making friends while doing distance uni
hi i'm starting an illustration degree at the open uni (open college of the arts) this month and I wondered if/how people make friends? I'm autistic and have a bunch of physical and mental health issues that mean I can't go the conventional in person route for uni but that also means I don't really see/socialise with anyone my age and lost touch with people I went to school with. I've tried apps for making friends but not really got anywhere with it. does anyone have experience/advice with this? any help is very appreciated 
Original post by djungelskogi
hi i'm starting an illustration degree at the open uni (open college of the arts) this month and I wondered if/how people make friends? I'm autistic and have a bunch of physical and mental health issues that mean I can't go the conventional in person route for uni but that also means I don't really see/socialise with anyone my age and lost touch with people I went to school with. I've tried apps for making friends but not really got anywhere with it. does anyone have experience/advice with this? any help is very appreciated
Hi @djungelskogi
Amazing that you've started a distance learning degree, we wish you the best of luck for it!
We can offer some advice on making friends via your online degree.
We aren't the OU but we are do offer online degrees, and the way our students interact is through an online community which we've set up for them. This includes course specific chats, and an all students chat etc.
Does the OU have something like this that you can get involved with and introduce yourself on?
Another way of making friends is to get involved with other activities like if they have an ambassador programme, then you'll get some good experience for your cv but also meet others on that programme to try to connect with.
Just a couple of ideas for you!
Alex - LIBF Rep 🙂
Original post by djungelskogi
hi i'm starting an illustration degree at the open uni (open college of the arts) this month and I wondered if/how people make friends? I'm autistic and have a bunch of physical and mental health issues that mean I can't go the conventional in person route for uni but that also means I don't really see/socialise with anyone my age and lost touch with people I went to school with. I've tried apps for making friends but not really got anywhere with it. does anyone have experience/advice with this? any help is very appreciated
Hi @djungelskogi ,
I hope you are enjoying your degree and there are still ways to make friends while doing an online degree!
I agree with what has been said- is there an online community of you to join where you can meet people? If so, joining this would be a good idea as there will be lots of people on here who are in the same position as you and you can make some friends this way.
I would also see if the open university puts on any virtual events at all. I'm not sure exactly what they offer, but from having a quick look online, it looks as though they put some virtual events on so that their students can interact with each other! Here is the link which shows that they have a students association https://www.oustudents.com/whats-on/events-listing/ and it looks like there are events you can join which you might like the sound of!
I hope some of this helps 🙂
Lucy -SHU student ambassador.
Original post by djungelskogi
hi i'm starting an illustration degree at the open uni (open college of the arts) this month and I wondered if/how people make friends? I'm autistic and have a bunch of physical and mental health issues that mean I can't go the conventional in person route for uni but that also means I don't really see/socialise with anyone my age and lost touch with people I went to school with. I've tried apps for making friends but not really got anywhere with it. does anyone have experience/advice with this? any help is very appreciated
Hi there @djungelskogi , I hope you are enjoying your course and this new journey into university. I understand the struggle in make new friendships in a new environment, especially when you are unable to meet in person. I had a similar struggle during covid and had to catch up with people via group chats, video calls and online games. I eventually made new friends through meeting people outside of my course through a society and working as a student ambassador. Maybe you could consider joining a community group chat or a society online (eg. gaming or book club), here are a list of clubs and societies you may find interesting? 🙂 I hope this helps and I wish you all the best in your university journey! 🥳
OU Clubs - https://www.oustudents.com/get-involved/clubs-and-societies/full-list-of-clubs/
OU Societies - https://www.oustudents.com/get-involved/clubs-and-societies/full-list-of-societies/
Zhi En
(Kingston Student Rep.)
In my experience, it's difficult and down to luck. I am studying with the open university, Mathematics/Physics and I haven't made any friends on the course. I found the WhatsApp group chats to be really toxic and not conducive to support nor friendship. I'm in my late 20s so I don't mind as much as I used to. But as someone with Autism, I understand how lonely it can be - I hope you're able to socialise on the course that you're doing.
Original post by djungelskogi
hi i'm starting an illustration degree at the open uni (open college of the arts) this month and I wondered if/how people make friends? I'm autistic and have a bunch of physical and mental health issues that mean I can't go the conventional in person route for uni but that also means I don't really see/socialise with anyone my age and lost touch with people I went to school with. I've tried apps for making friends but not really got anywhere with it. does anyone have experience/advice with this? any help is very appreciated
Hi
I would try to reach out to different coursemates through online platforms, this could help you to meet new people as you will have common interests which automatically makes it easier to make friends however I understand that it can be difficult with the distance learning as well as personal difficulty, please try to remember that there are lots of people also in a similar situation.
I hope this helps,
Matt
Wrexham Uni Reps
Original post by djungelskogi
hi i'm starting an illustration degree at the open uni (open college of the arts) this month and I wondered if/how people make friends? I'm autistic and have a bunch of physical and mental health issues that mean I can't go the conventional in person route for uni but that also means I don't really see/socialise with anyone my age and lost touch with people I went to school with. I've tried apps for making friends but not really got anywhere with it. does anyone have experience/advice with this? any help is very appreciated
Hey! I’m starting open uni this February and have been thinking about the same thing. I’ve had to sit out going to a conventional uni due to poor mh during a-levels. How’s your experience been so far with making friends? And if you’re still looking, I’m more than happy to be your open uni friend 😁
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