Our qualifications are designed to be flexible. So if you want to vary the amount of time you spend studying from year to year, or even take a break for a while, you can.
Should you stay at home, get your own place, study full time or part time or get a job too? Whichever way you decide to study the cost is the same.
Some of the ways OU students study:
1. Work full time, study part time.
Most Open University students work full time and study part time. This flexible route to earning a qualification allows you to do as much or as little study as you can alongside your job. Building your experience and qualifications at the same time also shows employers how committed you are. Typically, if you’re starting from scratch, an undergraduate degree will take six or seven years to complete.
2. Work part time, study part time.
If you want, or need, to work part time, this route is the ideal way to balance study with work. Work that ties in with your qualification can give you relevant work experience that can help put you ahead when it comes to getting a full-time job.
If you’re aiming for an undergraduate honours degree, you’d expect to complete it in about six years. See individual qualification descriptions for more information about study times.
If you’re aiming to complete a masters degree, then 30 and 60 credit courses would require about 8 or 16 hours each week respectively.
3. Study full time.
If you want to earn an honours degree in three to four years this option may suit you best.
Studying full time, you’ll typically earn 120 credits a year – although you might want to go for fewer in your first year while you’re getting used to OU study.
If you choose two 60-credit modules, your weekly study time would be approximately 32 to 36 hours. However, hours may vary depending on the combination of modules that you choose. When you begin to study towards a qualification with us, we’ll make sure that you understand how much time you’ll need to complete your modules as you select them.