My OpenLearn Profile
- Personalise your OpenLearn profile
- Save your favourite content
- Get recognition for your learning
Free learning from The Open University
free course icon
Level
Science, Maths & Technology
Astronomy with an online telescope
This free course shows you how to navigate the night sky, and introduces the wide variety of objects it contains. You will develop a hands-on understanding of telescopic observations using the Open University’s own robotic telescope facility COAST sited on the island of Tenerife. Supported by your own measurements we illustrate how stars evolve, and study variable stars. For those new to astronomy and/or the use of robotic telescopes this course provides a practical introduction and will prepare you for further OU study where remotely operable telescopes feature.
free course icon
Level
Health, Sports & Psychology
Challenging ideas in mental health
Take a new and different look at mental health. This free course, Challenging ideas in mental health, invites you to think differently about life's dilemmas by taking account of the views of all concerned, especially people experiencing mental distress. It explores ideas and practice in mental health, and will appeal to a wide range of people.
free course icon
Level
Money & Business
Rent or buy? The challenge of access to housing
Everyone needs a place they call home and housing costs are usually your largest outgoing. Many aspire to buy, but rising house prices, while good news for existing owners, put homeownership beyond the reach of others. This free course, Rent or buy? The challenge of access to housing, addresses some of the most important decisions that households must make: buy or rent? Why is housing viewed as a safe investment? Are house prices too high? How can we tell and what makes them change? This free course can help you with your own housing decisions, as well as understand the politics that often drive the housing market.
free course icon
Level
Nature & Environment
Aquatic mammals
Mammals come in a bewildering variety of shapes and sizes and yet all of the 4700 or so species have some characteristics in common, which justifies the inclusion of diverse types within a single group. Although mammals evolved on land, a number of species have become adapted to spending part or all of their lives in water and it is these mammals that you are going to concentrate on in this course. You will meet some aquatic mammals, find out how we can study them, consider their evolutionary history and read about human impacts on one iconic group.
article icon
Get Started
OpenLearn Migration January 2022
For the past two years the team have been working hard on a major IT release for OpenLearn. This release will be happening 17th-21st January 2022.
article icon
Health, Sports & Psychology
10 tips to beat the January blues
Feeling a bit low? Unmotivated? Tired? We’ve put together ten ways you can beat the January blues, with a few FREE resources on OpenLearn to help you on your way.
article icon
Society, Politics & Law
Martin Luther King Day
The third Monday of January each year is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Look into his life, the American Civil Right movement and the art of speech-making with our related content.
icons icon-collections
Education & Development
The Race and Ethnicity Hub
This hub offers fresh perspectives on race, racism and ethnicity through free courses, articles, interactives and audio/visual materials.
You can use OpenLearn to
Study free courses
From 1 to 100 hours of learning - discover hundreds of free courses to inspire and inform everyone.
Free coursesEarn while you learn
Earn a free digital badge or Statement of Participation as evidence of your learning to share with employers, friends and family.
Find out more
Get the most out of OpenLearn
Anyone can learn for free on OpenLearn but creating an account lets you set up a personal learning profile which tracks your course progress and gives you access to Statements of Participation and digital badges you earn along the way. Sign-up now!
©1999-2020. All rights reserved. The Open University is incorporated by Royal Charter (RC 000391), an exempt charity in England & Wales and a charity registered in Scotland (SC 038302). The Open University is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in relation to its secondary activity of credit broking.