Study

Our flexible approach to teaching and learning is designed to fit in with busy professional and personal lives. Whatever your motivations for studying – to get a better job, go for a promotion, develop new skills or change direction completely – we can help you transform your career and take control of your future. In the STEM Faculty our teaching and learning is designed to enable student success using the following principles:

You will be supported in your learning experience by tried and tested models of teaching and assessment. We create high quality bespoke distance learning materials for each module and your learning will be facilitated by one of our expert tutors. We use innovative educational technology to deliver learning experiences using a range of media including our websites and printed materials.
We offer a range of qualifications and these can be studied at an intensity to suit your needs. Our STEM Student Support Teams are on hand to offer information, advice and guidance on your personal learning journey.
Learning is designed and delivered as anti-racist, anti-discriminatory, accessible and inclusive. We will accommodate and support all students to meet their full potential through our qualifications.
Your feedback and views are important to us, we listen to our students and ensure their views are integrated into the planning of our teaching to enhance the quality of our provision for all.
STEM are a research active faculty and we embed the outputs of our research into our teaching and learning. This means that your module materials will be current and up to date. Many of our academics are simultaneously creating new curriculum for students whilst at the forefront of their discipline research. We are constantly researching new distance teaching methods to ensure that we make best use of modern technology.

Our approach to teaching and learning is articulated in the Open University’s Teaching and Learning Plan 2022-27. The Plan stands as a testament to the OU's commitment to elevating the standards of supported open learning. Designed to be strategic and effective, this Plan consolidates the best of our teaching and learning practices, ensuring they're not just retained but broadened across the entire university. Distilled into five guiding principles, the Plan is both a roadmap and a reference. It ensures that all activities, innovations, and initiatives in the teaching and learning sectors of our university are cohesive and synergistic. Read the Plan in full by visiting our The Teaching and Learning pages.

Subject Areas

Undergraduate

Explore our undergraduate subject areas .

Taught Postgraduate

Explore our taught postgraduate subject areas.

Employability and STEM Careers

Information on employability can be found on the main University Careers and Employability Services pages

The OpenSTEM Labs challenge the traditional STEM teaching model of students and tutors being collocated in a lab during ‘office hours’. We connect students to instrumentation, data and equipment for practical enquiries over the internet, where distance is no longer a barrier and where access can be available 24 hours a day.

For remote controlled activities users access real equipment via a web browser. They can book an online session, undertake an experiment/activity, send real-time control commands, monitor real-time performance and download data for subsequent analysis.

A complementary set of on-screen experiments link archival data to virtual instruments with varying degrees of virtual or augmented reality. Our On-campus teaching labs provide options for developing physical dexterity skills and practising traditional laboratory techniques.

Other learning experiences

You may just want to enjoy exploring our topic based short courses. Another option if studying for interest might be to enrol on one of the free FutureLearn MOOCs or browse the the massive OpenLearn resources.

Meet some of our Students

I never dreamt I would do the things I have, the observing residential school in Mallorca was a turning point; I knew then what I really wanted to do.
Dr Mandy Bailey
Natural Sciences (Physics);student Read more

For what it is worth, I regard the OU as one of this country's crowning achievements. I am proud to be an alumnus and sing its praises at every opportunity.
Dr David Platt
Gained a BSc in mathematics with the OU and then completed a PhD at the University of Bristol. Read more

Meet more students who have studied STEM subjects

Meet some of our Academics and Researchers

Claudia Eckert, Professor of Design talks about her research into design practice over such wide ranging themes from knitwear to helicopter design. She outlines surprising similarities between both. Fitting a sleeve into a jumper is remarkably similar to changing components on a helicopter.

Dr Geraint “Taff” Morgan has worked on a wide range of projects including the instrumentation on Rosetta - the comet chasing spacecraft. As an analytical chemist, Taff works with colleagues from many disciplines on problems from detecting cancer to insect infestation.

View a collection of videos introducing more of our Academics and Researchers