O U course

[old tree man]

well i have decided to take an ou course in enviromental studies, its only a short introduction course (cos i havent been to school in 1 million years ) then i can continue to get my degree,
wow me an old bloke hopefully with a degree in a few years, really excited really scared but totally looking forward to it.

Russ

[eccentric_emma]

The OU is great. I took the Technology for a Sustainable Future course and loved it. (was all about renewable energies etc) The time will zip by very quickly and I found you get heaps of support too!

[Merry]

I`ve just started an OU course as well. I did a level 1 short course on fiction writing and next month I start the level 2 `Creative Writing`.
Exciting innit?
Does this mean we can start acting like students?
Don`t they sleep a lot and drink beer and smoke funny fags?
Ooh, can`t wait.

[sara]

Hello Well done with starting an ou course I am in my 5th year of a English Literature Degree with the OU it is really hard work esp when you work full time ( for Barts and The London Hospital) but it is well worth it I cant wait to graduate and look daft it that gown ! Go for it !

[prison break fan]

Well done you!!!pbf

[Rosendula]

wow me an old bloke hopefully with a degree in a few years,

Russ

Oh Russ, if that picture you use for your avatar is you, I don't believe you are very old at all. I went to my local uni as a mature student, and was told the oldest person starting the course that year was 72! His only concern that he wouldn't live long enough to graduate.

I hope you enjoy your course as much as I did mine. It really changed my life. I'm still skint. I'm still not going out to work for money (although I have since graduating). The difference is, now I have been taught how to learn, and learn well, I have never been happier, nor have I ever been more at peace with myself. I've also never been more confident to stand up for myself when I'm being treated unfairly and I have managed to change my life in ways I hadn't even dreamed of before.

Good luck. Have fun.

[Green Aura]

Hey you're never too old. When I graduated age 39 and feeling a bit frumpy in my robes and mortar board, I was greatly cheered to see a gentleman of 83 getting his PhD!. There's hope for all of us yet.
Maggie

[old tree man]

Thanks everyone, i am really excited and so nervous too, like you said Rosendula i'm hoping that they can teach me to learn and study properly as it has been a looooooooong time, i also did'nt realise that people of such grand ages would be there also thats just fantastic, the last time i was at school i was just 14, i left to go to work in the forest without any o levels or anything and learnt my trade which i have to say has held me in good stead all my life and fully employed (and yes dad you were right if you'r up there watching me)
And so a new chapter of my life unfolds as a student that still sounds funny at my age

all the best
Russ

[Rosendula]

I think the most shocking thing I learned was that I never knew how to learn and study properly. I went to school until I was 17, and from my experience from my own schooling, and from seeing my eldest two children go through school and discussing with Richard his experience of schooling, we have come to the conclusion that school is a complete and utter waste of time. I am not trying to attack any teachers out there who might be reading this, but I feel the whole school system of bundling kids of similar age together and ramming a load of disconnected information down their throats whether they are interested in it or not just doesn't work. When you start studying because you want to, you find you learn so much quicker and easier because it's something you are interested in. You also learn so much from each other (often off-topic stuff), because there are people of all ages and from all walks of life with so much different experience. Not many people can say they've worked in the forest all their lives, for example

I don't know how the OU social network works, but I assume there is some sort of opportunity to meet other students, either online or for real?? Even though I have a solitary personality, I would still urge you to make contact with the other students whenever you can.

Good luck!

[ina]

Rosey, I couldn't agree more. I was useless at school, and so much better at uni. Mix of ages (and experiences) is actually helpful; more freedom in the way you as an individual work helps, too; and you are definitely never too old. I was 42 when I got my MSc, and I wasn't the oldest that year; the youngest with us was 22 or so (that was fulltime; I'm sure that there is an even wider spread of ages on the distance learning courses). And the grandfather of a friend of mine in Germany was getting his BSc at the age of around 93 (sharing a flat with fellow students, amongst them his grandson!), and was nearing 100 when he was working towards his PhD. I still intend to get a Dr title once I'm retired...

I did once apply for an OU course, but living off £50 per month (after bills, and they were kept to a minimum) I was considered too rich to get any help with the cost, so that fell through...

[Merry]

I found that there was a thriving on-line community that was just as useful and supportive as the tutorial system.
As for financial help, my OH said there was no point in claiming. Anyway, I got our P60s etc and sent them off to find that I got nearly 100% financial assistance with the fees!
AND the offer of financial help towards a computer, to which I said,"No thanks, got one!"
We`re poor!
Didn`t know we were poor!
Didn`t feel poor!

[ina]

I found that there was a thriving on-line community that was just as useful and supportive as the tutorial system.
As for financial help, my OH said there was no point in claiming. Anyway, I got our P60s etc and sent them off to find that I got nearly 100% financial assistance with the fees!
AND the offer of financial help towards a computer, to which I said,"No thanks, got one!"
We`re poor!
Didn`t know we were poor!
Didn`t feel poor!

Well, I'd just like to know how they determine that then... I really couldn't have paid for it myself - so I just couldn't do a course at that time. £50 per month for food, further education and "entertainment" was just not enough to pay for anything like that - didn't have a PC, either, couldn't even afford a phone or telly, or a car - but heck, I'm not complaining, I did get what I wanted in the end... And it probably turned out better this way, as I got onto a full time course for a year and had it funded, too.

[Merry]

Gosh Ina - sorry - didn`t mean to sound triumphant.
We do have a really low income and that`s what they go on - but we also have really low outgoings. No mortgage, no car, low energy costs, grow our own stuff. So we feel rich.

I`m really glad it turned out good for you.

[mrsflibble]

when I was a student I completed this bit of coursework (omg someone found and digitised it; give it a while to get past the test strips) with two students my own age and a lady called Carol who was in her late forties/early fifties (she wouldn't confirm which hahaha!). I don't know how far she got as we lost contact after my second year, but I'll never forget her. she was fab. btw; I was on a multimedia course.

[ina]

Gosh Ina - sorry - didn't mean to sound triumphant.

Don't worry, I didn't take it like that! I suppose if it had been important enough to me then, I would have fought for it, and maybe got somewhere in the end. But it turned out better this way, so maybe it was meant to be.