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The Open University

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crescendo

Can you do 2 years at Open university, and then do your 3rd year at a proper university?

(I'm not implying that Open university isn't 'proper' btw)

Some unis may accredit your OU studies thus gaining you entry to the 3rd year, but it depends what you are studying.....

Reply 21

sashh

samd294

Yeah, I can understand how arts courses can run, but how do technical courses, like maths, which are going to require previous knowledge work? I couldn't believe it when I he told me that this material was actually counting towards a degree!

Was he actually doing a maths degree? Lots of unis have maths modules to back up other subjects that are GCSE / A level standard.

It's the same with languages, if you are doing beginners language module it will start off below GCSE level but still count towards your degree.

OK going to be really anal now, but I am premenstual so live with it.

http://www.cs.bham.ac.uk/resources/modules/2004/18189.html#Detailed%20Syllabus

The link is to what is taught at Birmingham uni as part of the computer science degree. About half of it is stuff I covered at O Level. Does that mean that Birmingham uni has a low standard? I doubt it. It probably means they are covering the maths needed for computer science, whether students have done that maths before or not.

There will always be elements of a degree that someone else has done before at GCSE, A Level or known about from their working life. You cannot look at one piece of work from one student and dismiss an entire institution because of it.

Reply 22

ecksor

I'm curious to know what that level 2 course was actually. Sounds more like the level 1 courses although I never did any of those so I can't say for sure. I completed one level 2 course, M203 (Introduction to pure mathematics), last year which started off with an introduction block that had a couple of revision type things, then some basic ideas about groups. Then there were blocks on linear algebra, real analysis (2 of those), group theory and geometry.

The unit list in turn was the following:

Introduction block
Curve-sketching
Mathematical Language
Symmetry
Groups and Subgroups

Linear Algebra Block
Vectors and Conics
Linear Equations and Matrices
Vector Spaces
Linear Transformations
Eigenvectors

Analysis Block A
Numbers
Sequences
Series
Continuity
Limits

Group Theory Block
Permutations
Cosets and Lagrange's Theorem
Conjugacy
Isomorphisms and Homomorphisms
Group Actions

Geometry Block
Affine Geometry
Inversive Geometry
Non-Euclidean Geometry
Projective Geometry: Lines
Projective Geometry: Conics

Analysis Block B
Differentiation
Integration
Power Series
Differential Equations and Flows
Proofs in Analysis

How much of that is on the GCSE?