OUSA Newbury Branch

Help shape the future of OU Library Services - Tue, 07 Feb 2012
Our friends in Open University Library Services would like to hear what OUSA members think about the services and resources it provides for students - by inviting you to take a quick online survey. Feedback is essential in helping improve how Library Services supports students and a short online survey will run for the next two weeks. The survey is available online until 17th February 2012 and should take no longer than 15 minutes to complete. A summary of responses, which will help shape the future development of Library Services, will be made available on the ‘Your feedback’ page of the Library website later in the year. All replies to the survey will be treated in confidence. Personal Identifiers will only be used to review and analyse the survey results. If you have a disability or an additional requirement that makes it difficult for you to complete the survey online, please email the survey office IET-Surveys@open.ac.uk telephone them on +44 (0)1908 652422/652423. Data Protection Information: This project is administered under the OU’s general data protection policy guidelines.

OUSA: A Unique Voice For Students In Scotland - Fri, 23 Dec 2011
The OUSA Scottish Assembly, following the publication of the Scottish Government’s consultation on “Putting Learners at the Centre " Delivering our Ambitions for Post-16 Education†discussed in depth the impact of the proposals at its meeting in November 2011 and online on the OUSA Scottish Assembly online forums, and agreed that this is a major consultation exercise by the Scottish Government that required OUSA in Scotland to make a formal response. This follows from the Scottish Government’s earlier consultation on “Building a Smarter Future: Towards a Sustainable Scottish Solution for the Future of Higher Education†to which the Scottish Assembly made a response in March 2011, and followed up with an ‘Election Manifesto’ in May 2011 during the Scottish Parliament elections in 2011. The OUSA Scottish Assembly feel that this is a turning point for Post-16 Education in Scotland and that OUSA’s experience in part-time and distance learning higher education makes it a leader in representing this group of students, and as such any change in Post-16 Education needs the voice of students who have experience of non conventional educational pathways. George Macfarlane, OUSA Scottish Executive Member, stated “While our response to the Scottish Government consultation is looking to the future, we are also looking for parity between institutions, to ensure a level playing field. Open University students are already discriminated against by the system, as our University is funded on completions rather than number of students registered " unlike other institutions. Part-time students, irrelevant of institution, have to pay up-front fees, full time students do not.†George went on to say “The OUSA Scottish Assembly are fully aware that some of their recommendations may not be palatable with politicians, or even the Higher Education system in Scotland, but as the leading student association in Scotland representing part-time and distance learning students, the Assembly feel that it is now time to raise the standard and ensure that the needs and wishes of part time and distance learners are fully heard by politicians and the wider higher education environment. "

Petition Enters Top 10 On Parliament Site - Thanks To OU Students - Tue, 13 Dec 2011
Since the November meeting of OUSA’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) called on OU students to support the petition - aimed at keeping the Open University truly open - the results have been magnificent. Once the call went out to students the number of signatories on the petition leapt virtually overnight climbing from under a thousand to several thousand within a few days and has now reached an impressive figure of over 40,000. Marianne Cantieri, OUSA President said “I am proud of what our students have achieved already. There are a very large number of petitions on the Parliamentary website " over a hundred - and for this petition to reach the top ten in such a short space of time is fantastic news.†Marianne went on to say “There is a long way to go to get to the magic 100,000 that will make it very difficult to deny us our debate in Parliament, but I’m confidant we’ll get there" and there is everything for us to fight for. What the Government intends to do about the £millions of public funding that currently make such a huge contribution to our University’s work on widening participation is still unknown. They are going to have to make those decisions in the new year and when they do, I want them to know that there will be a lot of us watching and waiting to hear what they have to say.†Keep those signature rolling in! The new year is going to be the start of a very active period in higher education. The Government will be preparing to publish its higher education bill " presumable in early spring - and this will be preceded by detailed consultation to be managed by HEFCE (higher education funding council for England) on the whole question of special allocations" most notably those for widening participation and the extra costs of teaching part-time students. If the OU UCU (University and Colleges Union) petition can, with our support, hit the 100,000 signatures in the early weeks of the new year, that will put us in the best possible position to press for a public debate before the final decisions on these measures are taken. Your support matters " and if you can also get those around you, who understand the importance of your studies, to help too that would be fantastic. Pass on the link below to friends and family and encourage them to use this website news page if they want more background to the petition. Why is widening participation such a big deal? The OU is particularly famous for its ability to reach those students no-one else has. That is a lot to do with the University’s refusal to require entry qualifications for undergraduate students but that is only part of the story. The OU is prized so highly because the quality of its teaching and learning measures up to the best in higher education across the world " yet it has developed the means to attract, support and succeed with students who other institutions have not believed in. If, on top of replacing the large scale provision of grants with a much narrower National Scholarship Scheme, the Government also withdraws the funding that has enabled the OU to put in place all the measures to achieve its widening participation success " worth around £60m to the OU " then it is difficult to see how our University will truly be able to maintain its mission of openness. What’s happened to fees in the OU? In the summer the OU announced that it would have to increase its fees for new students in England to the equivalent of £5,000 for full time study in order to be able to remain viable under the new UK Government imposed funding regime for Higher Education. That has now set the level in the OU for all new undergraduate students living in jurisdictions where there is no public funding towards the teaching costs of individual students. The overall picture relating to fees in the OU is now very complicated because of the significant differences in funding arrangements across the 4 UK nations and for those students from beyond the UK. The OU has also announced measures to protect existing students and to help enable them to finish qualifications already started without facing any significant change in costs. The best source of information about the position for individual students is the special fees website which the OU has set up. See the link below. More information? In addition to the links below, do use our news page archive on this site if you’d like more information about the whole debate on higher education and to browse OUSA’s formal submissions to government and related bodies over the last two years.

Fees Announced for Students Outside UK and Post Grads - Fri, 09 Dec 2011
Having given an assurance that they would announce the fees for their remaining students by early in the new year, the OU today put an end to the continuing uncertainty. The headline news is that: • new, undergraduate students will now pay the same fees as students in England (i.e. £2,500 for a 60 point course) • current students outside the UK will be treated in exactly the same way as students in England in terms of their entitlement to transitional arrangements • fee levels for taught postgraduate study across all jurisdictions will be broadly at current levels plus inflation. Marianne Cantieri, OUSA President said “As OUSA President it is always my intention to do the best possible job of representing our students wherever they live" and it has been very hard to be at the helm at a time of unprecedented increases in fees for the majority of our students. However, I hope you’ll understand when I say that, as a student who lives in Northern Spain, this announcement has had a special significance for me.†Marianne went on to say “ It has been clear since the UK government determined to remove millions of pounds from its HE sector that students would be the main casualties, but I’m still proud that the Open University is doing all that it can to protect all of its students, wherever they live, and to protect its mission of openness. “ “I am very concerned that the many people living outside the UK who would like to study with the O U, but who have no access to loans, may well not be able to afford the new undergraduate fee levels, particularly in the current European economic situation. However, it would be impossible to exaggerate the importance that I place on the University committing itself to providing transitional arrangements that will cover our current students in Northern and Southern Europe, Republic of Ireland and beyond.†Marianne also said that her post box had demonstrated that postgraduate students had not really felt reassured by the University’s statement in the summer, that their fees would not be affected by the UK Government’s removal of funding for undergraduates in England, and were anxiously awaiting more concrete news. She said “I think that this news will be a big relief to a lot of our postgraduate students who will now be able to get on with their study plans without fearing that the sword of Damocles might descend on them at any moment.†Despite this announcement ending a period of uncertainty about the immediate future for OU students, OUSA has not given up the prospect of continuing to fight for better funding. Two weeks ago the OUSA Central Executive Committee backed a petition launched by UCU aimed at getting the funding issue debated in the UK parliament and it has also pledged to make full use of the consultation around the public funding for Widening Participation and the Higher Education Bill both expected in the new year. For more information, see previous articles on this news page or follow the links below.

OUSA Exec Asks OU Students To Step Upto The Plate And Fight The Cuts! - Tue, 29 Nov 2011
OUSA’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting in November decided it was time to make sure that the UK government is getting the messages it has been sending on behalf of part-time students in general and OU students in particular. When the Exec met the weekend before last, they listened to OUSA President, Marianne Cantieri, cataloguing the various submissions that OUSA has made drawing attention to the devastating implications of the Higher Education funding cuts. When Marianne went on to say “We have taken every opportunity to put our concerns firmly but politely to Government and I now think its time to show that those concerns are reflected right across our massive student body and beyond†the members of the CEC were quick to give full backing to her proposals. Marianne was urging support for a parliamentary petition launched by the OU branch of UCU (University and Colleges Union) which is intended to force a debate in the House of Commons. The debate would be focussed on the threat to the Open University’s hugely respected mission of widening participation in higher education and being open to all those willing to commit themselves to study regardless of educational qualifications or ability to pay. Marianne said “In framing our response to the Government’s White Paper last September I made it plain that I believed that our students would be prepared to stand up and fight for those things they held most dear. I know that widening participation and open access are central to what makes our university unique in the eyes of its students" that and its ability to achieve such a mission whilst offering one of the highest quality teaching and learning opportunities in the world. I warned the Government that we would not take the threat lying down but little I’ve heard since suggests that message has registered. I think it’s time to change that!†The petition, which is on the Parliamentary website (just follow the link below), needs to attract 100,000 signatures in order to have a chance of being debated in the House. In acknowledging the huge task in order to achieve that level of support Hazel Pegg, OUSA’s Vice President Communications said “OUSA will be doing all it can to get the message to our students that a couple of minutes of their time could make a real difference. If we can achieve a debate in Parliament that will give us the best possible chance to make our case and get the politicians to hear our concerns .We also hope to get our students help in making sure that their own MP is well briefed ahead of any debate.†Hazel went on to say “There are many MPs, both in Opposition and in Government, who care about what happens to the OU and this is our students’ opportunity to make sure they care enough to do something about it! †The Open University Students Association (OUSA) represents all students registered with the Open University, a figure which currently stands at around 260,000. The majority of students are from England and the other UK Nations but OUSA will be encouraging all of its students to sign the petition. President Marianne, who herself lives in Northern Spain, said “As far as we know it is possible for those who reside outside the UK to sign the petition, but they just have to state their country. From our point of view, this is a UK University and all of its students, wherever they are in the world, have an interest in safeguarding its future so we want them all to have a sayâ€.