Study skills
Studying can be daunting. These free courses will refresh your study skills and prepare you for success.
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Languages
How to be a critical reader
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.
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Society, Politics & Law
You and your world: Introducing the social sciences
How can the social sciences help you think about the world around you? This free course introduces you to skills and knowledge that can help you question, understand and contribute to society. This course starts by acknowledging the ever-changing nature of society and social relationships and then asks you to think about your own place in ...
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History & The Arts
Introducing music research
Introducing music research provides you with insights into the wide variety of possibilities for studying music at postgraduate level. In this free course you will explore diverse musical topics through four themes: inclusions and exclusions, practice, technology, and community. You will encounter music from different times, places and genres ...
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Science, Maths & Technology
Diagrams, charts and graphs
Diagrams, charts and graphs are used by all sorts of people to express information in a visual way, whether it's in a report by a colleague or a plan from your interior designer. This free course will teach you how to interpret these tools and how to use them yourself to convey information more effectively.
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Health, Sports & Psychology
Supporting university students with a mental health condition
There is an increasing prevalence of university students who need mental health support and university staff benefit from training on this topic. This course explores this phenomenon, drawing on an Open University study on how staff (tutors) can support students with a mental health condition, and considers both what staff and institutions can ...
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Education & Development
Building confidence in using online forums
Learn about the benefits of online learning forums, with strategies for participating more fully.
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Education & Development
Developing good academic practice
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.
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Science, Maths & Technology
Learning, thinking and doing
How do we learn? Understanding how is the key to learning more effectively. This free course, Learning, thinking and doing, looks at the three main categories of theories: the acquisitive, constructivist and experiential models of learning. There is no right way to learn but developing an active approach will ensure that you are open to new ideas.
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Education & Development
Extending and developing your thinking skills
Diagrams, mind-maps, tables, graphs, time lines, flow charts, sequence diagrams, decision trees: all can be used to organise thought. This free course, Extending and developing your thinking skills, will introduce you to a variety of thinking skills. Asking and answering questions is at the heart of high-quality thinking. Questions naturally ...
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Education & Development
Multidisciplinary study: the value and benefits
This free course, Multidisciplinary study: the values and benefits, explores the advantages of studying more than one subject and will help you to decide if multidisciplinary study is for you. Featuring videos with students on the Open University’s ‘Open’ qualifications, you will learn about the unique skills you can gain from studying a ...
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Education & Development
Revision and examinations
Do you get stressed at the thought of an examination? Does the idea of revision fill you with dread? This free course, Revision and examinations, will provide a host of tips to help you improve your revision and examination techniques and enable you to manage your time effectively by creating a timetable for your revision.
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Health, Sports & Psychology
Applying to study for a PhD in psychology
This free OpenLearn course is for psychology students and graduates who are interested in PhD study at some future point. Even if you have met PhD students and heard about their projects, it is likely that you have only a vague idea of what PhD study entails. This course is intended to give you more information.
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