The Open Programme

Many graduate jobs are open to graduates of any discipline.

Skills you can develop

As well as the specific knowledge gained from studying subjects within The Open Programme, 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 students undertaking The Open Programme, the employability skills you will develop may include:

• numeracy and the ability to research
• framing and addressing problems, questions and issues
• communicating effectively, clearly and accurately
• critically evaluating information, arguments and assumptions
• using ICT effectively to search for, exchange, process and evaluate information
• planning, monitoring and evaluating your learning and performance and taking steps to improve it.

See more information about the learning outcomes in The Open Programme. These include a variety of skills that you can expect to develop during your studies. You will also be able to see the learning outcomes for individual modules, and see the subject based skills you can develop.

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. (Choose the main subjects within your Open Programme). Although these are designed for higher education practitioners, the subject profiles can help you identify the transferable skills you will gain from studying these subject areas.

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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. For students and graduates with an Open degree this is particularly applicable, so in addition to the sources of information below, look at the further resources section to find which sections of this website you can explore to help you identify additional career opportunities.

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

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

Use the Prospects website to explore career options in the UK related to the subjects you are studying. Click on a subject to see examples of job roles and get information for further research. You can also explore the industry insights information.

If you live in Ireland look at the information on career sectors on the Gradireland website. Also, see the 'Work and employment' section of CareersPortal for additional information on the labour market and employers in Ireland.

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, including

• Co-operative Group
• Financial Services Authority
• GlaxoSmithKline
• Bank of America Merrill Lynch
• NHS
• RSPB
• Waitrose

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 (modules). If you are an OU student you can participate in and read entries on our annual 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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