Develop the English reading and writing skills needed for university success.

Explore our range of free resources on developing good academic practice and discover how to build them into your studies.

Tutors told us about common writing mistakes which can impact the grades students receive for their Open University assignments.

Plagiarism comes in all shapes and forms. Step into the shoes of a university student to learn the challenges and temptations facing her during her assignment, and help make it all her own work.

Whether you’re a full or part-time student, studying is likely to mean adding another commitment to your life. Having a lot to balance can sometimes affect our wellbeing and leave us feeling overwhelmed. 

Check out our series of one-minute animations exploring revision tips, beating procrastination, what’s involved in a remote exam and other study skills.

This free course, Developing good academic practice, is intended to help you develop good academic practices in your studies and when producing assignments and completing assessments. Although designed as a course to work through, the content can also be used to dip in and out of, if you feel you need to improve your skills in a particular area.

In this free course you will focus on how to be a critical reader. Reading critically is an essential skill at university. It means being aware of your own purposes and opinions as you read and being able to recognise the writer's purposes and opinions in their writing.

This free course is an introduction to studying the arts and humanities. It takes you through a series of exercises designed to develop your approach to study and learning at a distance and improve your confidence as an independent learner.

Reading and note taking are two essential study skills. How do you read? This free course, Reading and note taking preparation for study, will introduce you to different techniques to help you to alter the way you read according to the type of material you are studying. You will also learn the techniques behind successful note taking and how to...