Beginners guide to OU | Open University
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Who am I:
I’m Tom, a Open University student studying Computing & IT. I make videos about my time with Open University covering my modules and other tips I have for other students. If you have any questions about the Open University or studying in general then feel free to ask!
Just a small heads up on paying for modules, in Scotland they have the Part-time Fee grant that you can get if you earn under a certain amount and that is not paid back, that can pay the funding for the modules you chose for the year, but you have to chose all in one application.
Thanks for letting me know I’ll keep it pinned so others can see it
That's the route I'm currently considering. To qualify you have to have lived in Scotland for 3 years, there's also other help you can get from ILA, etc
Nice video thanks, I'm a nervous full time working 40 year old dad hoping to start ou study. This is helpful cheers. Subscribed 👍
Thank you for watching and I'm glad they are helpful! Good luck with your studies
There are 30 credit modules and 60 credit modules, so you'd only be able to study two 60 credit modules each a year. Basically, you're capped at 120 credits a year.
thankyou, that's a much simpler way of wording it!
Thanks Tom, this is so helpful and informative.
This was really helpful for me, thank you
Thanks for this, I’m about to start my maths degree in October and im so nervous!!
When did you sign in, how many months before? I´m going to begin in Feb 2021:)
Did you have alevels before you applied? I only have gcse's but im hoping i can get into it
@@user-bo1wx3qw2r you don't need any qualifications to do open university
You're welcome, I'm glad the video was useful! Good luck with your studies!
Started my maths too.
Thank you Tom, you are so nice, I am subscribing 🤗💙
You're welcome! Thanks for subscribing
Cheers for sharing this mate, gave me a better idea of what to potentially expect with OU, I’m registering through OU for the CyberSec Degree and been out of education for a looooong time lol.
I’m glad the video was helpful! I’m sure you’ll soon get back in to swing of things haha
@@TomWagstaff lol at this rate il be Swan diving into the getting used to it again part 😅 hope your studies are going/gone well mate.
Well sometimes that can work out for the best haha yeah they’re going well so far
@djuav how did you find the CyberSec course? I'm regestering for the same degree but I've also been out of education for a long time
@@traksmithmorning, unfortunately I ended up over commuting and had to pull out of the course if I’m honest, the curriculum seemed quite good and easy enough to navigate, I just had difficulty in my personal situation, I would say if you can commit, absolutely go for it, I’m going the longer way around with working on certs and experiencing different areas of cybersecurity. Good luck!
Thanks this was really useful. Have signed up to start Tm111 and tm112 for this academic year beginning in October! If anyone else has say hi and we can help each other through! Good luck in your studies everyone
I really want to do it but I’m scared. 😂 Good luck to you though! 😊
@@LouLo17 me too but I thought what the hell x
Thanks, I'm glad the video was useful! Good luck in your studies! If you have any questions feel free to ask!
Sorry for the late replies to everyone, for some reason TH-cam wasn't telling me I had received comments on
did you have to do any presentations ?
@@junaidkhalid3769 I haven’t done any
@Waqif News it’s not free no, however you can pay with a student loan so you don’t have to pay any money until after you’ve qualified. I don’t know of any place that offers a free degree
Thank you very much for the video. I'm due to start OU in April
Thank you for sharing I’m starting my TM111 and 112 in October and April
Very good info Tom. Thanks👍
Thanks, Tom!
If your on PIP.. Apply for DSA disabled student award, apply for grant to buy pc or laptop or printer cover costs of printing photocopy and stationary, interpreters etc.. You must have benefit letter from PIP, and medical letter of support...
thanks, very informative video!
you're welcome, thank you for watching!
I'm 2 weeks in, helpful video. Thank you.
how is it so far?
Out of curiosity, did you study mostly part time or full time throughout the years? I'm considering taking some time off work (like a career break) to do some catching up with my current modules this year, and then perhaps switching to full time at the next stage to speed up my studies… not sure if it’d be a wise choice 😬
If you pay by instalments what sort of instalments are they? Over the entire year, half the year or just set amounts depending?
Am about to start the same course as you, but not sure on what computer I need.
I wouldn’t worry too much about what computer to get, all the software I have used have low minimum specification that should work on most computers out there
How does the module work, because I have to select my modules for the year. As it’s 360 credits throughout 3 years, so I will need to do 120 credits a year (will be a full time student) do I click on all of the modules on stage 1 or select a few as the main module would be about data science. Any help would be greatly appreciated
Yes you will need to select 4 year 1 modules (providing they’re all 30 credits, some are 60) you might have some mandatory modules so you’ll have to pick them but there will be some that you get to choose from
Yeah SAAS in Scotland. PT fee waiver under 25k earnings, if your on benefits and PIP too, 120 credits 2 units classed as part time.. Open university give you SAAS form, don't go via SAAS, if you have a SAAS number great use it on form foto copy p60 or benefit letters.. And send
Do you sign up to the open university using ucas
You don't go through UCAS, you sign up for the courses/modules through the OU website
I'm starting my OU course BA hons business management in october and I was wondering if the OU has holiday times where no work is done similar to school holidays ,If someone could let me know what the terms are that would help me out a lot :)
There is scheduled time off, such as now and Christmas time but don’t forget, providing you’re either ahead or prepared to catch up afterwards you could take a week off whenever you like, as long as you hand in your assessments on time no one knows or minds when you do the work
really good.. what sorts of laptops would you suggest to have for IT students?
You could do the degree with a fairly basic laptop, if you want to make sure everything goes smoothly then maybe go for one with at least 8GB RAM which would be plenty for all the software you would run
Hi Tom,
Thanks for the video, I'm just wondering, have you found your second year / third year ( I'm not sure which year you are currently studying ) harder than your first , or would you say they have all been of a similar difficulty?
Thanks !
Hello,
I'm currently on year 3 and for me they got harder as the years go on as the modules become more in-depth.
@@TomWagstaff cheers Tom, it's good to get an insight into what I can expect !
I'm still so confused about how everything works... so you can switch from part time to full time or full time to part time anytime you want?
Are there any pre-recorded lecture videos? Or do you learn solely learn by reading and then answering the examination questions? Is there some kind of Moodle?
There is a module homepage for each module that you're studying, this will give you access to all study materials as well as a study plan to make sure you stay on track. There are online tutorials that you can either join in live or watch them afterwards when you're free.
@@TomWagstaff happy days, thanks for the reply.
Thank you! I’m debating to do a health and social care degree with a little one. Scared i won’t be able to manage the time! If we ever were to pull out would we still have to pay back the student loan?
I would guess you would have to, to make sure you should contact student finance. Good luck with your degree if you do decide to go through with it!
Hi, I have just enrolled onto IT and Design, im a little bit stumped when choosing my modules - there is TM111 TM112 and U101, I see I have to choose 120 credits but I am only part time but the start dates for all these are all around 3 months apart which shows on my study timeline that it is full time, can you shine some light on how i choose these modules please - Thankyou and great videos
From what I remember about TM111 and 112 is that they follow on from each other in the same year so collectively they take up 60 credits, U101 wasn't an option for me so I can't see the credit value but I'm guessing it is 60. If you're part time I would suggest studying either TM111 & 112 or just U101 and then study the other option next year. You get a shorter amount of time to study TM111 and 112 compared to other 30 credit modules so OU will want you spend twice as much study time per week (18-20 hrs) on those modules, which is why if you pick all three modules OU will say that you're studying full time and they will expect you study for 36-40 hrs per week.
Hopefully that makes sense as I feel like I've rambled a bit 😂
Can you study for one year then use that to apply for a campus Uni? I really want to go to campus Uni but lived abroad during high school and my degrees don’t meet the requirements
some uni accept it , some don't
@@dxdakkay5903 this is true
Says on OU that a full year of 120 credits will cost £2064 and the full course will be around £6k
never mind I discovered that it's like triple the price over in england lol
I wish it was £2064! haha
This is in Scotland...
Anyone else doing engineering or other math related subject finding there should be pre-requisites of math qualifications before doing the course?
Thank you !
Welcome! Hope it was helpful
You may have already answered this but, what’re the job opportunities with an OU degree on your CV? Is there something particular an OU graduate needs to be aware of by having an OU degree? Any advice would be appreciated thank you!
I haven’t completed my degree yet so haven’t experienced applying for jobs with the degree on my CV so I don’t know for certain, however from what I’ve seen from other ex-students there’s doesn’t seem like much of a difference to having a degree from a standard university
Have heard it helps slightly having an OU degree unless its from the elite universities, because it shows you have better time managment as you do a degree while having real life work/kids etc rather then just doing a degree between hangovers
Edit- I realise this is an old comment but I’ll leave my reply up incase it helps others in future
@@EllieClareBear where is your response please I’d love to read it. I’m actually about to start my last year of OU this September as well. How time flies!
Do you think I could start the computing and it coyrse with a C in maths at gcse? Or would you advise re doing it my maths. I was fairly smart at a school and did well in all other subjects, but I was quite lazy with math
you don't need any official qulifications , so you don't need too. :)
as Lucy said you don't need any official qualifications to study so I wouldn't worry about your C in maths, chances are you will be doing a maths module in your first year anyway
I had a gcse C, i passed the maths section of the degree (not a great pass but meah) and am happily scoring 80+ for most tmas upto and including level2 which im finishing this term.
it says on the website that you will be working in group projects, have you worked with other people? I might do the computing and it (software) but i'm nervous in case it's too overwhelming
it depends on the module, tm111/112, m250, tt284, m269 are all solo but tm254 does have a group project ... this is depending on you going the 'software development' route. Not sure about year 3 modules i am just finishing my level 2 this term
So far I've only had one module that required group work, the process was fairly straightforward and made use of their online facilities such as chat room and forums.
I think being nervous is fairly common but you will get used to it quickly, you could always limit how many modules you do in your first year such as going from 4 to 2 or 2 to 1 depending on how many you were going to do.
Hello Tom
How do i fix the audio and microphone on my computer, i have a Toshiba laptop, it is telling me that it dont have any but it did before
I would try reinstalling your audio drivers, if you don’t know how it is easily found on TH-cam or Google, makes it easier to follow then trying to explain in the comment section
Do you ever need a webcam for any tutorials or coursework?
No. You are not required to show yourself.
Not that I'm aware of, they do ask for you to have a microphone to join in wih chat if you want to, however from my experience most tutorials only have the tutor talking and the students use the chat box
@@TomWagstaff That's a relief! One more question, have you ever had any connection problems with the OU website?
Very nice
Do you know anyone ver 40s studying at OU? I would love to hear their experience
There were plenty of over 40’s taking the same degree I did, if I remember right there were people in their 60’s. There’s students in every age category
Hi Tom, how are you mate? I love studying and it makes me more in control when I am in front in my coursework!! Just recently, I got a DM grade in my BTEC Level 3 sport!!! How complex will the answers to the questions be in the first and second year of the level 4 qualification? I am thinking of studying at the OU in the future and I am a confident person. But, I would be slightly nervous too, as I wouldn’t want to fail any assessments. 👍
The OU start out the assessments very gently and the diffuculty builds up with each assessment as they know many people who start their courses havent studied in a while
In terms of complexitt of the answers they breakdoen how to get the marks very clearly. I think u hqve good grades from ur Btec and u should be fine if u keep up ur studies
studying 4 modules in one year is full time???
Yes it is, each module is worth 30 credits and you need 120 to complete a year of study, i.e 120 for year 1, 120 for year 2 etc. You can't study more than 4 in one year
120 credits classedd by SAAS as part time.. Even though OU say full time..
GUYS MAKE SURE YOUR COMPUTER OR LAPTOP IS WINDOWS 10 64 BIT..
3/10 chance that you have read atomic habits by james clear
good book
I have been tempted haha
Please, I heard about free online courses with diploma. Do you have any?? I want history or arquiology. I would like also to have one representation in my country (in Africa). Is it possible?
Sorry but I don't know of any free diplomas, doesn't mean it's not possible though!
Great content and subscribed! Would love hear what you think of our grad school channel. Thank you.
Did you know that the OU has employed a crackpot (flying saucers, perpetual motion, 9/11 conspiracy) called Andrew Johnson as a tutor? Do you really want to help to pay his salary?
i'm sure that there are plenty of crackpots at other universities, too, and that doesn't stop anyone from getting their education. as my nan always said, "there's nowt stranger than folk". crackpots are everywhere, its just life and it shouldn't stop someone from getting an education :/