Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Lone parents

Use our Single Parent forum to speak to other parents raising a child alone.

Flip

Original poster

Has anyone every completed an open university degree, and did it help you get a job?

15 replies

colditz · 04/11/2012 22:56

For many different reasons, I am looking at being out of work and stuck at home for at least the next five years. I am wondering if it is worth losing all that time and all that money on an ou degree if they aren't regarded by employers?

It would be seriously awesome if they are.

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

CanIHaveAPetGiraffePlease · 04/11/2012 23:03

Probably depends on subject. In my area it was incredibly well regarded as it was well resourced and required a high level of self discipline.

Meglet · 04/11/2012 23:18

Watching with interest.

I'm only doing the certificate in higher education, it'll consist of a mix of the shorter courses in law / accounting / medicine / business and personal finance and I've already completed understanding society. I work in a finance dept so I'm hoping a basic formal qualification will give me a boost in time. TBH I'm also doing it so I can help the DC's when they're older as I fully intend to get them to university and a bit of studying now may help me point them in the right direction.

It's expensive though isn't it, I have to pay for the lower credit courses.

Themumsnot · 04/11/2012 23:22

I have. I got a first. It definitely got me my PGCE place. Despite what some people around these parts think about teaching qualifications, I wouldn't even have been given an interview without a 2.1 or higher.

mybiggestshoes · 04/11/2012 23:59

I did an OU degree in Philosophy, back in the days when it was free for those on low incomes. It was brilliant to do as a lone parent as I could fit in everything when the dc were at school/asleep, though I did have to get childcare for evening tutorials every month. They weren't compulsory but I don't think I would have done as well without them (I got a first).

I got a lot of respect for doing it and the degrees are highly regarded. In the end I didn't get work as a result of my degree, I actually met my current partner at a summer school and we now have a dc so I have never returned to work! Definitely changed my life for the better though.

DoubleYew · 05/11/2012 00:11

I've always found employers and other universities (I later did a masters, that I got funding for) to be very positive about OU. There is no spoon feeding, they know you have done every bit of work yourself, often juggling other responsibilities with it. Where did you get the impression they aren't well thought of?

I did arts subjects and they are very 'alternative' so it might be hard to walk into a conservative institution perhaps, as you would hold a different set of knowledge. No-one learns the whole of art history for example on any course, you just focus on certain areas, which might not be the mainstream ones with the OU. But that could also be an asset if they don't have someone with that knowledge in their department already.

I enjoyed it so much more than regular uni. You meet really interesting people at tutorials, summer school. I enjoyed it so much I'm doing a short course just to give me something to do over this winter. I might even go on and do another OU degree!

stinkinseamonkey · 05/11/2012 00:16

I understand that they are MORE highly regarded than ex poly degrees, and that the thresholds for grades are higher percentage wise too with OU

my mum started one but didn't finish it, and I know one other SAHM that didn't finish hers, but most people I know who started with OU finished theirs, one person I know got an extremely high up gov job with theirs

peppapigpants · 05/11/2012 22:37

I did, although before I was a parent (DD1 was 7 weeks old when I took my final exams though!) I squeezed it into four years while working full time as well, then took a couple of years before I started a PGCE. 13 years later, I'm a senior teacher and SENCo and also have an OU Masters in Education.

No-one ever turned their nose up at my OU qualifications, to my knowledge.

cdw97 · 05/11/2012 23:30

Hello, yes, I loved studying for an OU Degree and miss doing it now! It took me about 6 years altogether. It has not helped me get any jobs but definitely changed my life. My last course was about new product development and several years later I am still developing new products and now have a team of people working with me.

lisaro · 05/11/2012 23:53

Yes. I then returned to my pre children career and it enabled me to achieve couple of promotions I would have taken years to do otherwise. It has been mentioned that I have shown a high degree of discipline to do it with three children and a (now ex) husband that was away a lot. It was specific to my future, which also showed commitment.

NicknameTaken · 08/11/2012 12:43

I did my degree and Masters through the normal university route, but I also did a postgraduate certificate in a slightly different area through the OU. I found it a good quality course, and it did add something extra to my CV - it was commented on favourably in two job interviews.

It's certainly preferable to having a gap in your CV for the next few years.

Athendof · 10/11/2012 08:39

I didn't have a OU degree but when I was studying I used to get all the basic books from the OU as they explained the subjet better and in a more comprehensive way that the array of articles and seminars I was getting at my own uni. I graduated with a first from one of the top universities in the country, and I owe much of that to the OU books.

Having said that, I didn't get a job. But that was because jobs related to my subject where few and far between. I would have needed to relocate and I was not in a position to do it. So my advice is ratger than choosing something you really like chose something that is in demand and you like even if you don't like it as much as other subjects.

Athendof · 10/11/2012 08:41

The bad grammar and spelling is obviously not the result of either university though... You can get that simply by using a phone to type

AmIthatScary · 10/11/2012 16:41

Yes, I did. It helped me get a job in so far as being able to apply for jobs that asked for degrees. I did mine over 6 years, while working FT, and it was hard, but I really enjoyed it. So, although my actual degree is irrelevant to my job, the fact that I have a BA ticks lots of boxes.

I love OU and would recommend it to everyone /BTW

mignonette · 10/11/2012 16:45

OU are rated very very highly for tutor support. You will find better through the OU than many Russell Group institutions.

One of my post-grad courses was delivered through the OU. I am the most proud of it, it demanded the most from me and it has always been very well regarded by employers especially as it resulted in a professional recordable post graduate qualification.

I envy you starting out with the OU. Enjoy it.

NamechangeApril21 · 18/05/2021 10:39

@CanIHaveAPetGiraffePlease

Probably depends on subject. In my area it was incredibly well regarded as it was well resourced and required a high level of self discipline.

Can I ask what area you work in?

Flip