Education

The Education sector needs dynamic people with original ideas who can respond to new contexts for learning.

Skills you can develop

As well as the specific subject knowledge gained from studying an OU degree, you'll develop many transferable and work-related skills that are highly valued by employers and which will increase your employability.

The OU Careers Advisory Service defines student employability as: ‘A set of capabilities and achievements that support students in developing their careers, raising their aspirations and enhancing their contribution to society’.

Whatever your motivations for study, your goals and career aspirations, you are entitled to supported personal development planning either as an intrinsic part of your programme of study or through signposted optional activities.  You can view our full Student Employability Policy Statement on our website.

For Education students the employability skills you will develop include

• drawing together, analysing and critically evaluating information and research reports
• communicating effectively, clearly and accurately
• framing reasoned arguments and questioning assumptions
• managing time and working independently
• using information and communications technology (ICT) effectively in the workplace
• working within a group or team to find solutions to identified problems or to develop arguments
• thinking critically about your own learning and performance and taking steps to improve it.

To check which work-related skills can be developed from studying a particular subject, look at the Student Employability Profiles (PDF 3MB) on the Higher Education Academy website. Although these are designed for higher education practitioners, the subject profiles can help you identify the transferable skills you will gain from studying this subject area.

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Career opportunities

In the UK over 60% of graduates enter employment where a degree in any subject would be acceptable. In this instance what they offer the employer is evidence of the range of competencies which have been developed through their academic study, rather than the specific subject content of their degree. This page will focus on careers directly related to education, however, if you want to explore all of the choices open to you, also refer to the Further Resources section.

Given the current economic climate and the increased competition for graduate positions, it is important to consider a range of occupational areas. Bear in mind that many careers require further study, training and/or work experience beyond your degree.

With current and planned strategies in place to widen participation, promote lifelong learning and extend the contexts in which teaching and learning take place, the education sector offers many opportunities. There is still a shortfall of teachers in certain areas such as Science and those who can teach these subjects are in high demand. Some traditional mainstream teaching vacancies may be affected by the current recession, but this is likely to be offset by a rise in other opportunities such as teaching English to speakers of other languages, adult education, basic skills training and delivering schemes for the unemployed.

Some examples of job roles related to OU qualifications in this subject area are

• youth and community worker
• community education officer
• training and development officer
• educational administrator
• widening participation co-ordinator
• education social worker/welfare officer
• careers adviser, personal adviser or adult guidance worker.

We advise you to thoroughly research your career choices as early as possible, particularly in relation to experience required, differences that relate to where you live, or where the study choices you make may affect future opportunities.

Colleges, universities, central and local government, not-for-profit organisations, the Health Service and Civil Service all offer career opportunities for Education graduates.

If you are interested in a career in teaching, our Getting into Teaching page will be a useful starting point. You should thoroughly research the appropriate choice of modules for your degree to make sure you have sufficient National Curriculum content.

Use the Prospects website to explore career options related to this subject. Click on ‘Education’ to see examples of job roles and get information for further research.

If you live in Ireland look at the relevant information on career sectors and jobs with your degree on the Gradireland website.

To find out about ways of gaining experience through volunteering see our voluntary work pages. You can also use the searchable databases on the following web sites:

• Do it!
• Volunteer Scotland
• Volunteer Ireland
• Volunteering Wales

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Your employers

Rigorous academic standards ensure that OU qualifications are recognised and valued by professional organisations and employers.

As an OU student, you can access the Employer Showcase to find out about some of the employers who are keen to recruit OU graduates.

The UK Graduate Recruitment Co-ordinator of Logica said of OU students

If you are a student you might want to see further advice from major employers on applications, the skills they require and the value of OU study. Go to our What employers say pages.

As an OU student you can also register for our online vacancy service and receive email notification about job opportunities.

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Further resources

Use the other sections of this website to

• plan your career
• explore your career options  
• identify your achievements, skills and strengths
• get advice on job seeking.

Don’t forget to check the careers home page regularly for news of events, forums, careers fairs and short courses. If you are an OU student you can participate in and read entries on our online forums.

If you are a current OU student (or finished your studies within the last three years) you are entitled to a careers consultation with a careers adviser in your region or nation. This is designed to help you through the planning process and identify an action plan for your future. (Non-OU students should go to the Contact page of this website for other sources of careers advice.)

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