About

The Open University, celebrating its 50th birthday throughout 2019, was established by Royal Charter on 23 April 1969.  Discover for yourself how relevant and radical we are in our 50th anniversary brochure. We are the leading university for flexible, innovative teaching and world-leading research in the United Kingdom and in 157 countries worldwide. Uniquely placed to understand the needs of part-time students, combining their learning while earning, our innovative, award-winning distance teaching credentials have seen over 2 million students receive an education, otherwise denied to them at campus-based universities. Interested in seeing more? Take a look at our prospectuses.

Annual report

Our Annual Report 2017/18  and Financial Statements tell the story of our year.

Our Vice-Chancellor

Meet Professor Mary Kellett, Vice-Chancellor here at The Open University. Mary is a highly respected academic as well as the University’s chief executive and is incredibly proud to be leading the institution as it celebrates 50 years of helping students to transform their lives.

Governance at The OU

Governance at the University as defined by Royal Charter, including its officers, committees and procedures.

Strategy and policies

Learn about The Open University, its history, strategy and mission.

Find out where your fees go by reading here.

Teaching and research

Find out how OU-style open learning works from course development through to delivery to our students.

Find us

The Open University has its headquarters at Walton Hall in Milton Keynes, with representation across the UK.