The Open University (commonly Open University or OU , but officially "the" is part of its name) is the distance learning university founded and funded by the UK Government. It is notable for having an open entry policy, i.e. students' previous academic achievements are not taken into account for entry to most undergraduate courses. The majority of undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom, but its courses can be studied anywhere in the world.. Most of the postgraduate students (higher education) are based on campus where they take courses and attend the OU facilities for research.
It was established in 1969 and the first students enrolled in January 1971. It is incorporated by Royal Charter as an exempt charity in England and Wales and a registered charity in Scotland.
The administration is based at Walton Hall, Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire, but has regional centres in each of its thirteen regions around the UK. It also has offices in other European countries. The University awards undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, as well as non-degree qualifications such as diplomas and certificates, or continuing education units.
With more than 180,000 students enrolled, including more than 25,000 students studying overseas, it is the largest academic institution in the UK by student number, and qualifies as one of the world's largest universities. Since it was founded, more than 3 million students have studied its courses. It was rated top university in England and Wales for student satisfaction in the 2005 and 2006 UK government national student satisfaction survey, and second in the 2007 survey.
Aims
The OU provides university education to those wishing to pursue higher education on a part-time and/or distance learning basis, including disabled people, who are officially a priority group for the university. The British Government asked the Open University to continue the work of the Council for National Academic Awards (CNAA) when it was dissolved. The CNAA formerly awarded degrees at the polytechnics which have since become universities.
Foundation
The Open University was founded by the Labour government of Harold Wilson, based on the vision of Michael Young (later Lord Young of Dartington). Planning commenced in 1965 under Minister of State for Education Jennie Lee, who led an advisory committee consisting of university vice-chancellors, educationalists and broadcasters. The BBC's Assistant Director of Engineering at the time, James Redmond had obtained most of his qualifications at night school, and his natural enthusiasm for the project did much to overcome the technical difficulties of using television to broadcast teaching programmes.
Walter Perry (later Lord Perry) was appointed the OU's first vice-chancellor in January 1969, and its Foundation Secretary was Anastasios Christodoulou. The election of the new Conservative government of Edward Heath in 1970 led to budget cuts under Chancellor of the Exchequer Iain Macleod (who had earlier called the idea of an Open University "blithering nonsense"). However the OU accepted its first 25,000 students in 1971, adopting a radical open admissions policy. At the time, the total "traditional" university population in the UK was around 130,000.
Students
People from all walks of life and all ages take advantage of the OU; for most courses there are no entry requirements other than the ability to study at an appropriate level, though most postgraduate courses require evidence of previous study or equivalent life experience.
Approximately 70 percent of students are in full-time employment, often working towards a first (or additional) degree or qualification to progress or change their career, with over 50,000 being sponsored by their employer. The University is also popular with those who cannot physically attend a traditional university because they are disabled, abroad, in prison, serving in the armed forces, or looking after family members. About 10,000 OU students have disabilities.
While most of those studying are mature students, the reduction in financial support for those attending traditional universities has also led to an influx of young undergraduates to the OU. In the 2003–2004 academic year, around 20 percent of undergraduates were under 25 years old, up from 12.5 percent in 1996–1997 (the year before top-up fees were announced) and a small minority are under 18. The OU works with some schools to introduce A Level students to OU study.
Unlike other universities, where students register for a programme, at the OU students register separately for individual modules (which may be 10, 15, 20, 30 or 60 CATS points, equivalent to 5, 7.5, 10, 15, or 30 ECTS credits), and are known as 'courses' in the OU context. These courses may then be linked into degree programmes.
The students' union is the Open University Students Association, usually abbreviated to OUSA.
The University enrolled fewer than 50,000 students in the 1970-1971 academic year, but it quickly exceeded that number by 1974-1975, and by 1987-1988 yearly enrollment had doubled to 100,000 students, reaching 200,000 by 2001-2002; cumulatively, the University has educated more than two million students, 675,000 of whom studied enough courses to achieve a qualification after successful assessment. In the 2006-2007 academic year, there were 224,276 students and 6184 customers (who bought the course materials but did not enroll on the course to receive academic credits). Most students came from England (148,395), while others were from Scotland, Ireland, and the rest of the European Union. The majority of students (14,577) chose to undertake social studies and biological and physical sciences (11 910), as well as historical and philosophical studies; the least popular academic fields in The Open University are mass communications and documentation (187 students) and creative arts and design (545 students). The most popular course for the 2006-2007 academic year was DD100 An introduction to the social sciences (more than seven thousand students studied it in one academic year), followed by A103 An introduction to the humanities , K100 Understanding health and social care , M150 Data, computing and information , and DSE212 Exploring psychology (slightly fewer than four thousand students). More undergraduate students were female than male, while there were slightly more males than females taking postgraduate courses; and the majority of the students were between 25 and 44 years old, the median age of new undergraduates being 32. 37,852 students received financial help, and the typical cost for UK students of a Bachelor's honours degree at the OU was between £3,150 and £4,225 (EU and international students pay more as the University does not receive government funding for them). After government support, the second most important revenue stream to The Open University is academic fees paid by the students, which in one academic year (2006-2007) total about £123 million.
Staff
The majority of staff are Associate Lecturers and, as of the 2006-2007 academic year, there are over eight thousand working for OU. There are also 1218 salaried academic employees, 1654 others who are also academic-related, and 1847 support staff (including secretaries and technicians).
Salaries are the main cost in The Open University's accounts, claiming over £225 million for only one academic year (2006-2007).
Teaching methods
The OU uses a variety of methods for distance learning, including written and audio materials, the Internet, disc-based software and television programmes on DVD. Course-based television broadcasts by the BBC, which started on 3 January 1971, ceased on 15 December 2006. Materials are composed of originally-authored work by in-house and external academic contributors, and from third-party materials licensed for use by OU students. For most courses, students are supported by tutors ("Associate Lecturers") who provide feedback on their work and are generally available to them at face-to-face tutorials, by telephone, and/or on the Internet. A number of short courses worth ten points are now available that do not have an assigned tutor but offer an online conferencing service (Internet Forum) where help and advice is offered through conferencing "Moderators".
Some courses have mandatory day schools. These are day-long sessions which a student must attend in order to pass the course. One example of such a course is the K301 - Advanced Certificate in Health Promotion - which has two mandatory day schools/workshops, focusing on communication skills, counselling and practical issues related to health promotion. Nevertheless, it is possible to seek excusal upon the basis of ill-health (or other extenuating circumstances), and many courses have no mandatory face-to-face component.
Similarly, many courses have traditionally offered week long summer schools offering an opportunity for students to remove themselves from the general distractions of their life and focus on their study for a short time.
Over the past ten years the University has adopted a policy of separating residential courses from distance-taught courses. Exemption from attendance at residential schools, always as an Alternative Learning Experience (ALE), is sometimes available for disabled students and others who find it impossible to attend in person (See "Qualifications-Undergraduate" section.)
The OU now produces mainstream television and radio programming aimed at bringing learning to a wider audience. M
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