Denis's mature A Level student experience

“I was never a good student in my youth, but there are great solutions for any difficulties one might be struggling through in this day and age, and I’m finding the whole process really fun. Difficult at times, but great!”

Denis, 35, Aylesbury

Currently studying A Level Philosophy and A Level Religious Studies with Open Study College, Denis explores the number of reasons that he chose to study via the distance learning route:

“I decided that distance learning was ideal for me for a few key reasons. As I have been out of education for quite a long time, the flexibility Open Study College offers to do the whole course in my own time means that I can pinpoint areas that I knew would struggle with from the get-go, and pay extra attention to them from the start.

“This has proved really helpful in areas like my essay writing skills, which I’ve started to work on in the background. I also work full-time, so being able to study after work means I can fit this around my life without disruption to my primary routine or current earnings (the mortgage would not be loving that!).

“Another main reason I chose to learn with Open Study College is because I have quite a few anxiety issues and the idea of spending time with a group trying to learn the material may be somewhat overwhelming for someone in my position.

“I’m feeling happy with where I am in my studies at the moment. I started by taking a few weeks to read through both courses, then did a second cycle of note-taking and am now starting to go through some of the suggested reading.”

Denis is a postman and explains just how his studies fit in well around his current work responsibilities, and about the various modes of learning course content. He’s also exploring options to continue studying in the future:

“I have found the balance with work to be pretty great. I can listen to course-related podcasts throughout the day, which has been a fantastic aid to learning. I play music in my free time and I‘m finding I can appreciate it all a bit more with a better understanding of literature and the philosophy in the ideas that some of my favourite artists express.

“I was never a good student in my youth, but there are great solutions for any difficulties one might be struggling through in this day and age, and I’m finding the whole process really fun. Difficult at times, but great fun.

“I have already started to look at the options for degree courses and what might interest me further down the line, but I’m really just trying to enjoy this element for now and engage with the content in front of me.”

Highly recommending distance learning and the quality of courses he’s studying so far, mature A Level student Denis offers some advice to those considering this study route:

“Both of my Open Study College courses are laid out in a clear and concise yet still engaging fashion. I have not struggled with any aspects of the content to a level that has had me questioning whether or not I should have taken on this project.

“I highly recommend distance learning to anyone who feels they can organise themselves even just a little bit. If you can go down the route of topics that engage you, it seems a bit ‘moth to a flame’ in terms of working with the material. A little organisation and the goal works itself.”