Anyone here studied with the Open University?

[ByronBlack]

Hi Chaps,

I fear I may have already posted this one before, buy my search doesn't seem to working very well -- which is odd. But I digress, I was wondering if anyone here has enrolled on any courses with the OU and what your experience was like.

 

[StevieB]

Yes, a long time ago. Correspondence and material was excellent, access to e-mail help and online sessions as well as arranged tutorials 'face to face'. Price was good, allowing direct debit payments for the course.

I would caution though, if you are thinking of going for a degree, it takes a long time since there is a limit to the modules you can do at any one time. They are primairly part time evening/correspondence courses. Also depending on your level of experience, some of the early courses can be a bit basic. I am not belittling the courses here, it just from my experience. I was after some specialist statistical training as part of a previous job and alot of what was in the first course was extremely low level stuff. Excellent if you are coming to the subject with no background knowledge, but less useful if you already know something about the area you wish to study.

HTH,

Steve.

 

[Raggy]

And make sure you have the time and commitment to do it as I have twice paid out for courses and both times found I have neither the time or will power to sit down and do them.

 

[ByronBlack]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the feedback, since I posted the original post, I've read a lot of the feedback from previous students on the OU site, and they all seem to be fair and balanced and share the same views as you.

In regards with the points you bring up - I've considered those, and it shouldn't be a problem for me as the degree that I intend to do is a new subject to me so I won't mind doing some of the lower level courses to begin with, and in terms of time, that's always been my bugbear. Since I was 18 when I left college, I always wanted to go back and do a degree but put it off because I thought the time was too long, but 12 years later and I have nothing to show for my time and could have 3 degrees, so now, I see it as a case of now or never, regardless if it even takes me 10 years, I've wasted so much time already thinking about a short-term solution, that if I don't do it now, I never will, and will probably be quite bitter in my old age

My life is going nowhere at the moment, I might as well atleast get some eduction during that time - I litereally have nothing to lose by doing it.

Raggy. I agree 100% with your sentiments. I've done probably about 10 different correspondance courses over the years in wildly differing subejcts and have finished about half, the ones I didn't finish were actually the short courses, I couldn't find the effort for something trivial, but a big fat long-term degree is something I could get my teeth into. Also it's one of the reasons why I'm giving up a large portion of my hobbies; in particular the woodworking - to free up the time to do something more constructive which in my situtation will hopefully be a psychology degree.

Thanks for the feedback chaps.

 

[Anonymous]

Byron, I am in 'the trade' so to speak as I am a lecturer and the Mechanical Engineering Programme Director (run a degree programme) for the 'university of the Year 2008 - Sunday Times'

OU is the best distance learning course around - we run one that is not even close to their offering in terms of support materials etc.

I know several people who are currently studying or have completed an OU degree and they all enjoyed the experience although it take up a lot of their time. The summer schools are supposed to be good.

I have several of their coursework books at work and the are very impressive although I think some of the diagrams in the ones i have are rather poorly drawn and a little basic - i wouldn't use such low quality diagrams in my lectures.

The final thought is that in 'the real world', an OU degree is not taken as an equivalent to a degree from a full-time course at university and so it will not open up as many doors to you. I think that in many areas (not all), the gulf between the two is significant.



My own experience was this:

I studied to technician level (electronics and electical) and became an electronic c technician and qualified electrician.

I worked for a few years.

I gave up work for 4 years, studied for a degree with my wife supporting me, worked evenings in tesco stacking shelves, worked summers on paid placements. As I was a little more mature than the other students, I worked harder and got the highest marks on the degree and the best paid job upon graduation.
Upon graduation, my world changed. i went from shop floor to design office with £750,000 budgets and regular meetings with the managing directors.

Within 3 years of finishing my degree, I was earning 3 1/2 times as much money as the last job before I quit for my studies.
Ten years ago i became a lecturer at one of the best universities in UK.

So, I would sauggest (my professional opinion after 10 years as a lecturer) consider full-time study rather than OU as the experience is wonderful and the qualification worth more in the real world (get on an acccredited degree programme if you can).

 

[ByronBlack]

Hi Tony,

Thanks for coming in with that info, It's greatly appreciated. However, it's near impossible for me to do a full-time degree, there's no way I would want/expect my Mrs' to support me, and besides without both our wages, we couldn't afford our mortgage/bills, we are a two salary couple and unfortunately need both salaries.

The other thing about studying in a real uni is that i'll be atleast 12 years older than everyone else in my year and that doesn't appeal to me at all really. In as far as time, it's not a huge thing for me in terms of how long it takes to complete it so i'm not worried about that aspect.

In terms of the public/employer opinion of the OU I have so far had the opposite info, I've spoken to my own employer and a few other business owners local to me, and most say that they give OU students more credit because of the difficulty of managing the time and study in terms of being self disciplined and doing it outside of a fulltime job - so I suppose it all depends on the particular employer.

I don't have a defined idea of where or what I would like to do for a job at the end of it, Ive picked psychology because it's the only thing that interests me enough for me to commit to it, what I do when I complete I have no real idea..

My other problem is that I don't live local to a campus, so if I did find I could go to a fulltime Uni, the cost of travel would be prohibitive.

What is an 'accredited degree' ? What makes it different from a regular one? (I'm not clued up on the jargon as of yet).

 

[Maia28]

I'm in a similar position to Tony and would echo his comments for the most part. I remember using some of the OU materials as an undergrad and found them to be of very high quality then. I have a high opinion of OU degrees and generally rate them better than most universities because they say a lot about the character of the person who has done them. I'm basing this on fairly limited experience of course, a few MSc students some years ago (in control systems at Sheffield) and others I have come across who are doing in PhDs in Engineering Sciences or Biomedical Sciences.

If this is what appeals to you, then have a go. If your employer is encouraging then that is a real bonus. A first degree is only really useful for that first job after graduating. The point about education and learning at degree level shouldn't be about training for a job IMO, but about personal-development and learning how to think and use ideas. I'd support your view about opinions of the OU and would be much more interested in a candidate for a job who had some life experience and an OU degree than one who had some nondescript qualification from one of our so-called universities.

At Southampton we are currently going through accrediation. It is the process whereby the appropriate professional institutions recognise that the degree course meets certain minimum standards for chartered membership. I am not a member of any professional institutions anymore as I have never found them professional or competent and it makes no difference to my employment. You may however need membership of, say, the institue of work psychology, if you waned to practice in that area.

Good luck, Andy

 

[ByronBlack]

Hey Andy,

Thanks for explaining what accreditation means - I remember reading on the OU description that their psychology degree is accepted by some board - I forget which now, but something to do with the british board of psychology, so maybe that is the accreditation I need, I'm due to speak to a chap from the OU next week so I can quiz on him on that aspect.

I totally agree with your point about a degree only being useful to get your foot in the door - and that's basically all I need at the moment. I'm in a dead-end job and really need something to help me move into a new direction, and feel that the OU degree presents probably my only choice at the moment. Also, it should give me enough knowledge/abilities to research and learn that I could set up something myself, I'm not necessarily doing this to get a job with an employer, although it's one option.

Thanks again to everyone's input, it's gratefully received.

 

[Anonymous]

What is an 'accredited degree' ? What makes it different from a regular one? (I'm not clued up on the jargon as of yet).

Byron

An accredited degree is recognised by the institution of that area.

All of the degrees in my department are accredited by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE http://www.imeche.org/ ) and several by the Institute of Engineering Technology (IET http://www.theiet.org/ )- students may become chartered engineers (a professional recognition) after a few years in suitable employment. Chartered status is sometimes important and sometimes not - depends on the employer. Rolls Royce for example will demand it of their engineers.

With regard to the comment on OU degrees, in science and engineering the OU degrees are worth considerably less than one from full-time study, but if you are thinking of a 'general degree' where the skills learnt are not key to the work undertaken with the employer (maybe an English degree for example), then I can see that some employers might well consider study whilst holding down a job as a positive attribute.


Good luck

 

[Steve Maskery]

I would encourage anyone who wants to, at any age, to study for a degree if they have the time and commitment.

But.

Make sure that you are doing it for the right reasons.

When I was 44 I sold my half of a computer business to my business partner. We are talking a few thou here not half a mill, OK? I did have a degree in chemistry from 1979, but I'd never used it and would now know which end of a test-tube to hold.

A few of my friends had done an MBA and it didn't seem to have done their careers any harm, so I "invested" (I use the term loosely) a very large sum of money and a year of my life to do an MBA, full-time at my local Business School. It has a good reputation, having been aroun 30-odd years.

The teaching was good, occasionally excellent. I was the oldest person on the course by 12 years. I was the only Brit. In fact there were only 5 WASPs on the whole Masters full-time course. With 47 people, from 17 countries, that made for the most fantastic cultural exchange I've ever experienced.

I worked my socks of, and had a great time. I now have friends all over the world.

But.

I graduated in 2003 and I'm still applying for jobs. I'm told I'm "over-qualified". I'm told I "don't have experience". After their nose stops bleeding, I point out that actually, I have a great deal, and very wide experience at that. It's just not the same as theirs.

The result is that I've had one Project Management contract (well-paid), one short-term job earning less than I was on in 1991, and one job earning nothing at all (but a promise of a share of the contract). The latter was the most promising, but the MD died soon after I started working with him.

So I have had 5 years of virtually no income. If I were not married to someone with a good job I would be outside Sainsbury's with a dog selling the Big Issue. Nick gives me as much work as he can, but it wouldn't begin to pay the bills. The problem is that everyone thinks that someone else is going to give me a job.

I really wish I could come up with a business idea. But, having been there once, I know that it's no good doing it just for when it is the Good Times, you have to be able to survive long term. We are seeing now just how many businesses are failing to be able to do that.

The only good thing to come out of all this is that I have finally learned what I want to be when I grow up, I just need to find someone who will let me do it. I have a job to apply for this week. It's local, too, so I won't have to commute weekly. I've no idea if I'll even get an interview. I've applied for many such jobs and in every case bar one they have gone to someone who is already in post, already has a job and doesn't need another one. In one case I came second out of 73 applicants. They didn't give me a silver medal.

Sorry, I didn't mean to go on so.

So if you want to do it for its own sake, you'll have a fantastic time. I've never had such great intellectual stimulation. But don't so it for your career, because it may well count for nothing.

I'm 51 years old, I wonder if I'll ever work again and I am slowly dying of boredom.

Read this quickly, I may well delete it.
S

 

[ByronBlack]

Tony,

Thanks for clearing that up. I understand what you mean now with regards the inquality of the degree. I can see how the sciences and engineering woudn't be as good as I'd imagine there is a lot more hands-on practical requirement from a face-to-face tutor to get that across.

I plan to do Psychology which is more theory based so I'm confident that it'll be well received - it does include a number of the summer residence courses for the more practical elements.

Steve - I plan to do this for my career only in that I need another direction. I feel with something like Psychology, even if I don't get an employed role, it'll give me the skills and abilities to set up on my own, either as a counsellor, private consultant, or a life-coach/management coach, so I see a lot of oppurtunities to use the knowledge gained from the degree outside of the standard route to a regular 9-5 job. Having owned an ran a business before, it's something I would be keen to do again, so I'm not adversed to that aspect of it.

I'm sorry to hear that so far the MBA hasn't worked out for you, but you never know what the future holds. I appreciate your view on it in terms of career, but if I don't do something now, then I don't think i'll have the energy/commitment to do something later.

And if I'm honest with myself. Even if I don't do anything with the degree at the end of it, and I continue to work in optics, at least I'll have the satisfaction that I've pushed myself and achieved something, and I feel something like psychology will help me as a person to deal with other people as I would have learnt a lot more about human behaviour and what makes people tick - I feel that could be valuable in any walk of life.

 

[dickm]

Guess I'd better own up - I worked writing courses etc. for the Open University Technology Faculty almost from its beginning till I retired. In the early days, there was some snobbery from other Universities about our graduates, but general view is that this has now gone almost entirely, and the evidence of motivation and commitment shown by OU graduates is widely valued.
The point about "hands on" experience in Engineering related subjects was always a worry, and the courses made no bones about there only being limited lab work. BUT, these days in most graduate work the hands are only dirtied by keyboards (I've got my own opinions about that, but we'll leave that aside) so maybe that is less of a problem than it was, especially for those who have previous experience.
Psychology was one of the first areas in the OU to get professional accreditation, so no worries there.
I'd second the warning some have given about the time involved; whatever you do, don't think "oh I could cope with 4 courses a year". If you are in full time employment, that would be VERY ambitious. Assume you are going to take 6-8 years for Honours degree, unless you start with transferred credits which will count towards the degree.

 

[ByronBlack]

Hi Dick,

I'm pleased to read your post, you've affirmed a lot of the things that some OU students I know have told me. Two of them both took 6 years to complete, and another did in slightly less time, but then she was two days a week at a college.

I certainly don't plan on doing loads of modules simultaneously, and I can live with 6 years, if it came to it and I needed a masters after, I could go back to a uni and do that, it would give me time to put some money away and assess which direction I could go in.

Well, I have to say so far, with all the info given, I'm still quite sure it's the right move for me, if I could afford to go to uni fulltime, I might consider it, but unfortunately it's not really an option, so the OU is the next best alternative, what's an extra couple of years when I've already wasted 12