Open University

The Open University provides supported distance education to over a quarter of a million students. While based in the United Kingdom, many students take Open University courses directly or through partnerships from other countries. Students can take a variety of programmes including “Introducing the Social Sciences” and “The Arts Past and Present”. Since 1971, over 1.6 million students have taken Open University courses. Open University has an annual income of £450 million, mostly from government grants and tuition fees. Open University also conducts research which it makes publicly accessible through its Open Research Online Programme. Open University has over a thousand postgraduate research students in a variety of fields.