Centre for Lifelong LearningOpen Studies Certificate

The Open Studies Certificate is a part-time modular programme designed to give feedback on your progress and as an introduction to the completion of assessment.

The award of an Open Studies Certificate is based on the accumulation of 30 credit points at SCQF Level 7. This is the equivalent of a quarter of a first year undergraduate degree.

You do not need to take any action to register for the Open Studies programme. You can decide to undertake assessment (coursework, not exams) once the class is underway. We will record results and you will be notified by email of any credits you achieve following Exam Board approval.

Open Studies classes carry credits awarded by the University of Strathclyde. The credits attached to a class reflect the amount of student effort required to achieve the class aims eg 10 SCQF credit points equates to 100 hours of learning time – including teaching, discussion, private study and assessments. Students must accumulate 30 credits for the award of Open Studies Certificate.

Details of the credit assigned to Open Studies classes can be found next to the relevant class in our online catalogue, MyCLL.

Note: Students normally have a maximum of six years to complete an Open Studies Certificate, therefore, any credit gained more than six years previous which has not been used towards a Certificate is considered out of date and cannot be used against an award. In some cases it may be possible to apply for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)- see RPL section below.

There are currently two pathways in which an Open Studies Certificate can be awarded:

Applied Writing: to provide practical learning and skills development across a range of writing genres, including features, creative and novel writing.

Genealogical Studies: providing basic through to intermediate study of genealogical subjects including a class specifically using technology and the internet to further family history research.

 

Open Studies classes will help to develop the transferable skills that students normally expect to develop by taking any first year undergraduate degree class in the University, such as communication, planning and organising, adapting to change and personal effectiveness.

The complete class listing is given below. Please note that availability of these online classes is subject to scheduling. See currently available credit-bearing classes in the MyCLL catalogue.

These classes are delivered online via Myplace, the University’s Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) and are self-paced.

GENEALOGICAL STUDIES

  • OS674  Introduction To Family History Research
  • OS677  Family History Research - Beyond The Basics
  • OS676  Using Technology In Family History Research

 

APPLIED WRITING

  • OS671  Kindling (Creative Writing For Beginners)
  • OS672  Feeding The Flame (Taking Your Creative Writing Further 2)
  • OS673  Ablaze (Taking Your Creative Writing Further 3)
  • OS675  Inferno (An Introduction To Novel Writing Online)

Open Studies Class Outlines (including content, learning outcomes and assessment) are available on request.

Where appropriate, recognition for prior learning (RPL) will be recognised within the Open Studies Certificate programme. This means that credit can be gained for appropriate knowledge acquired through experience or/as well as relevant university-level classes completed within the last five years.

RPL/Entry with Advanced Standing is permitted up to a maximum of 10 of the 30 credits required for an Open Studies Certificate.

The University of Strathclyde also participates in the European Credit Transfer Scheme (ECTS): 10 University of Strathclyde credits = 5 ECTS credits = 10 credit points at SCQF Level 7.

Please contact Lynda Scott (lynda.scott@strath.ac.uk) for further information and details of the RPL options that may be available to you.

Please note: there is normally a £20 administration charge for all RPL applications.