Alternative to school

You could do a one-year Access to Higher Education course at college. Mostly adults or tweens doing it so the atmosphere would be very different from school, which you might like.

You could also do A-Levels by distance learning or you could do some courses with the OU which MIGHT be accepted by some universities for admissions. In this case you have to ask EVERY university you want to apply to beforehand if they will consider this and which courses they think are acceptable. What one university might accept may not be accepted by another.

OU also offers a degree in paramedic science for which you would have to get sponsored though, i.e. you would need to get employed as an ambulance assistant or sth like that first, and then ask your employer to sponsor you for a degree.

Hi,

I want to second the same question (kind of) as the poster. I am wanting to apply to university with an Open University Diploma of Higher Education to study paramedic science. People have led me to think that there is no reason why universities would not accept this because I have basically taught myself 2/3 of a degree, which shows great self-motivation. I have no other way of getting into this profession. Emergency care assistant jobs and ambulance technician jobs are few and far between. Getting one of these jobs THEN asking the ambulance trust to sponsor me on a degree could take years and it is also a long shot. Studying at my local university is really my only option.

I am excited about finally doing something with my life but I am worried the DipHE Open will not be accepted. I have emailed universities asking them but I am fidgeting in my seat not knowing until next week. I am excited at the concept but scared because the opportunity could be taken away.

Unfortunately that's not possible. You have to be employed to do this Diploma/Foundation degree. It is an entry requirement - OU will not allow you to do the Diploma without it.. That's because half or so of the degree is work-based.

You could email the OU and ask them which employers have previously sponsored people through the degree, and then go from there. But yes, I agree it won't be easy to get a post.

If you want to do other OU courses for university entry you could try
S104 Exploring Science (60 points)
SK277 Human Biology (30 points)
and another 30 points course.
I've seen this combination accepted for Medicine - but it does very strongly vary from university to university what they will accept so you must make sure with the universities first.

Oh, well, I imagine some would accept it. You might not even need a DipHE - I'm sure CertHE would be enough for some. Again, depending on what courses it consists of.