Computing & IT and Mathematics (T13-CITM) - CertHE

Open University

My studies fit in around my work and social life; I study when it's convenient for me and the tutor support and student community in the online forums is wonderful.

The student support is great and tutors are very helpful. Having some campuses in different locations would be good for students not based in southern England.

I can study at home while caring for my kids, without having to worry about childcare, etc. I can study when it suits me to do so, and at my own pace, within reason. The student social life is almost non existent.

Being able to study and improve myself in a way that I can manage is amazing. Everyone I have come into contact with has been very helpful. Although it is distance learning it is still extremely social and there is no pressure to participate in anything you don't want to. In terms of learning having everything accessible for solo learning but also having those extra resources like tutorials, forums and screencasts also available makes for a varied learning experience suitable for different learning types.

Clearly it is somewhat difficult to evaluate the facilities, location and campus of a long-distance institution such as the OU (though tbh they do have a pretty campus in Milton Keynes). For me the location, i.e. anywhere you wish, is great and has perfectly fit my busy life while studying. Same goes for the facilities: their online library is top class and will grant you passage through any editorial paywall on the Web. The student support, in my case, has been outstanding. Staff have gone above and beyond when I had to register a little late for a module, when I needed customised references for postgraduate study, even when I needed to briefly interrupt a module due to unforseen financial issues. Getting a personal tutor for each module that you're studying, who you can email your questions to, is priceless and just does not happen at any other uni (the 'personal tutor' at other unis is just one overall ad cannot be knowledgable in every single subject obviously). Having studied both at the OU and at a top brick uni, I would rate the OU much higher, hands down. People underestimate how disorganised brick unis can be. Also, people who complain in their reviews that the OU only 'a bunch of books', or that there isn't enough support, are making zero effort in their studies and overall experience IMHO. Even though of course my impressive brick uni degree is what probably stands out the most to employers now, I have got questions and expressions of admiration at interviews about the fact that I managed an OU degree while working. And of course, it was only thanks to my degree at the OU and my grades that I got into a top brick uni in the first place.