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’m in my final year and love it! It is tough - but I actually find studying a bit of a break from my life, if that makes sense? Although still have to give myself a kick sometimes to get on with it.

I find the format of information and teaching really good, the tutors I’ve had have all been brilliant and I enjoy being able to do it at my own pace. I wish I had done it earlier.

I did a degree with the OU between 1999 and 2004 and adored it. I did it for fun but the skills I developed have helped me in my job quite a lot. I never spent 20 hours studying other than when revising for exams. You need to be organised and structure your time, it helps massively.

I've done modules over the years and I'm about to go back and start pulling it all together to work towards a degree, finally.

My advice is to absolutely do it. Don't underestimate the time, but do it. The first course you'll study is an 'introduction to...' which is a broad unit to introduce you to various elements of the school - so I did the old intro to Humanities course. This was brilliant because you get a flavour of everything available for humanities. I was convinced I wanted to to Eng Lit, but actually I fell in love with history!

I transferred some credits from a brick uni when i had DC2 and became a single parent and couldnt manage the normal 9-5 timetable that my previous course required. If it hadnt been for the OU i would have had to just give up. I did study when it suited me and my tutors were all really supportive but sometimes i had to pester them.
I graduated my BSc health science degree last year with a first and got accepted onto a post grad clinical course with a good uni which i will finish next month, they said they viewed OU courses with high regard. The pay rise will be £15k so it was well worth it in my experience.

I'm studying with them. Year 5 of 6. Second degree. Signed up to study elsewhere online and they were so crap switched to OU. Also did study with UCL which was basically "Here are the materials, see you in 8 months for the exams"

OU Cons:

• You're studying ALONE. Some people manage to meet others studying the same thing nearby, but I haven't. Studying alone is really, really hard. And for me as time goes on, it's harder. It's nice to meet friends in the library and chat about an essay then go off to write before meeting again for lunch. That never happens.
• Tutorials are in person (non-Covid times) or online. The online ones are half the length of the in person ones. And less materiel is covered. The material covered is the basic, so it means you have enough, but in person tutees get more. I find that extremely unfair, because usually people are attending online as they can't rather than can't be bothered to attend in person.
• The OU has its own reference system which isn't recognised by automatic reference programmes. They've started to use Cite Me now though which makes it a bit easier (not really an issue at Level 1).
• It really does consume time. It's not a hobby and it's much, much harder studying with kids around than it is without. Some unis have subsidied childcare (I've heard) o students can get some help. With the OU that's not in offer so you really need to be super organised and/or have good support.

OU Pros:

• The teaching materials are generally very, very good. I used to work editing training materials in a variety of linked formats. I was impressed with what the OU has done. The "lecture" component includes audio, interactive activities, videos and text to read. There's also offline readings to do. It's very mixed and that helps hold attention, I find.

- You're completely free to organise your life and study. Other than tutorials (not more than once every month I think) there is no schedule for attending lectures.

• The Student Support department is massive and very helpful. The OU isn't set up like a traditional uni because students aren't there, so the SS is a massive department. When I've had health problems and needed to postpone sitting an exam, for example, the person who helped me apply for that was extremely kind, took his time to explain everything and listen and engage with the complications in my circumstances.
• You can keep working while studying.
• If you have problems and need to delay a year, it's very easy. The system is set up for people who have lives, not just those who have nothing in their lives other than uni and a part home/weekend job.

I’m studying with them for fun. I already have a degree but thought I’d learn something new. On 2nd year of level 1. It’s a big time commitment, so don’t do more than 1 or 2 modules if you are working full time and have children. Especially if you have been out of education for a long time.

They are moving to mainly all online materials now for a lot of courses instead of books. I think face to face tutorials are a thing of the past now. The online tutorials are good (tutor dependant), and are usually recorded for people who can’t attend.

I rarely ever contact my tutors so can’t comment on how supportive they would be. Getting in contact with Student Support etc is a lot harder now since covid. They used to be really efficient and got back to you quite quickly but I’ve found them a bit lacking recently.

Social side is what you make it. There are usually plenty of Facebook and WhatsApp groups to join, as well as official forums.

I’d recommend it. You could always register for a degree course and if you find it’s not for you change to a Diploma Or Certificate instead etc.

I completed my undergraduate with them in July 2019 and am halfway through my MA with them. I love the flexibility, the support. The other students. It allows me to work towards our future whilst also being predominantly at home with my children.

Never had an issue booking on to lectures etc

Completed a a degree full time as well as working full time. This was before children but I did it.

You apply for student loan like any other university.

It is a lot of self taught things. I read a lot of textbooks although there were also face-to-face teaching anout once a month.

A ‘normal’ university lifestyle was not for me and this slotted in well. A lot of work doing it full time along full time employment but very doable. Takes a lot of self-control to sit and read so much.

I did my degree with them. I did 10-13 hours a week and graduated with a first.

My sister did it and hated it, she ended up going to Uni full time. I think she struggled a lot with having to do it on her own. I've known others who have really enjoyed it though.

I have a bachelors Homs and MA from them and started my 3rd degree in October. I’m actually deferring this one because since the pandemic the face to face tutorials in brick universities have stopped and the support just isn’t there. It’s not worth it.
So I would wait but my degrees from there have always been highly regarded and helped me in my career. I wouldn’t have had the jobs I had without them.

Bloody awful at the mo though!

Hons not Homs!

i did an open university degree and it was brilliant. The quality of the learning materials is excellent and way better than the scabby russell group universities. It does take up more time than you think, so you do have to be committed, but if you're prepared to study, then go for it. You won't regret it.

I did an ou degree back in the late 80s and 90s, and loved it. Took me six years, basically studied solidly every Sunday and had to invest in a video recorder because all the programmes were on the telly at stupid o'clock. Many good memories of summer schools. It wasn't as expensive then but you had to self fund, loans weren't available. Graduated with one of the first BSc's, previously it was all BA even in science subjects. For the pp asking about being 60 and wanting to study, I say go for it. One lady I met at my first summer school was in her eighties!

I graduated two years ago, it took me 6 years of part time study to get my BA alongside 3 children, a full time job and a divorce.
Could not have been prouder of myself and I'm not doing an MA - was going to continue with the OU for this too but ended up finding the course I wanted in a local university.

I would really encourage going to the face to face tutorials if you can, I found they really helped.
You do have to be motivated which is why it's worth choosing a subject that you're interested in.

As far as helping to get a job goes, I know that others are correct in saying it's not relevant for all careers, but as far as my employer was concerned, the dedication and commitment into gaining my degree was a real plus point for her in giving me my job.

The Facebook group for the course you decide on can be really supportive (although a lot of competitive "I left my essay until an hour before" and "I've got 25 children and I'm still managing") but it's great for asking little questions or for reassurance that you're not alone! They also tend to have separate groups to share marks which means you don't have to feel rubbish if you haven't done well and worry about people sharing.

I would also say that tutors are a lucky dip. I was really lucky with mine and had one who would respond to emails and phone calls within hours, but I do know others who would ignore and not mark essays until well after the deadline.

But I highly recommend doing it!

Tutorials are in person (non-Covid times) or online. The online ones are half the length of the in person ones.

not necessarily true - i went to tutorials (when they still had them over in Europe) which lasted a good 6 hours. Went to a day school in Durham and it was 2 hours before lunch and about 90 minutes after because the tutor "wanted to visit her mum" (I complained about that).

The OU has its own reference system which isn't recognised by automatic reference programmes.The OU has its own reference system which isn't recognised by automatic reference programmes.The OU has its own reference system which isn't recognised by automatic reference programmes.The OU has its own reference system which isn't recognised by automatic reference programmes.

oops posted too early. They use the Harvard Referencing system which is very easy as long as you know what you're doing. IIRC you can easily adapt other referencing programs to get the right format.