Find out more about The Open University's Open degree.
Since 1999, The Open University has been making free learning available to everyone online. From 2008, all that learning has been in one place - OpenLearn. The site you're looking at now.
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OpenLearn can be used for free by anybody... But it's particularly useful for Open University Students.
Using your OU student username and password to log in, you can research your potential OU course or module before signing up, complete your student induction, or learn skills like note taking, revision techniques, essay writing or using online forums, that could all be useful for your studies.
All the content on Open Learn is written and reviewed by Open University academics - so you might even use OpenLearn as part of your OU module. Whatever you're studying, OpenLearn is also useful for acquiring valuable skills that will help you stand out to potential employers.
Any digital badges earned on OpenLearn are visible on your OU student record, they can be included on your CV and can even be shared on social networking sites.
In fact, we've seen that students who use OpenLearn tend to be more successful in their OU studies.
So, whether you're already committed to an OU qualification, wanting to improve your employment prospects, or interested in gaining new skills in between modules, OpenLearn is for you.
We've got thousands of ways to learn - short articles by academic experts from the OU and beyond; videos; podcasts - even, if you're really keen, free courses. You can find your own way through our content - navigate by subject at the top of the page; choose by type of experience at the top right of most pages - or look to the bottom, where subjects and experience are listed again. Or, to get started - why not see what's popular right now?
Top 10 articles, interactives and videos
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Do you have a photographic memory?
Can you hold an image in your mind by just looking at it for a brief amount of time? Try our photographic memory test and see whether you have eidetic memory.
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Level: 1 Introductory
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Sperm counts
How much sperm does a man make? Would you explode if you don't release your sperm? Explore the male reproductive system in this article and video.
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Level: 1 Introductory
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HeadStart Classical Studies
Explore the worlds of ancient Greece and Rome with this collection of free courses on the classical world.
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Level: 1 Introductory
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What is technology?
It might seem a straightforward question, but technology is about more than gadgets and gizmos. Andy Lane explains what it means to different people.
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Level: 1 Introductory
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About us
Welcome to OpenLearn - the home of free learning from The Open University. Are you looking for a new topic to explore, or wanting to dig deeper into something you've already discovered? Whether it’s a 60-second animated video or a 24-hour course you are after, you will find it on OpenLearn for free.
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Hitler's rise and fall: Timeline
Track the key events in Adolf Hitler's life, including his childhood in Austria, his decisions as Fuehrer of Germany, his leadership in the Second World War, and his eventual suicide.
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Level: 1 Introductory
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12 famous Confucius quotes on education and learning
What's your favourite Confucius quote on education and learning? Look at these examples...
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Level: 1 Introductory
Top 10 courses
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Exploring learning disabilities: supporting belonging
This free course, Exploring learning disabilities: supporting belonging, takes the real-life cases of a number of different people to explore what it is like to have the label ‘learning disability’. The course also considers how it feels to support someone with a learning disability, as a family member, a friend, an advocate or a paid worker...
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24 hours
Level: 1 Introductory
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Understanding autism
Learn about autism, one of the most challenging long-term conditions of the century. This free course, Understanding autism, introduces the autism spectrum, how it is experienced by individuals and families, and why it has become a global concern. The course explains how understanding of the autism spectrum and approaches to diagnosis and care ...
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24 hours
Level: 1 Introductory
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Information security
Information security underpins the commercial viability and profitability of enterprises of all sizes and the effectiveness of public sector organisations. This free course begins by explaining why information security and its management are important for any modern organisation and to every individual. You need to be familiar with an ...
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10 hours
Level: 3 Advanced
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Introduction to bookkeeping and accounting
Learn about the essential numerical skills required for accounting and bookkeeping. This free course, Introduction to bookkeeping and accounting, explains the fundamental rules of double-entry bookkeeping and how they are used to produce the balance sheet and the profit and loss account.
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8 hours
Level: 1 Introductory
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Succeed with learning
This course is for people who want to feel more confident about their learning skills. Informal in approach, the course builds on each person's own qualities, knowledge and skills to develop a deeper understanding of the nature of learning and of their own potential. It introduces some core ideas about learning and academic study, and some ...
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24 hours
Level: 1 Introductory
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Gamified Intelligent Cyber Aptitude and Skills Training (GICAST)
This free course, Gamified Intelligent Cyber Aptitude and Skills Training (GICAST), will help you to understand online security and start to protect your digital life, whether at home or work. You will learn how to recognise the threats that could harm you online and the steps you can take to reduce the chances that they will happen to you.
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24 hours
Level: 1 Introductory
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Introduction to cyber security: stay safe online
This free course, Introduction to cyber security: stay safe online, will help you to understand online security and start to protect your digital life, whether at home or work. You will learn how to recognise the threats that could harm you online and the steps you can take to reduce the chances that they will happen to you.
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24 hours
Level: 1 Introductory
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Teaching mathematics
This free course, Teaching mathematics, has been designed for non-specialist mathematics teachers of 8 to 14 year olds, teaching assistants, home schoolers and parents and draws on the established provision of mathematics education at the Open University. It can also be used as Continuing Professional Development by individuals or groups ...
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24 hours
Level: 2 Intermediate
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Midlife MOT: wealth, work and wellbeing
Introducing your Midlife MOT. Your midlife years – that is, when you’re between about 40 and 60 – will probably be a very hectic time indeed. You might have ended up in a challenging job, or you might be working hard to get one. You could be looking after the kids, your parents or maybe both. Maybe you’re putting time and energy into a whole new...
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4 hours
Level: 1 Introductory
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An introduction to exoplanets
This free course, An introduction to exoplanets, introduces our galaxy's population of planets, and some of their many surprises. It explains the methods used by astronomers to study exoplanets, and provides a general introduction to the methods of scientific inquiry. The course culminates in discussion of life elsewhere in our Galaxy.
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24 hours
Level: 1 Introductory
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