just got an email from the OU about their increasing fee's for 2012. (I studied with them in the past which means you then get emails forever).
They whine on about the governments changes to funding then state that going forwards 120 points (which is the yearly expectation for full time students) will cost £5000.
So basically they are looking at £41.67 per point and you need 360 of them for a degree.
The OU courses are good, I really rate OU B190 and B680 but their degree's carry little weight in business compared against people who have done time at Uni.
Upping the price like this raises them out of the correspondence course market which I regarded them as being at the top end of.
They think that people will take degree's with them at these prices but at £15,000 I'm just not seeing the value in it. better to spend considerably less money on doing AAT or ACCA that will actually get you a job and if you want a degree that much there is one available after you've done the first nine ACCA papers.
Correct me if I'm wrong on the points but I think B190 is 30 points which means that it will go up from around £300 to £1250!
If that's the case, for anyone thinking of taking it OU B190 is the same course as the AAT ABC bookkeeping course (both originated from EQL) which I'm sure will remain at around the £300 mark.
For anyone interested in the OU's suicide note it can be found here :
Mmm, you would have thought that the OU would have clever people working for it wouldn't you...
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
That is unbelievable! Glad I registered for B190 this year. I finished an OU degree last year and the courses were around £500 for a 60 point course so the difference is just staggering. I know that funding for those on benefits/low wages used to allow many people, including myself, to do a degree practically for free which is where I think quite bit of their custom came from and I'm not sure how that is going to change but it certainly seems the OU is doomed!
less people take the courses so they keep increasing the prices the compensate.
It will end up the same situation as local councils who keep upping business rates so businesses move out so they up them again to make up the lost revenue and the next thing is that the only shops on the high street are charity shops as they're the only one's that don't have to pay rates!... And the only one's doing OU courses are the one's where the Government is paying for the course...
Actually... (penny drops)
There's a line in the suicide note that part time students will now be eligible for student loans... Wonder if thats a cunning plan that those currently having courses paid for them will in future have to take out loans against future earning potential as a result of attaining the degree...
How the heck is anyone going to be able to afford a house as everyone is going to be drowning in debt from their studies.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
OU videos on ICI, rocket propulsion and our teacher who was a Dr in Chemistry, wore sandles and had a Capri (from memory) made me a fan of chemistry; though did not pursue Chemistry and was lurred by numbers.
"How the heck is anyone going to be able to afford a house as everyone is going to be drowning in debt from their studies. " Will be cheaper to study overseas in sunnier climes.
Maybe when the exchange rates are more in our favour it will be time to action cunning plan B and take a serious look at the beach condo in Thailand.
As for lurred by numbers, mine had a £ sign in front and a 12 month stop gap to get a bit of money behind me before University turned into a career!
I'd actually been accepted to study law at Nottingham Uni but somehow it just never happened... Oh well, funny how life has it's own plans for you isn't it!
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Shaun, I received the email but didn't read it! I agree with you - this may be the end of the OU. I am sure there are lots of people like you and me who take a few courses but not the whole degree, this will price them out of our market. There is also a lot of OAPs who take courses/degrees to keep their minds active - they will not be able to afford these prices. What do you think they intend to do with the profit? Providing distance learning does not have the same costs as a bricks and mortar University. I took about half a degree (in their old system) back in the 80s/90s and then went to Bournemouth University (Business Information Technology) as a mature student. I choice B190 this year because their courses are so good, if they had the same courses in the 90s as they have now I would probably had taken my degree with them. I will never finish my degree with them now!
