{"id":18739,"date":"2021-07-19T08:30:36","date_gmt":"2021-07-19T07:30:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ounews.co\/?p=18739"},"modified":"2021-07-19T08:30:36","modified_gmt":"2021-07-19T07:30:36","slug":"if-at-first-you-dont-succeed-speak-to-your-tutor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/student-stories\/if-at-first-you-dont-succeed-speak-to-your-tutor\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018If at first you don\u2019t succeed, speak to your tutor!\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cI discovered that having a \u2018wobble\u2019 is all part of the study process,\u201d says Open University graduate Sacha Jenkyn, who tackled a few setbacks during her degree in Social Sciences with Economics<\/a>.<\/p>\n

From overcoming assignment and exam struggles, to switching modules and finally finding her confidence, Sacha is proof that a few bumps in the road don\u2019t have to stop you. She shares her story:<\/p>\n

\u201cI began studying with the OU in 2009. Despite having lived in the UK for quite some time, I was still struggling with the financial system here. My British friends and family were unable to explain it to me, so I seized the opportunity to learn about it and started a module in Personal Finance, then Business Studies and finally Economics.<\/p>\n

Despite an honourable mark for my first Economics TMA (tutor marked assignment), I was in tears for the second one. I was completely paralysed by my ignorance in maths and my inability to understand some of the material. I decided to quit but felt devastated by my limitations.<\/p>\n

Disappointing exam result? Dust yourself off and try again\u00a0 <\/strong><\/h3>\n

I had a good think (and cry) over the weekend, and on the following Monday, I quit the Economics module and registered straight away with a Maths module (Y162 \u2013 Starting with Maths<\/a>). At the time, I couldn\u2019t remember how to do fractions or calculate a percentage, so I had to start from scratch! The OU teaching encompass theories with practical applications which gave me access to mathematical thinking in a very natural way. I loved it. The fact that I was able to do maths \u2013 and enjoy it \u2013 after decades of thinking I didn\u2019t have a mathematical disposition gave me a lot of confidence.<\/p>\n

After passing two Maths modules, I reapplied for the Economics course. This time I was able to grasp and fully comprehend the material and its complexities. I embraced the challenges ahead. I went on to pursue my Bachelor\u2019s degree in Social Sciences with Economics, and thoroughly enjoyed the process.<\/p>\n

Support from tutors and students<\/strong><\/h3>\n

My advice to students who are struggling is to talk to their tutor and get personal feedback. All my tutors were supportive during my studies, and I was very grateful for the time they spent answering questions and encouraging me. I was also lucky to be part of student study groups on Facebook for my courses, so when someone felt discouraged, the group was supportive.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

A second piece of advice is to accept that learning is an ongoing process. At the beginning it is easy to feel overwhelmed or under-qualified. But as time goes on, the learning process becomes easier. During my OU studies, I was working full-time, raising five children, and went through three operations to remove ovarian tumours. Although in hindsight, it sounds crazy, my studies were actually my \u2018me-time\u2019, and a purpose that kept me going.<\/p>\n

A new confidence and career<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Looking back, the confidence I gained through my OU studies has been invaluable. It led me to a new job as a Business Studies teacher and a private tutor in Economics. It was also useful in helping me to tutor my children for university and help with their GCSEs. I am in awe of the amount of material the OU has been able to teach us!<\/p>\n

My experience has been challenging but so worth it. I still use today what I have learned, and I am quite proud of my achievements.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cI discovered that having a \u2018wobble\u2019 is all part of the study process,\u201d says Open University graduate Sacha Jenkyn, who tackled a few setbacks during her degree in Social Sciences with Economics. From overcoming assignment and exam struggles, to switching modules and finally finding her confidence, Sacha is proof that a few bumps in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":18740,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[1526,1643],"class_list":["post-18739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-student-stories","tag-news-home-ou-home","tag-ou-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18739","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18739"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18739\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18740"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18739"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18739"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18739"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}