The Open University

OU distance learning student Halima shows her study space at home

‘I want to break stereotypes and make my parents proud’

18 January 2022

International Studies student Halima Younis, 26, has been studying with The Open University since completing her A Levels. After making the big decision to choose distance learning – and to prove her doubters wrong – she’s never looked back. She now wants to show that there’s not only one route to success and that you […]

The OU partners with Alamy to build a photo collection to better represent Black and Asian students

18 January 2022

To inspire learners from diverse backgrounds to achieve their ambitions, The Open University has commissioned a set of stunning portraits by British Pakistani photographer Inzajeano Latif to capture the perspective of Black and South Asian distance learning students in the UK. The images showcase four Open University students, pictured in their own homes where they […]

Meet the OU students changing the world

15 January 2022

Open University students aren’t just changing their futures – they’re helping to change the world. Meet some of the amazing OU changemakers who are using their skills to make a positive difference to their communities and our planet. Alex – the engineer from Antarctica Alex, 29, is taking supported distance learning to a whole new […]

OU’s free learning site turns 15 and reaches 100m visitors

12 January 2022

The Open University’s (OU) free learning site, OpenLearn, is celebrating a milestone after clocking up 100 million visitors in the 15 years since it was launched. Established as a trailblazing open educational resource, OpenLearn has successfully broken down barriers to education, with over a thousand courses and 15,000 hours of educational interactives, videos and articles. […]

What it takes to be a leader – spotlight on BBC/OU Learning English online series

11 January 2022

Academics from The Open University have collaborated with BBC Learning English to help thousands of people around the world to not only learn English but inform and inspire them about leadership. A new 20-part series is available now through the BBC’s Learning English and it explores the differing leadership approaches including that of household names […]

The OU and BBC Bitesize collaborate on new campaign to help young people imagine a more sustainable world

10 January 2022

The Regenerators campaign is designed to help young people think about and shape their future careers for sustainability, with a series of digital videos launched today January 10th on the BBC Bitesize website. The aim is to equip children, teenagers and young people with the tools and skills to understand the most important environmental issues […]

PhD student’s part in the excavation of the Rutland ‘sea dragon’

10 January 2022

Open University research student, Emily Swaby was at the centre of an exciting excavation – which has unearthed the largest, most complete marine reptile skeleton ever found in Britain, at the Rutland Water Nature Reserve. She describes the uncovering of the skeleton, the fossilised remains of a 10m-long sea predator called an ichthyosaur which is […]

Meteor glowing as it enters the Earth's atmosphere

Don’t look up: several asteroids are heading towards Earth – here’s how we deal with threats in real life

7 January 2022

Monica Grady, Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences at The Open University writes for The Conversation about the new Netflix film, “Don’t Look Up” and what would happen if this happened in real life. Don’t look now – but we are currently experiencing a rash of stories about a forthcoming global catastrophe. But in a […]

Explore our world’s fascinating flora in the BBC/OU series, The Green Planet

6 January 2022

Legendary nature historian, Sir David Attenborough will offer a stunning insight into Earth’s plant life in a new series co-produced by the BBC and The Open University. The first episode of the five-part series, The Green Planet, airs on 9 January at 7.00 pm on BBC One and will be available on BBC iPlayer shortly […]

Capitol assault: the real reason Trump and the crowd almost killed US democracy

6 January 2022

Written by Dr Evangelos Ntontis, Lecturer in Social Psychology at The Open University, Stephen Reicher, Bishop Wardlaw Professor in the School of Psychology & Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, Alex Haslam, Professor of Psychology and ARC Laureate Fellow, The University of Queensland and Klara Jurstakova, PhD Candidate, Canterbury Christ Church University It was the moment that could […]

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