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About the OU

Open admissions

The Open University was established to be 'open', with no entry requirements. Nearly all of our courses continue to have no entry requirements. That's why we don't have a heading for 'entry requirements' in the course description for most courses.

Some courses aimed at postgraduates or people who are working in specific jobs, do have entry requirements. The course description will say what they are in the section labelled 'entry'.

What we mean by 'no entry requirements'

There are some formal requirements:

• You must be 16 or over when the course starts.
• If you're studying full-time at another institution, you must get written permission from its principal.

There is no upper age limit.

Your responsibilities in choosing your courses

Our courses range from short courses for people who have never studied before, through to very demanding specialist courses aimed at highly-qualified postgraduates.

In most course descriptions, you will see a section called 'Entry'. This will help you to decide whether you are ready for this course, or whether you might do better to choose something else as preparation for it.

You are allowed to study more than one course at the same time. Each course is worth a number of 'points'.

Most students find that it is best to study one course at a time. Others manage to juggle two courses at once. A few exceptional students have succeeded in passing three or four courses studied together, but this is very unusual. Because it is hard to set aside enough time to study two or more demanding courses by distance learning, we will not allow you to register for courses that add up to more than 120 points at any one time, except when:

• adding up to two related standalone residential school courses that are related, and/or
• the overlap of course presentations is no more than one month.

All our courses are taught in English so you need to ensure that your English language skills are of a good standard. For advice, contact us.

Studying for a qualification

If you're aiming for a qualification, then it is particularly important to check:

• whether specific courses are required for that qualification,
• if they must be studied in a particular order,
• whether there is an overall time limit for the qualification. For example, you must complete all the courses for an MBA within 8 years.

You don't have to decide about whether you're aiming for a qualification before you start, and you can change your mind about it later.

Read the 'Becoming a student' section of our online prospectus for more details.

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