college & university - I have just taken a trip to Canterbury College because I was thinking about returning to gain some sort of

saltedm8

I have just taken a trip to Canterbury College because I was thinking about returning to gain some sort of official paperwork in web design...

I explained to them what I have done before and what I am doing now, and I was shocked to hear that they said I should go straight to university ?? wtf ? has college education really slipped that much that a guy like me can go straight from having no formal qualifications to university ?

only issue is that its £3000.00 a year, maybe they are just after more money, but thats a shame as I have none, or very little

so, now I need to find some sort of courses that give me formal qualifications - open university or something like that.. I want to ask if anyone has ever attended or completed a course from them or anywhere like them, please tell me if they are any good.

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web design kent

WelshStew

The reason you might go to university is because it is more recognised by employers, and you are therefore more likely to gain full time employment.

The tuition fees is a bit complicated, but basically you can get a student loan to cover the costs and then pay it back based on your income, so you don't have to pay for it yourself upfront. That's the difference with open university, I believe this is self funded, and you do have to pay up front.

Hope it all works out.

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WelshStew
follow me on twitter here | WelshStew - Web Design & Web Development | Motorhome hire uk

shalom_m

You are also eligible for a student grant - as opposed to a loan.

See: Student finance : Directgov - Education and learning

With any luck they will recognize a lot of your experience as credits. This can decrease the amount of time needed to get those letters after your name.

Frinkky

If you're still in the situation you were describing a few days ago you could be entitled to a lot - some loans and some grants, that can cover things from housing to course books and fees. Best bet is to speak to the Uni you're considering going to for some personal advice - there's lots of info on uni websites and UCAS site but its pretty general and finding the right info for you can get frustrating.

If you think Canterbury College is expensive you'll find the OU much more so. Not cheap.

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Jon Warner
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Jack Franklin

Can you get EMA? At college people who have a household income off <30, 000 (or somethign around that) can get a small amount each week. Not much, granted, but every little helps.

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saltedm8

ok thanks everyone, I have found one that will eventually lead to an honours degree.. open university,

Networked living: exploring information and communication technologies
T175 - Networked living: exploring information and communication technologies - Open University course

its not web design specific, but it is the underpinning, say for example if you have a variable, it wont teach you the language, but it will teach you why it works so when it comes to learning a new language it should be easier because I would know the root and the syntax.

I think that's pretty cool, getting it for free too, income is definitely lower than £20.000 a year, I have reserved a placement, all I need to do is fill out the forms and send them back to start in October for this module, once complete I move onto the next until I have around 690 points ( that one is worth 30 ) to get the honours degree.

any thoughts on my plans ?

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web design kent

shalom_m

If I were you, I would still try to get into another university. If at some future date you want to continue to post graduate studies, the open university is not the ideal place to start from.

Shop around some of the local universities, some may offer an MBA combined with a partial waiver of a Bachelor in IT communication studies. Go an talk to the heads of departments directly. I am sure that instead of getting a BSc/BA in 3 years you should be able to get an BA and MBA in 4 - with nearly full funding.

saltedm8

The only way I would get into a normal university would be with access, basically before you get accepted, you get what is the basis of an entrance exam and interviews, that's fine, but I think the problems with come with financing, as I wont get any, I have tried to do loads of different loans and grants etc, I don't qualify for most, that's why it come down to that, or college, the reason for that on is simple, I dont have to hunt for a baby sitter to look after my daughter any time I need to go in.

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web design kent

Michael

It sounds good to me Glynn, so you will be able to complete all of the work from home too and email it in etc? I wouldnt mind trying this myself :D

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