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Student at the Open University
Open University
Milton Keynes
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Reply 1
Hello,
Sorry to not answer your question but could you tell me what it's like to study with the OU? I'm planning to do Psychology with them and was wondering how it's all set out and stuff. Do you receive the work and you just do it? What are the materials provided like? How do you manage your time? Are the deadlines hard to work to or are they just right?

Thanks for any reply and sorry that I can't answer your question!
Student at the Open University
Open University
Milton Keynes
Visit website
Reply 2
Original post by ellieHA
Hello,
Sorry to not answer your question but could you tell me what it's like to study with the OU? I'm planning to do Psychology with them and was wondering how it's all set out and stuff. Do you receive the work and you just do it? What are the materials provided like? How do you manage your time? Are the deadlines hard to work to or are they just right?

Thanks for any reply and sorry that I can't answer your question!


No Problem! I'd definitely recommend studying psychology with the OU :smile: it's so well organised and although you're studying at home, you receive a lot of support. You just need plenty of self-motivation to sit down and do the work by yourself :smile:

How it works is, you choose which modules you want to do to make up the credits for your degree (if you look on the OU website there is a standard pathway of which modules to follow for a BPS accredited degree). So you can choose totally what pace you want to work at. As a general rule, 15 credit modules take up about 8 hours a week, 30 credits 12 hours and 16 hours for 60 credits. You can study them in any combination you want as long as you take the modules in the right order and don't take on more than 120 credits at a time.

A week or so before your module begins you will receive your module materials in the post (usuallly includes a textbook or two, some audio or video material, a study planner and some details about assessment for the module). You will also have access to the module website, which has online versions of all the study materials, a plan for when to do all your work and a forum where you can communicate with other students on your course (the forums are generally very active and a really great source of support). You are also assigned a tutor who you can ask any questions and will mark your assignments, and depending on the module may offer tutorials online, by phone or in person (these are non-compulsory).

From there it's down to you, but you have all the support and the planner tells you when to do everything. My advice would be stick to the planner because that's normally the best way to study the materials. At the start, they give you a lot of guidance on how to organise your time and any problems, you can phone your tutor or post on the forum. I don't find the deadlines are too hard to keep to, when an assignment is coming up there will generally be time set aside in order to do it.

Good luck if you decide that this is what you want to do :smile: Feel free to message me or reply again to this post if you have any more questions :smile:
Reply 3
@Spotted Zebra

hi,
I have no answers, sorry, but I've just signed up with OU for BSc (Honours) Psychology & I'm very excited. I found your info very helpful :smile:
Reply 4
Original post by joolcee
@Spotted Zebra

hi,
I have no answers, sorry, but I've just signed up with OU for BSc (Honours) Psychology & I'm very excited. I found your info very helpful :smile:


Glad it helped :smile: The OU is great :smile: Which module are you starting with? Feel free to PM me if you ever need any help/ have any questions :smile:
Original post by SpottedZebra
I'm studying for a psychology degree with the OU and I'm just up to the stage of doing my last level 1 module. Was just wondering who has studied level 2 psychology modules with the OU like Exploring Psychology or the project module? Is it a big step up from level 1 study?


Hi! I don't know if you still need your question answering, but thought it might help others anyway. I did Child Development (ED209) at Level 2. It was basically a lot of developmental psychology, and I honestly wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between those text books and my A level psychology text books, so if you were ok with Level 1, I can't imagine it will be much of a step-up to level 2.
Reply 6
Original post by Lazuliblue
Hi! I don't know if you still need your question answering, but thought it might help others anyway. I did Child Development (ED209) at Level 2. It was basically a lot of developmental psychology, and I honestly wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between those text books and my A level psychology text books, so if you were ok with Level 1, I can't imagine it will be much of a step-up to level 2.


Thanks for your help! I'm enrolled to start Exploring Psychology (DSE212) in October now as my first level 2 but I'll be doing the child development module after that so that's a great help :smile: did you find there was more wider reading in level 2 than level 1?
Original post by SpottedZebra
Thanks for your help! I'm enrolled to start Exploring Psychology (DSE212) in October now as my first level 2 but I'll be doing the child development module after that so that's a great help :smile: did you find there was more wider reading in level 2 than level 1?


Well, I haven't done any big level 1 courses yet, but there wasn't really a lot of wider reading needed for Child Development. Doing Discovering Psychology first is a good idea because a lot of the stuff in child development is the 'basic' psychology stuff you'll probably do, but looking at it from a slightly different angle.

The one thing I would say is to revise as you go along, because you have 6 essays and then only about a month between the last essay and the exam, in which you have a seen question that you have to prepare another essay for! I had to defer for health reasons, but I'm not sure how I would have coped if I needed to cram it all in in a month! The seen question is the only essay I did any wider reading for, and that is only because you have to find 2 or more articles of your own to support your argument, other than that I just stuck to the course text books.
Reply 8
Original post by SpottedZebra
I'm studying for a psychology degree with the OU and I'm just up to the stage of doing my last level 1 module. Was just wondering who has studied level 2 psychology modules with the OU like Exploring Psychology or the project module? Is it a big step up from level 1 study?


Hey,
I've just finished DSE141 this week which I really loved, and I'm just coming to the end of DD131, I'm assuming you've probably done both courses :smile:
I'm studying Criminology & Psychological Studies so I'm also starting DSE212 in October, so feel free to message me :smile:
Reply 9
The one I'm starting is DD101 introducing the social sciences.
Reply 10
Original post by joolcee
The one I'm starting is DD101 introducing the social sciences.


I did part 1 of that module (DD131) as my first module, it's really interesting :smile: are you doing it as part of a psychology degree? Feel free to PM me if you need any advice or just a chat :smile:
Reply 11
I'm going to be doing DSE212
Reply 12
Original post by dg2009
I'm going to be doing DSE212


When are planning on studying it? :smile:
Reply 13
Feb 2014 doing SD329 in October 14
Reply 14
Original post by dg2009
Feb 2014 doing SD329 in October 14


ahh cool :smile: Im starting DSE212 this october, what qualification are you working towards?
Reply 15
An open degree, started with sciences then health and social care then back to sciences now psychology lol I love biology/chemistry I'm just no good at it.
Reply 16
Original post by dg2009
An open degree, started with sciences then health and social care then back to sciences now psychology lol I love biology/chemistry I'm just no good at it.


That sounds good :smile: what are you planning to do once you graduate?
Reply 17
Go into Nursing or ODP training I think. You?
Reply 18
Original post by dg2009
Go into Nursing or ODP training I think. You?


sounds good, I'm interested in nursing too. Are you looking at the preregistration masters course? I'm also considering teaching or counselling
Reply 19
Original post by SpottedZebra
sounds good, I'm interested in nursing too. Are you looking at the preregistration masters course? I'm also considering teaching or counselling


Yes if I can otherwise it's undergrad again