Access to education transforms lives

There are over forty people in secure facilities across Scotland – prisons and hospitals – currently studying Open University (OU) undergraduate modules.

In this short blog, an OU in Scotland student shares how studying with the OU whilst in prison has given him an opportunity to turn his life around.

Life in prison can be likened to being in a deep freeze! You stay still while things outside move on, leaving you behind. Your skills become outdated and your motivation wanes, it is easy to give up. But there is a way ... 

With additional hurdles to overcome in convincing employers to give me a chance, through the OU I will have something valuable to offer their workplace in return."

The Open University has given me the opportunity to study for a degree, a recognised qualification which I believe will help to demonstrate personal commitment and hopefully improve my chances of employment after prison. With additional hurdles to overcome in convincing employers to give me a chance, through the OU I will have something valuable to offer their workplace in return. 

I chose to study towards a degree in Business and Management, working through a series of modules towards the qualification - across all aspects of the business world, from finance to human resources, marketing to ethics! 

It has opened my eyes to the breadth of what encompasses business. Each year has presented new but exciting challenges, entering me into unfamiliar worlds where my thinking has been taken to new places, enabling me to consider subjects in academic terms, develop transferable skills and come up with my own ideas. 

Learning how to learn was initially my biggest trial; finding a way to cut out all the noise and distractions of prison life for 18 hours a week, to be able to work through my modules and submit my assessments on time. Even finding a workspace, and ways to make and store notes for an online course which has to be undertaken offline - without the internet or even a laptop for most of the time! But necessity is the mother of invention and ways have be found. Help from the excellent prison Learning Centre and encouragement from home has made all the difference. 

My module tutors have been a fantastic source of information, support and encouragement."

From the OU, my module tutors have been a fantastic source of information, support and encouragement - and feedback on the assessments really has helped clarify where things are going right and what I can do to improve my practice. 

A typical weekday for me starts with a couple of hours study in the morning with a tea break to avoid fatigue, then in the afternoon I attend the prison's Learning Centre, accessing its computing facilities to watch course videos and work on assessments. Over the weekends I catch up on my admin, sorting out my notes, making mind maps and planning the week ahead.

Of course, there have been bumps on the road. In prison the course is paper-based, downloaded from an interactive online platform, which sometimes makes the materials look dull, but I receive all the audio visual resources on disc, which brings the course to life. 

I have been encouraging others to start studying with the OU, giving themselves a focus and a future. Having a group of people in prison all studying different subjects - but simultaneously - really helps to provide peer support and encouragement. 

I hope more prisoners take up study with The Open University, for me it has been a transformational experience and one which I hope will give me a new start in the years to come. 

For anyone thinking about studying with the OU, go for it!