I have just started so I don’t have a lot to go by. But for now it’s been good. You new get textbooks given for every module you take. There is lots of online help and forums where you can message other students. My tutor responds to me in good time. So I pretty excited about my course. Good thing is that the first module isn’t hard.

I doing my degree online. So I would say my at home facilities are pretty good.

4

Absolutely outstanding. I came back to study with the OU almost 20 years after dropping out of a traditional university. I suffer from mental health issues, but the support I've had from the OU has meant that's not been an issue at all. And as for the teaching - anyone who tells you it's not as good as you get at a traditional university doesn't know what they're talking about, plain and simple.

For the most part, outstanding. The only criticism I have is that the computer system used for online classes (tutorials, in OU-speak) can be a little temperamental, to say the least. It is badly in need of updating to something more modern - but, we're told there's a new system to come in early 2021, so hopefully all will be well by the start of the next acadmeic year.

Absolutely outstanding. For every module you study, you have a dedicated academic tutor who looks after a small group of students on your module (no more than about 20, on some modules far fewer). They are at the end of the phone, or email, and in my experience cannot do enough to help. The feedback I have received on assessed work has always been thoughful, and constructuve. And, my tutors have always been ready to offer me some extra time and support if ever I've got stuck (and believe me, I have!). In terms of personal support, there is a Student Support Team who are there to offer support and advice with anything non-academic (e.g. module choices, exams, etc.). Some of the junior staff are really only able to do the basic things like getting you enrolled on a module if you can't do it online, but if you need more support the Senior Advisors and Educational Advisors are simply amazing. I've had ongoing personal support from an Educational Advisor throughout my degree so far. They contact me proactively to check how I'm getting on, and see if there's anything I need / they can do. I honestly cannot praise them enough.

Brilliant, and improving all the time. They are always present at events, and offer support for student led projects, organise meet ups in various towns and cities (so that you can meet face to face with other OU students, which is really important), and 'fight student's corners' with the University.

As an OU student you get access to almost any university library (and often other facilities such as computers, printing, etc.) in the UK through something called SCONUL Access. So, yes, it might be distance learning but as long as there's a university within reasonable distance of where you live, work, or otherwise are, the location is superb.

It's distance learning - so limted. But, there are some good online communities, Facebook groups, and also societies which organise regular events and meet ups across all over the UK.

Flexibility. I can study any time of the day or night, and anywhere I want to (as long as I've got an internet connection). The downside of that is that you really do have to be self-motivated. Nobody is going to chase you up and tell you what you have to do, or nag you for not turning up to lectures, like at a traditional uni, so you have to take real responsiblity for your own learning.

32

This, in my opinion, is the OU's biggest strength. Careers advisers available on the phone, by email, even on Skype, all day every day. They organisers careers fairs with every major employer you can think if, visits to employers where they can, and really do everything you could ever want. They're especially good at supporting students who (like me) have a disability or some other challenge in their life that makes getting a job difficult. I can't recommend the OU careers service highly enough, I really can't.