As someone who has always studied on campus, I had no idea what being a distance learning student at a British university would be like. The course extends over two years and I made it successfully through year one. But nothing had prepared me for how tough it would be.
The hardest part was coping with the isolation. There is no one to turn to for immediate clarification if something is unclear and having a tutor on the end of a telephone line is no substitute for face-to-face communication. As a distance learner one's main interaction is with inanimate course manuals supplemented by video and audio tapes. Anybody who has studied as part of a group will miss the opportunity for feedback.
Most distance learners are mature students and as such often have a life outside their course and, possibly a career, a partner and a family. This means one has to get very good at juggling very fast. I found making time for consistent study difficult - even with the best intentions in the world, I rarely got even close to the recommended 10-14 hours study a week.
Because there is only a small number of Irish students on the course there have been no local teaching seminars or tutorials. This means that people don't get to know each other and it has mitigated against the setting up of local study groups, a traditional way of coping with the isolation factor for distance learners. This is not a problem with the Open University or the Irish National Distance Learning Centre - locally-based tutors and tutorials are an integral part of the course structure.
"I've found being part of a study group really helpful," says Tom Farrelly, a second-year social studies student with the Open University who has maintained a distinction grade throughout his foundation year. "I'm the sort of person who needs to bounce my ideas off other people. We meet on a regular basis to work on course material and, apart from the academic side of things, we have also become good friends.
"It's helpful to have people around you who are in the same boat. I think the hardest part is motivating yourself to get on with things week in week out. Often there's no way you feel like getting stuck into the books after watching the news at nine o'clock. You just want to relax if you've had a hard day at work. I try to do about eight hours a week and I couldn't do it without the support of my wife. If I ever get this degree, half of it is hers!
"Distance learning suits me because we have two small children and I wouldn't be able to go to college at night. One of the things that attracted me to the Open University is that they offer distance learning in a supported environment. We have regular tutorials, you can phone your tutor at any time and with the study group you always have someone to bolster your confidence when you're feeling down.
"I've never felt that I'm on my own. I'm a big fan of distance learning, but it's not an easy ride. People should be aware that it's hard work before they start."
Motivation is a key factor in achieving success as a distance learner, according to Dublin-based Open University advisor Marina Lennon. "There's nobody looking over your shoulder so you've got to be a self-starter. It also helps to be organised and disciplined. People need to be realistic about the time they can afford to spend on their course.
"It's worthwhile talking to an OU advisor before taking the plunge. We know what the different courses and modules involve and we're very up-front with people about it because we want our students to succeed."
Professor Chris Curran, director of the National Distance Education Centre, believes that distance learning opens up "huge educational opportunities for people. While it's not the same as being on campus, a distance education programme can be equally fulfilling for students.
"There is a loneliness factor but that is gradually being overcome by technology. In our case we offer people regular tutorials as close to their homes as possible. The quality of the teaching materials is also crucial and we have adopted a co-operative approach to our programmes whereby experts from right across the full breadth of Irish third-level colleges contribute to our materials."
Rosemary Kingston is an information technology graduate from DCU. She began the course while living in Cavan and, because of the flexibility of the learning method, she was able to continue without a break when she moved to Dublin. She is now working full time at the National Distance Education Centre on a multimedia and telematics project.
"Distance learning was a very positive experience for me," she says. "I decided to do the course because my family were growing up and needed me around less. I also wanted a qualification which would help me get back into the workforce in an interesting job after a break of 20 years.
"Because I was at home I studied when my youngest daughter had gone to school and I tried not to study during family time in the evenings or at weekends. This was really possible only because I was home-based. There were times when life took over and I'd miss a couple of days but I think that's a common experience among mature students.
"I've always been part of a study group and it's been great particularly when a subject was difficult and there were people around who could explain things if you were being a bit thick!"
