These days, university – or more traditional academic routes – are no longer guaranteed to be right for everybody. If that’s the case, then distance learning in the UK is well worth looking into: it gives you the opportunity of continuing your education without having to spend time or money commuting between home, work and some kind of educational establishment. It also means you don’t have to uproot yourself and go live in a different part of the country so you can study the subject you really want to study.
So if you’re quite happy keeping your commuting between your home and your place of work, here are five more fantastic reasons that distance learning in the UK could work for you.
The Open University provides higher education for more than a quarter of a million students. And it’s very good at doing it: it’s one of the top three UK institutions when it comes to student satisfaction. Most students are working, studying at their own pace, fitting their learning around their lifestyles and all the while enjoying the benefits of a regular salary.
Employers sponsor around 50,000 of these students, to make sure that they receive a kind of education that will help them progress in the workplace… without disrupting either the academic or career side to their lives.
Study material has always been available in print, but now the move is being made to give students online access to everything they need for their courses. In fact, all you really need now for distance learning is a computer and an internet connection.
It’s not a total walk in the park, though: you do need a great deal of motivation to make sure you get through the work you have been assigned. This could mean closing the door to family and friends until you finish your work. You do have the chance, however, to take classes and meet your tutors and fellow students at weekend meets, run for many courses. And when it comes to exams, you may well find you can travel to a local centre to take them, rather than travelling halfway across the country.
As far as finances go, at present the cost of an Open University course can run to about 6,000. But there are ways to reduce these fees, even though you can take your time paying for them. One option would be for your employer to sponsor you. Another would be to take advantage of one of the grant schemes run by the government that are still available for those earning less than 15,000 a year.
Notgoingtouni.co.uk is a source for young people who have thought about pursuing a profession outside of university, but don’t have the insight to do so. You’ll Get details about courses and apprenticeships in a variety of fields, and advice about foundation degrees, gap years, voluntary jobs, as well as more than 300 distance learning videos. Get your apprentice job now!
