OU degree - recognised by employers or not really?

wantsajob

spandangled wrote: »

I suspect I went to the same ex-poly. But as you'll know, or as I found, SPSS and the statistics are quite difficult to get your head around at first, I found learning to use a software package in 3-hourly laboratory lessons difficult (I suspect it being at 9am on a Friday morning did not help), I can't imagine learning to use it from a distance.

Not relevant to the thread but.... Fortunately for me I had studied A level Maths pure and statistics and could do a t-test manually looking up values in tables. I was fully expecting the stats. The manual they supplied which they put together themselves was ok, but the recommended texts were generally quite poor. The Hugh Coolican book was completely useless and a waste of money really. The Robson Real World Research book was good on pretty much everything but the statistics. The best book on SPSS is Andy Field - Discovering Statistics using SPSS which I only found out about after the course - I suspect it would have made life a whole lot easier for the students who struggled if this was recommended. So the choice of recommended texts can make a big difference to how easy it is to learn. Hopefully the OU puts more thought into recommended texts than Hudds.

grumpyoldwoman41

Wantsajob - I have found that ALL books that are ever "recommended" normally turn up to be tottaly useless

I love to buy books but always try to lok at them first and then order via Amazon.

For maths I like Straud - Engineering Mathematics, good examples and very clear (although very bulky). Also at a bit lover level Bostock and Chandler... Got a lot of books for maths/stats/languages at home.....

Coming back from Tunisia one year I was determined I will learn Arabic.. got those most expensive books with DVDs etc etc... when they arrived - did not know from what side to open them LOL They are collecting dust somewhere on the shelf now .. me baddddddddddddd

hcb42

**curlywurly** wrote: »

It depends on the job you want and the type of degree. I was shocked that a colleague of mine got a 1st in Psychology from the OU by reading a few books, sending in an essay every three months and taking a few exams. Now I don't have a degree in pscychology myself, but when I did my degree at university, we weren't given a book to read and then "read this chapter of this book, answer this question, the answer's in the book" ... we were shown into the library and we had to research it ourselves. We also had to produce a lot more essays than one a month.

That said, I take my hat off to anyone who can hold down a full-time job and study at the same time. Not just because it's difficult to find the time, but also the motivation and support from the students around you.

I think you must have the wrong university, or your friend has played down their efforts. I have done two degrees with the OU, one took six years, of concentrated studying, and lots of self directed research as well as coping with pressured FT job. THe first degree I did was actually an MBA which took 3 years PT and again massive pressure, and to get a distinction means your friend must have been churning out 85% for essays on average and on all exams. And I have yet to see an OU course where you do one essay every three months. 6-7 over a period Feb-Oct is the norm, with exam at the end.


TO answer the OP question, I as a recruiting manager do pay a lot of attention to an OU degree, as I know how darn hard it is and requires a heck of a lot of commitment. In my case about nine years of no summers, and stopping in all weekend studying.

Worth every penny it cost me too.

Add to that that many OU students are mature students, working FT, juggling family and everything else. Like most students I have sobbed tears trying to get my essays in on time and to a quality I pride myself on, and I am reasonably academic!

I think the contrary, anyone who goes to a uni at 18 and has a mediocre pass to me shows they didnt care and wasted their time at uni, certainly that would have less value then than the person who committed six years of their life to weekend and nightly studying.

Loanranger

I have two OU degrees and worked full time while studying for both.

The OU changed my life and I don't regret a moment of the years of grinding hard work. I had to make sacrifices to fit it all in.
I wasn't ready for studying in my teens, far too busy having fun and living life to the full. I went to a grammar school so academically I should have been ready for university but people mature at different stages.

I had a lightbulb moment at 23 and just knuckled down to the years of slog. It was worth every moment for the glow of the sense of achievement.
My biggest regret was not starting with the OU a year or two earlier.

The only place I met anything approaching academic snobbery was in the Russell Group university where I ended up working.

The OU modelled itself on the Oxbridge system: small tutor groups and, in the early days, only awarding BAs.

To achieve a first class honours degree from the OU you need to pass with more then 85%. In all other universities you can get a first with 70%.

Becles

bristol_pilot wrote: »

There is potentially the 'question mark' of why they weren't good enough to go to university at 18 in the first place.

Sometimes it's not a case of not being good enough to go to uni when they were 18. When I was 18, I was working in a lab who were keen to put me through a biochemistry HNC or degree. My maternal urges were too strong though and I wanted to start a family. There was nothing wrong with my ability to go to uni, I just didn't want it at the time.

heretolearn_2

I stand corrected about the Open degrees with honours, I'm out of date there, sorry.

'people doing OU degrees tend to be in their 30s and 40s which is too late really to be starting a 'graduate' career such as via a graduate scheme.

That's no longer true really, there are increasing numbers of younger people choosing this option. In 2009 14% were under 25, and 30% were 25-35. It's true that you are unlikely to get on to a wet behind the ears graduate training scheme as an older graduate, but a lot of people do find it advances their career. Graduates of all ages find it tough right now.

'There is potentially the 'question mark' of why they weren't good enough to go to university at 18 in the first place' this I find utterly offensive. There are lots of reasons people don't make a decision at 16 years old to do A levels, or at 18 years old to go to uni. Very rarely to do with being 'good enough' or not. Lets face it, plenty of thick 18 year olds end up going to uni...
OU is open to all standards and levels, you don't need entry qualifications, and you'll find people of all abilities, that's why it's called 'Open'. Those of lesser ability will fail their course, or get very low grades. Same as they would at any other uni. But people also study with the OU for personal interest and satisfaction, so the grades don't matter to everyone. Me? I'm after a 1st!

sonicgal

heretolearn wrote: »

'There is potentially the 'question mark' of why they weren't good enough to go to university at 18 in the first place' this I find utterly offensive. There are lots of reasons people don't make a decision at 16 years old to do A levels, or at 18 years old to go to uni. Very rarely to do with being 'good enough' or not. Lets face it, plenty of thick 18 year olds end up going to uni...
QUOTE]

Agree! Some people are smart enough to get educated in the real world of the workplace first, and then truly appreciate an academic education later..

ottytotty

I am finding this thread very useful and an interesting read, so thank you OP and everyone who has replied.
Is there anyone who has gained employment in a completely new field from their previous career path with a degree from the OU or do people tend to use these degrees to further their progression in an area of employment they are already in?

Thanks

westv

ottytotty wrote: »

I am finding this thread very useful and an interesting read, so thank you OP and everyone who has replied.
Is there anyone who has gained employment in a completely new field from their previous career path with a degree from the OU or do people tend to use these degrees to further their progression in an area of employment they are already in?

Thanks

I'd be interested to hear the answer to that too. Also if anybody has done that in their 40s.

Oldernotwiser

ottytotty wrote: »

I am finding this thread very useful and an interesting read, so thank you OP and everyone who has replied.
Is there anyone who has gained employment in a completely new field from their previous career path with a degree from the OU or do people tend to use these degrees to further their progression in an area of employment they are already in?

Thanks

As a Careers Adviser working with adults, I've know many OU graduates move into teaching (very common in my experience) and a couple who trained as solicitors after doing an LLB.