Value of Physics Degree Without IOP Accreditation

The new 30 credit module MST224 will not be accepted in place of this module. It is
considered likely that the revised module MST210 will be, but this cannot be confirmed until it
has been assessed for inclusion.

Okay, so I just got off the phone with the Open University regarding a question I asked them around the start of December or so. The question was about the physics pathway of their Natural Sciences degree, and whether or not it would indeed be accredited by the Institute of Physics. I decided to ask them having read this (on page 5), stating:



The Open University told me just today that, no, the replacement module won't be accepted, and thusly the degree as a whole won't be accredited. I'm going to contact the National Careers Service later today to find out, which I'll post the results of here when I find out.

So what I want to ask any of you out there is this: does not having the potential for accreditation on my physics degree harm me in any significant way? What, if any, types of careers require an accredited degree?

Alan
Initial Question/Comment: What type of physics-related careers require that the physics degree be accredited by the Institute of Physics?

Connected with Jeffrey

8:39:12 AM Jeffrey
Hi Alan - strictly speaking you can get into any of the physics-related careers without your degree being on the accredited list from the Institute of Physics.

8:40:17 AM Jeffrey
However, jobs in physics are highly sought after and so it may well give you an advantage to have done an accredited course when it comes to landing a good job in a physics related field.

8:40:32 AM Jeffrey
Was there a particular career you were considering?

8:42:05 AM Alan
There wasn't, but I was just wondering which careers may be impossible, or just more difficult to get in to with a non-accredited degree. I just ask because I'm due to start studying the Natural Sciences degree at the Open University on the Physics pathway, and it turns out the latest iteration of the degree has lost the accreditation due to the lack of a single module.

8:42:30 AM Alan
So there are no specific types of careers in physics that would be more difficult to land without the accreditation?

8:44:22 AM Jeffrey
It would be more difficult to land a job that requires a high professional standard of Physics - like a Research Physicist - but if you were to be looking at, say, Teaching Physics in a Secondary School it would not have an impact.

8:46:26 AM Alan
From the outset, the former is more the direction I was looking to head in. It is early days though, of course. Do you think it would still be an adequate degree given the increased difficulty in certain careers, assuming I'm aiming for the more difficult end of the scale?

8:47:52 AM Jeffrey
Well I think a key question is - are you looking to go on and do post-graduate study after your first degree? - if so you should definitely aim at getting a degree accredited by the Institute of Physics.

8:48:40 AM Alan
Ah, yes.. I assume funding for postgraduate study will be significantly easier to find with an accredited degree?

8:50:12 AM Jeffrey
Almost certainly - it would be the Universities who do the accredited courses who are more likely to get the research grants and hence be able to afford to pay postgraduate students.

8:51:02 AM Jeffrey
If you end up having to self fund postgraduate study that usually means you need a Professional and Career Development Loan and you cannot get those for the Open University.

8:52:21 AM Alan
So given the likelihood of wanting to do postgraduate study, it might be more prudent to study a HEFC/Access course at a local college for a year prior, then applying to a university who does have an accredited degree?

8:53:27 AM Jeffrey
Yes - also Universities tend to "promote from within" and give their funded postgraduate places to students they know have done well on their own undergraduate courses.

8:53:47 AM Jeffrey
Can I ask if you are 24 or over?

8:53:56 AM Alan
25 at the moment.

8:54:42 AM Jeffrey
Thanks - that means you can get an Access Course funded by a 24+ Advanced Learning Loan - which you do not pay back if you carry on to complete a degree.

8:56:10 AM Alan
Now I did notice the Open University has quite a few research areas in physics for postgraduate study. I wouldn't imagine the lack of accreditation would be an issue there, considering it's the same institution? That would be limiting my options rather significantly though, I realise.

8:58:47 AM Jeffrey
Yes - they do a lot of research in areas like Astrophysics and again I suspect they take on students who have done their first degrees with the OU but it may be difficult for you to get a postgraduate position with another university if your undergraduate degree was not accredited as they would be uncertain as to whether your studies -

8:59:12 AM Jeffrey
- would have covered everything they would assume you know.

9:00:37 AM Jeffrey
It follows that if, whilst doing your first degree, you find yourself particularly interested in an area of physics that the OU does not cover you may not be able to get a place to do postgraduate study in it.

9:02:56 AM Alan
That is my thought process. The Open University of course assured me that the lack of accreditation did not mean the degree is of a lower quality, but that won't help with any other universities. I think I may have to look into Access courses or the like.

9:03:42 AM Alan
Do Access/HEFC courses in general give you the right level of mathematics for universities to be happy to accept you, assuming you have little to no work history to add?

9:04:17 AM Jeffrey
Yes - the OU are quite right that the degree is not of lower quality in terms of intellectual level but if other universities are concerned it does not cover everything they need - it would be a limiting factor.

9:05:02 AM Jeffrey
So long as you do the right Access Course - you need to do an Access to Science one rather than a general one.

9:06:54 AM Alan
I've just had a check, and it does seem that two local colleges do "Access to HE Diploma (Science)" in their terms, so I assume that would be the same thing.

9:07:57 AM Jeffrey
Yes that sounds right - the courses prepare you to do degrees in a range of subjects with a common theme like Science or Health Studies or Business etc.

9:08:33 AM Alan
The easiest to reach college only do art & design, photography, combined studied, and counselling unfortunately though.

9:09:27 AM Jeffrey
Well with Access courses a lot of the study is in your own time - they often only expect you to be there a couple of days a week - some are done just in the evenings.

9:10:13 AM Alan
So just to summarise, lack of accreditation would only be a problem if you intend to go into research and/or postgraduate study?

9:11:32 AM Jeffrey
In general yes, but if you were going to go for a Graduate Scheme with a company that is looking for physicists it may put you at a disadvantage as well.

9:12:46 AM Alan
Okay, thank you. Would it be okay if I quoted or paraphrased some of this conversation on The Student Room forums in a thread I created asking this same question? No-one could give an answer, and one person replied saying they're in the same situation as me, so I think it would help them out.

9:13:22 AM Jeffrey
No problem at all.

9:14:34 AM Alan
Well thank you very much, I shall have a ponder on this information and see what it leads to.