Is Open University treated as a real university?

It's definitely a real university, and is pretty well regarded!

Employment prospects are hard to show in statistics form, because a lot of people do the OU for purely their own enjoyment (well, they used to - not so much now with the increased fees, but it used to be a good way for people to be 'life-long learners' and gain many qualifications just for their own interest). However, all employers I've had/spoken to have been really impressed by the work I've put in to get my degree while working full-time, and the only people who have ever implied that it wasn't a 'real degree' or a 'real university' have been silly 18 year olds who have no idea. I started a job advertised as a graduate job back in June and I haven't even finished my degree yet, so clearly my manager was impressed enough

It will certainly allow you to get onto a Masters course.

They aren't on any league tables as far as I'm aware because they're a part-time distance learning institution. However, they are rated really highly in surveys for student satisfaction.

Was the job related to the degree you were studying?

Yep - I'm doing BSc (Hons) Computing & IT, and I'm mostly working with databases/SQL now, with some web development. I've been working full-time for about 6 years but only in general admin/secretarial kind of jobs. The only experience I had with SQL prior to getting the job was the M359 module I took last year. I finish my degree on Monday

Oh that's good. Basic sql can be learned quite quickly so it's not too much of a risk depending on what task you were doing. I don't mean to be rude but you do have all that experience which makes you desirable for the workplace anyway. Your degree has given you more skills to do other types of work. I wonder if unemployed people taking the degree have had much success.0

Well, the job is a bit more than basic SQL, lol. My boss has said multiple times how impressed he's been with how much I know - they weren't expecting me to be this comfortable with the job or have this much knowledge from a single module. I do have a good bit of work experience (although none of it is particularly relevant to my current job) but still, they employed a non-graduate over the other people they interviewed, who I believe all already had their degrees. I don't know what work experience the other candidates had though.

BTW do you mind sharing what position you have? I know some people that studied Computer Science at university and struggled to gain employment. However the ones that had relevant work experience got jobs really fast.

I also wonder what the prospects are like for other subjects. I'm thinking of studying maths & physics there purely because I love Math. I might do it over the course of 7 years or something. I want to get a degree in engineering or something and work an engineering or programming job if I can get one. If not i'll go self employed.

Hi Kate

Just wondered which pathway you did ?, I'm gonna do Comp Sci with an emphasis on the programming modules but I'm thinking maybe I should try and touch on a few subjects rather than just doing all programming stuff.

I think since the OU is not one of the top 10-15ish best universities in the country, it would be considered as the same level as any other average university in the UK.

I.e., I think most people separate university rankings in their heads, broadly speaking, as

1. Cambridge, or rather, Oxford and Cambridge.

1b. Nearly Oxford and Cambridge (maybe UCL, Imperial, LSE..)
2. Very good universities ( i.e. King's, Bristol, Warwick (maybe this goes in the category above?), SOAS, Durham, Southampton, Edinburgh, St Andrews, a few more...)
3. Not one of the most famously good unis.
4. Any university they've heard particularly bad things about, or unis that are in the same town as one of the best universities and so clearly lose on comparison, e.g. Oxford Brooks.

I think the O.U. falls comfortably into category 3, i.e. just as good as almost every other university in the country.

FYI I have heard employers talked loudly about applicants CVs and threw away any not from the top 10 or so unis. The OU appeared to be treated slightly differently to all other 'not the top 10' unis, almost as if it deserved the benefit of the doubt. In certain industries, this 'only the best' attitude will be widespread.

Too much fail to quantify...

By what metric are you measuring, 'the best universities in the country'?

Hearsay, conjecture and anecdotal evidence.

How good the university is perceived depends on how well-qualified a student is for a job at the end of their degree.

I'm considering doing a degree through it because it's beneficial for me in most ways. The price is good. I am kind of an autodidact. I just need some guidance from a tutor or professor occasionally. I may need facilities as well. My main concerns are the following:

I am not generalizing about the students themselves, but about the opinions people and particularly people making hiring and pay decisions that I have come into contact with or heard about, have.



I think you are naive to think everyone is as broadminded and fair as you are hoping they will be about the institution. Having said that, I think the OU is a fantastic idea and hope it gains credibility, but I think a person would be sheltering themselves from reality a little if they failed to notice that the Open University does not share the level of credibility of the top 10-15 universities in the UK.

I just read on another forum that another studetn got onto an Imperial College MA with an OU degree.
That is what you need to do if you want employers to take notice.

I think since the OU is not one of the top 10-15ish best universities in the country, it would be considered as the same level as any other average university in the UK.

I.e., I think most people separate university rankings in their heads, broadly speaking, as

1. Cambridge, or rather, Oxford and Cambridge.

1b. Nearly Oxford and Cambridge (maybe UCL, Imperial, LSE..)
2. Very good universities ( i.e. King's, Bristol, Warwick (maybe this goes in the category above?), SOAS, Durham, Southampton, Edinburgh, St Andrews, a few more...)
3. Not one of the most famously good unis.
4. Any university they've heard particularly bad things about, or unis that are in the same town as one of the best universities and so clearly lose on comparison, e.g. Oxford Brooks.

I think the O.U. falls comfortably into category 3, i.e. just as good as almost every other university in the country.

FYI I have heard employers talked loudly about applicants CVs and threw away any not from the top 10 or so unis. The OU appeared to be treated slightly differently to all other 'not the top 10' unis, almost as if it deserved the benefit of the doubt. In certain industries, this 'only the best' attitude will be widespread.