The Open University - Liberal Arts degree (only £6,192 GBP! fully online)

[nomaduser]

Hello guys,

I just found another way to get a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal arts at The Open University (UK).

The Open University has an 'Open Degree' program which is equivalent to a US Liberal Arts degree.

This program requires you to get 360 UK credits (180 ECTS credits) in ANY subjects.


http://www.openuniversity.edu/courses/qu...se-details

They allow you to transfer up to 240 UK credits (120 ECTS credits) and they charge £6,192 per 120 UK credits.


AND NOW you can get up to 165 free ECTS credits from XAMK Open Studies:
https://www.xamk.fi/en/openstudies/

Once you collect the 120 ECTS credits from XAMK, you'll be able to transfer them all toward your Bachelor of Arts in Open studies degree at The Open University!
And pay the £6,192 fee for the remaining 120 UK credits (60 ECTS) to complete your degree.

The total fee is only £6,192 GBP ($8,311 USD)


The Open University is the most popular distance learning university in UK.
They rank 600th in the world:
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/wor...university
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_University

I hope this can be included as 'big four'. The Open University is more popular than the big three.
And their price is much cheaper than the big three degree.

[ss20ts]

I hope this can be included as 'big four'. The Open University is more popular than the big three.
And their price is much cheaper than the big three degree.

Why would it be considered in the big four? It's not in the US which the other 3 schools are. Even WGU isn't considered part of the big 3 and they have far more students. In the US, many of these degrees may not help someone land a job. $8,000+ for a foreign degree isn't exactly cheap. Seems like many complete degrees at the big 3 for less. 

[freeloader]

It’s a neat option and may be a good fit for some people. That said, this way of working an Open degree means you are still earning 1/3 of a degree directly from the degree-granting university in a traditional, albeit online way.  

Most US bachelor’s degrees are 120-128 semester hours. There are plenty of universities in the US that will let you transfer in 80 hours (or more) and complete the last 40 (or less) with them.

I also suspect many American employers might look down on an applicant with a foreign, online degree from something called “the Open University”, never mind the quality of instruction.

[monchevy]

It’s a neat option and may be a good fit for some people. That said, this way of working an Open degree means you are still earning 1/3 of a degree directly from the degree-granting university in a traditional, albeit online way.  

Most US bachelor’s degrees are 120-128 semester hours. There are plenty of universities in the US that will let you transfer in 80 hours (or more) and complete the last 40 (or less) with them.

I also suspect many American employers might look down on an applicant with a foreign, online degree from something called “the Open University”, never mind the quality of instruction.

Open University has been around forever, is highly respected, and is the largest university in the UK. It's also regionally accredited in the US. 

And not for nothing, but it sounds a whole lot better than "University of the People" on one's résumé. Might as well just say you graduated from The School of Hard Knocks.

[ss20ts]

It’s a neat option and may be a good fit for some people. That said, this way of working an Open degree means you are still earning 1/3 of a degree directly from the degree-granting university in a traditional, albeit online way.  

Most US bachelor’s degrees are 120-128 semester hours. There are plenty of universities in the US that will let you transfer in 80 hours (or more) and complete the last 40 (or less) with them.

I also suspect many American employers might look down on an applicant with a foreign, online degree from something called “the Open University”, never mind the quality of instruction.

Curious as to how they are RA since they are a foreign university without a physical presence in the US. 

---

Open University has been around forever, is highly respected, and is the largest university in the UK. It's also regionally accredited in the US. 

And not for nothing, but it sounds a whole lot better than "University of the People" on one's résumé. Might as well just say you graduated from The School of Hard Knocks.

University of the People is NA and totally sounds like a fictitious college on Law & Order or some other tv show. It doesn't sound like a real place at all. I would be curious as to how employers react when they see someone graduated from U of the P. Seems like they'd be laughing and joking around with their colleagues about it.  

[monchevy]

Curious as to how they are RA since they are a foreign university without a physical presence in the US. 

---

TONS of foreign universities are regionally accredited in the US. They just have to apply and be evaluated.

[Flelm]

I never heard of it either, but:

https://www.msche.org/institution/9158/

[monchevy]

I never heard of it either, but:

https://www.msche.org/institution/9158/

I lived in the UK for a long time, so I'm really familiar with it. I had planned to go there for my bachelor's, but I started my degree journey with entirely alternative credit over here, and that wouldn't have done me any good at OU. I'm still thinking of getting a diploma from there once I get my bachelor's out of the way.

[Flelm]

I never heard of it either, but:

https://www.msche.org/institution/9158/

I lived in the UK for a long time, so I'm really familiar with it. I had planned to go there for my bachelor's, but I started my degree journey with entirely alternative credit over here, and that wouldn't have done me any good at OU. I'm still thinking of getting a diploma from there once I get my bachelor's out of the way.

Sorry, I meant I never heard of a foreign institution having regional accreditation in the US. There's a ton of colleges and universities I've never heard of. I mean, I always assumed the UK only had Oxford and Cambridge. 2 universities for the entire country is enough, right?

[monchevy]

Sorry, I meant I never heard of a foreign institution having regional accreditation in the US. There's a ton of colleges and universities I've never heard of. I mean, I always assumed the UK only had Oxford and Cambridge. 2 universities for the entire country is enough, right?

Ouch.