 2 years old when I first began. What course are you planning to do?

Emphasising what others have said about the enormous time commitment it takes. I did a couple of courses to “top up” some gaps in knowledge, and you do have to be very organised and motivated to stay on top of it.

You don’t need prior qualifications, but you do need to be able to work at degree level. If you left school with no GCSEs then you are going to find it hard.

I would recommend taking some of their short courses before starting a degree, so that you can see if you are able to work at the required level and have the time.

Otherwise you risk spending a lot of money and dropping out after a year or so.

I started with them this year. Absolutely appalled. Had no help for my disability despite them accepting my evidence and putting a plan in place. I can't believe they're not set up for fully remote learning. Their lectures are often too full to get a spot, I missed every welcome lecture and the first 3 tutorials because I couldn't book onto them, they're not putting on enough capacity. And my tutor is so dismissive of everything. Am at a point where I don't think I can finish my module. Since I'm self funding that was a lot of money down the drain and I'm devastated I basically paid £1000 for 4 textbooks.

Oh and to emphasize I am no stranger to Higher Education and I have never, ever come across an institution this bad, they're just not coping with the current situation at all.

I'm in year 3 of 12.

I'm in England so have to pay fees, normally you can't have a loan for a second degree at the same level unless it is a STEM subject so I'm doing maths.

The first unit was a mis of GCSE and A level maths but you could start with a more advanced unit and you could also start with lower level units that don't count towards your degree.

OP the OU has some free short courses, it might be worth taking one to see if the style of study suits you.

I did a psychology degree with them and graduated in 2014. I found the final year very challenging but the rest was manageable around other life commitments and work.

I have an OU degree, it took me 8 years whilst working and having children which is pretty quickly all in all. Be prepared to work harder than you ever have before. It gets really tough towards the end.
Yes it’s a “real” degree and very highly regarded in every sector I’ve ever worked in because of the transferable skills you gain from OU learning, not necessarily the subject itself, although the majority of courses are written and taught by very respected people in their field that also teach and wrote courses for elsewhere. Many of the people I studied with have gone on to so Masters degrees and PhDs at Russell Group universities.

I started a degree but just couldn't manage the learning on your own. I felt that in hindsight I should have gone to Uni as a mature student.

I found it very impersonal; the tutor contact by phone didn't really help me and I found it was just me and textbooks at my dining room table trying to make it interesting.... and it just wasn't.

I wasted a lot of money trying. I don't have the motivation or commitment to distance learn alone.