Sara Kay Aloe

‘My journey with OpenLearn began when I was looking for study resources in Welsh. It all started when I saw The Crown – some of the dialogue in the episode was in Welsh, it was about the Prince of Wales – and that was the first time I heard the language. The sound was so captivating that I decided I wanted to start learning it, so an interest in the Welsh language is what led me to OpenLearn,’ Sara explained.

Sara not only fell in love with the Welsh language – enrolling initially on Croeso: Beginners’ Welsh, and then on How to learn a language, Discovering Wales and Welsh: first steps, and Contemporary Wales – but she also developed a passion for OpenLearn too. Sara has now amassed digital badges and statements of participation from completing more than 80 of our free courses!

‘The variety available on OpenLearn has kept me going back and I’ve been using it for more than two years now,’ Sara explained. Studying at home and on also business trips, OpenLearn became her main source of entertainment: ‘I just really enjoy learning new things, and it turns out that personal development can also be a hobby.’

Working in IT recruitment, the pandemic had a big impact and Sara was unfortunate enough to lose her job, ‘…but OpenLearn helped me get through those awful lockdowns by keeping me busy,’ she told us. She moved onto courses in subjects as diverse as history, languages, finance, IT and psychology. It was during this time that Sara started making plans for her future… with OpenLearn at her side, of course!

‘Teaching secondary modern foreign languages, Take your teaching online, History as commemoration, Roaring twenties? Europe in the interwar period, and The Holocaust are courses which helped me shape the new ideas for my future,’ Sara told us. She is now studying for a bachelor’s degree in English Studies at the AEH University [in Warsaw, Poland] and further culture and history courses online with FutureLearn. ‘I enrolled in several courses on OpenLearn in those subjects before I began my degree – those mentioned were just my favourites! – and they gave me some insight into what to expect, as well as the confidence to make my new future actually happen.’

‘With the help of OpenLearn I have gained so much confidence. I decided to go to university aged 32, and I stopped thinking that it was too late for me. I realised that I can pursue my dreams and change my career…’ 

Sara added that she would advise anyone who is thinking about doing a degree to try some of our courses to become more familiar with academic-level material beforehand. ‘I honestly think that investing your time in learning is the best way to spend time, as your knowledge is something no one can take from you,’ she told us… and we have to agree!

OpenLearn has given Sara the belief and the courage she needed to pursue the career that she wants: ‘With the help of OpenLearn I have gained so much confidence. I decided to go to university aged 32, and I stopped thinking that it was too late for me. I realised that I can pursue my dreams and change my career, and my goal is to become a philologist with a specialty in culture and history. At this point all I can say is “thank you to OpenLearn for existing”.’

Sara still has one more goal: ‘I can’t wait to visit Wales sometime in the future. A trip to the place that inspired a love affair with free learning – perfect!’