Open University course helps jobless volunteer

An unemployed woman from County Durham has boosted her career prospects after undertaking an online course at the Open University (OU).

Shirley Scott was unable to find a job and turned to volunteering as a way of becoming more employable, but one of her coordinators advised her to enrol in to an openings course, the Mirror reports.

Ms Scott is now studying towards an open degree as she could not decide which subject to go for and preferred to mix them all up. She was quoted as saying: "I passed my exam for Understanding Health and Social Care and am now in the middle of studying an Introduction to Social Sciences."

Luckily, the 44-year-old was able to receive financial support for her studies, due to the fact she is jobless and her husband is working on the minimum wage.

According to Ms Scott she was bitten by the learning bug and although she knew the OU course would be hard work, she thrived off the feeling of achievement she received after her first results were posted and said it was like "being a kid again".

She also claimed her self-confidence has increased and she has been offered a permanent administrative position within the NHS.

For anyone hoping to turn their life around in the same way as Ms Scott, it could be worth enrolling in one of the OU's online learning courses.

The institution's opening access modules are designed to get people back into education and raise them to the same standard as those at university level, while its remote educational resources mean you can study at your own pace and work from the comfort of your own home.

It is not just individuals who can benefit from digital studies and businesses may want to think about rolling out online training to their employees. It will save them administrative costs and time out of their busy daily schedule, while workers will be able to access the resources in their spare time.