open university information/funding

saintstreaky

bubble96 wrote:

hi, was just wandering how you got the £250 grant for pc? have been looking in to open university and have seen about all the other funding available, but if i start i wont have a pc as the laptop i have has to be returned to the university i am currently at and transferring from. it would be really helpful to know how you got this. thanks

Hi Bubble96

Health warning: this is from memory, so please check before committing yourself!

If you are entitled to the other financial support, and you sign up for a course that has a PC as an 'essential requirement', and you can sign a piece of paper saying you haven't got a computer that meets the requirements, the OU will send you a form to fill in.

You would then be entitled to £250 (last time I saw the form, anyway) towards the computer. You have to send them the invoices etc, so you can't get the money and spend it on something else! But along with the £250 cash grant (making £500 in total) you can get yourself a very respectable computer.

belleooo

dinkie wrote:

Hi, just bumping it up. Can I ask (still waiting to hear from the OU) if having a Student Loan previously (haven't started paying it back yet, and surgeries due over next 2-3 years) is going to block OU study. Cat

Short answer, no. You will only have problems if you are behind with payments. If you are deffering payments every year, for whatever reason, this will not make any difference at all to your application. Have you tried contacting fees and registration for further info? Or even your regional centre? Good luck anyway. OU study is great!

Chai_2

Hi, i have jsut completed a sort of access course and would like to do a degree. I am 20 and have always struggled with money for education as my dad is a single parent who doesn't earn alot. i cant rely on him 2 help support me during uni and im now considering an ou course so i can work full time. do u think this is a good idea? i kind of like being in a class room but feel i have no choice, do u still meet friends at the ou? is the course delivery method good enough? do u need extra strong decipline to do this course?
as you can tell by my post im a little confused, please help!

saintstreaky

Hi Chai

It's a great idea!

It depends on the course, but for most you will have tutorials where you can meet your tutor and other students. A lot of students also meet up in 'self help groups'. These are often quite informal, with a combination of teaching and group discussion.

You can also go to week-long residential schools, which I highly recommend.

The course materials are (in my experience) usually very good, though there are one or two exceptions.

You do need to be motivated, but you can always ask for support from your tutor if you're struggling. If you're unsure, you could try one of the short (10 point) courses as a taster.

Dora_the_Explorer_5

I'd second saintstreaky's advice. My experience of OU, my final degree year, was that everything was far superior to what two of my local colleges where I did my first two years offered, both in terms of course materials/tutorials/tutor support and support from my student group - both practical and social.
An OU degree demonstrates that the graduate is committed and highly motivated as most people are doing a job of work at the same time.
The standard amount of weekly studying is around 15 hours, but you may find you can manage on fewer hours than this, as full time students at uni do ! Send for the stuff available for free for the subject you want to study, it should give you some idea of the level you will need to work at and how you'll be able to manage it. Good luck.

bubble96

hi, am finding all this info really helpful, so one quick additional question, the tutorials and opportunities to meet other students, are they usually at the weekend?

Dora_the_Explorer_5

Usually Saturdays as most students are working. Opportunities to get together with other students were weekends, weekday evenings. You'll be surprised how many OU students there will be in your town. Also MSN, phone, txt used.
I'm a bit out of touch so unsure about residential weeks. They used to take place in the summer and depended on the subject being studied, but I have an idea some (or even all) of them stopped, but there should be info about them on the OU website.

dinkie_2

belleooo wrote:

Short answer, no. You will only have problems if you are behind with payments. If you are deffering payments every year, for whatever reason, this will not make any difference at all to your application. Have you tried contacting fees and registration for further info? Or even your regional centre? Good luck anyway. OU study is great!

Thanks belleooo. Posted the thread quite a while ago now; just found message! Yes, contacted the OU and they've clarified that I'm eligible, which is just great! They also have been very helpful in sending out materials (an audio cassette, booklets etc) to help with course choices ... great quality of materials too. Looking forward to November. Glad you're enjoying OU. :-)

mar1by

Hi,

I've just been assessed by the OU DSA officer and she has recommended a new desktop PC to run the voice recognition and other software that she has recommended. Does anyone know what PC specs are when the DSA purchase a PC on your behalf?

Thanks