Funding boosts OU opportunities
The financial package available to part-time learners in Wales is making a real difference, says Michelle Matheron from the Open University
The Open University in Wales has revealed a 49% increase in the number of students who registered to study with them this year.
The growth, which equates to almost 750 new learners, has been linked to the new student support system introduced in Wales from September 2018.
Depending on their circumstances, part-time students can now receive as much as £4,500 a year to support them with their studies. This has led to a significant increase in the number of people now able to consider studying part-time, and many are choosing to do this flexibly through The Open University.
One new student is Donna Dee, from Glyncoch near Pontypridd and now living in Llanrumney. She recently began an OU degree in psychology and will be studying at the same time as her son Garyn, an OU business management student.
Donna said: “I was inspired by something I saw on TV. It was saying that to ward off dementia when you’re older, you should do quizzes, do a course or get a degree. And I thought, ‘Oh, I’ve always wanted to study psychology.’ I wanted to get a diploma at first, but the OU encouraged me to do a degree and now I’m glad I did.
“I’m quite housebound. I’ve just been diagnosed with arthritis, so I don’t really go out much. I suffer with depression as well as bipolar. I used to sleep a lot, but since I’ve started studying I’ve stopped sleeping in the day and I’m not so depressed. I find having something positive to focus on alleviates depression.
“I would never have been able to afford to study at uni before because I’ve got no finances to help me. Student Finance Wales provided that support so that I can study at the OU.”
The health benefits experienced by Donna are just one example of how part-time learning can make a major contribution to people’s wellbeing and help them study while they work or care for others.
Another student to benefit from the new funding is Marianne Shelley, a single parent from Rhigos, Aberdare. Marianne works full-time and lives next door to her parents, who are both are in their 70s and need a small amount of care.
She began studying for a BSc in natural sciences in in 2018.
“My son is 16 and he’s doing A-levels at the moment. He’s doing all of the sciences,” she said.
“It was just through talking to him and taking an interest in what he’s doing that I thought, ‘I’d like to do that.’ I think it’s quite interesting how your children can inspire you to do more.
“The first thing I would say to people is, ‘Don’t think that you can’t do it.’ The Open University will show you ways that you can. The maintenance grant as a single parent outweighs the course fees and the flexible teaching really suits me.”
Louise Casella, director of the OU in Wales, is not surprised at the increase in the number of students enrolling on courses.
“Many people in Wales may never have considered a university education in the past,” she said.
“Often this is down to the cost and the worry of taking on debt, but thanks to the new student support system, more and more people are able to make that first step towards a degree.
“We offer flexible learning at the OU. This means that students can learn at their own pace, alongside other commitments. You could be caring for a relative or raising children. You could also still be working while studying. Whatever your circumstances, there has never been a better time to consider part-time distance learning.”
The significant rise in the number of students studying part-time comes as the Open University celebrates its 50th anniversary. Established in 1969 by Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who had the ambition of opening up education and giving more people the chance to get a degree, the OU has been delivering on that vision for 50 years, helping more than a quarter of a million students across Wales change their lives through learning.
Many of those who chose the OU would have struggled to access campus-based higher education (HE), but the OU’s supported distancelearning model made study not only possible but engaging, exciting and transformational for new generations of learners.
Recent figures show that more OU students are coming into HE from harder-to-reach communities in Wales. This includes a 56% increase in the number of students from low-participation areas; a 30% increase in black and minority ethnic students; and a 57% increase in disabled students.
The new student support system in Wales is a result of a major review of HE funding in Wales by Professor Sir Ian Diamond. His review recommended maintenance support for part-time students and changes to the full-time student support package to address a decline in the number of part-time students in Wales.
Two weeks ago, the Welsh Government announced a 35% rise in parttime students across Wales.
In England, a similar review of post-18 education is under way, led by Philip Augar. The challenge there is even more daunting – there has been a decline of over 50% in the number of part-time students in England since 2010. The recent Welsh Government and OU figures show what can be achieved by providing means-tested maintenance support for parttime learners and could offer useful evidence for the English review.
As well as recognising the role played by the new funding system in her opportunity to study, Donna paid tribute to the OU’s student support team who helped her during the enrolment process. The Cardiff-based department has seen an unprecedented demand brought on by the new funding system.
“Not only do we have more students to work with but we’re also talking to more people about what the
Thanks to the new student support system, more and more people are able to make that first step towards a degree LOUISE CASELLA
OU can offer.” says Ms Casella.
“October is usually our busiest month, and in 2018 we received a 60% increase in inquiries. This is a great problem to have, but very demanding on our staff. The team here have been fantastic and made new students feel supported the whole way through.
“Student success is a priority for us, and I’m pleased that more and more undergraduates are completing their degrees with the OU. We’re committed to supporting ongoing students to succeed in their studies as well as reaching out to more people to get started on the exciting and challenging journey of learning with us.
“We’re also looking at more flexible ways of studying. This year we’ve introduced a new degree apprenticeship in software engineering in partnership with employers across Wales.
“Supported distance learning has the potential to meet Wales’ skills needs by upskilling and reskilling the population and offering the chance of a university education to those who had never considered it before. With the new student support now on offer, we can reach even more people and change more lives.”