About Us

The Open College was founded to offer FETAC courses to the general public by Distance Learning, eLearning & Attendance Learning and to provide these courses at affordable prices. We are recognised as Ireland's Leading dedicated provider of FETAC award Courses.

Who are we?

The Open College is an independent private college with many hundreds of students and over 40 staff providing over 60 FETAC Levels 5 & 6 Award courses. Established in 2004 and FETAC Accredited in 2008 The Open College is a social entrepreneurial organisation with a proud record of innovation in education which has in just over three years become Ireland's largest dedicated provider of FETAC approved courses.

This has happened because we offer our courses at the best value possible across the whole of Ireland. We are also extremely proud of the fact that we believe we are the first private organisation to offer educational and training courses to the public on a not for profit basis

The Open College are also delighted to announce that from the 1st of September 2011 all student fees paid are now fully bonded and protected for courses of over 3 months duration. Our Students can now be assured that they are fully protected and covered in any eventuality in these uncertain economic times.

The Open College is proud of the commitment by all our tutors to bring their creativity, experience and expertise to all fields of study, and to all learners regardless of their location and circumstances. We are 100% Irish and proud members of the Guaranteed Irish movement – 'your safeguard for quality and Irish jobs'.

We offer a choice of learning formats: Attendance Learning, Blended learning and our renowned Distance learning/eLearning programmes. These offer invaluable options for independent study, informal learning and varied communication channels with one to one tutor support.

Our professionally qualified course tutors and writers are fully aware of learner needs and have designed and written courses that are flexible and up to date with current situations/legislations and learning styles as well as meeting the FETAC requirements regarding course content/learning outcomes.

We are the leaders in the provision of FETAC award courses in Ireland and offer these at market leading prices. Our course prices starting from only €249.00 and our Interest Free Easy Payment plans remains unrivalled anywhere, which is why we always ask: Why Pay more for the same FETAC Award?

What do we offer?

The Open College offers you the chance to achieve recognised Certification without altering your current lifestyle.

Distance learning/eLearning offers options for independent study, informal learning and varied communication channels which are provided by the Open College teams and one to one tutor support. The Open College teams want all our students to be successful regardless of their prior experiences with distance learning methods and hence have put the resources in place to make this happen. Our professionally qualified course tutors and writers are fully aware of learner needs and have designed courses that are flexible and up to date with current situations/legislations and learning styles.

How can we achieve this?

Simply because of our Not for Profit status we have no shareholders to pay and can continually reinvest resources to maintain the quality of our courses and offer them at unbeatable prices.

At the heart of The Open College's success story is a closely integrated professional team of experienced educationalists and course providers who are all available to students of The Open College.

It is because of this success and these arrangements that we, in The Open College, are able to offer courses leading to FETAC awards at less than half the price that other distance learning colleges charge.

Accreditation

The Open College has agreed its quality assurance procedures with FETAC and is registered to offer programmes leading to FETAC awards on the National Framework of Qualifications. These qualifications are at Levels 5 and 6 on the National Framework of Qualifications. Our ever increasing suite of learning courses allow you to choose from a wide variety of courses that lead to FETAC Awards.

Why FETAC?

As the national awarding body for further education and training in Ireland, the Further education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) gives people the opportunity to gain nationally and european recognised awards for their learning.

FETAC’s mission is to make quality assurance awards in accordance with national standards within the national framework, creating opportunities for all learners in further education and training to have their achievements recognised and providing access to progression.

The Open College has agreed its quality assurance procedures with FETAC and is registered to offer programmes leading to FETAC awards on the National Framework of Qualifications.

FETAC has completed a monitoring exercise of The Open College's assessment procedures as part of an overall review. This review covered our assessment procedures for December 2010. Following the review, The OpenCollege were commended by FETAC on 'good practice' & 'reporting is to a very high standard'.

Our Promise to You:

We are Irish, 100% Irish and proud members of the Guaranteed Irish movement – 'your safeguard for quality and Irish jobs'. We do not offer UK distance learning courses with questionable second-hand UK accreditation.
We are Ireland's leading College providing Accredited Courses at the best Prices. Nobody can match us either for Quality or Price. In addition to our 50% off offers we are at least 40% cheaper for FETAC Award Courses compared to some of our competitors. »Click here to review the Price Differences.
One-to-One Tutor Support: Our Students are provided with one-to-one support by qualified and experienced Tutors.
Study at your own pace. We allow ample time to complete your courses and we do not impose restrictive or our punitive conditions when you avail of our special offers.
All Our Courses are FETAC Approved. The Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) is the national awarding body for further education and training in Ireland. The Open College is registered with FETAC to offer programmes leading to FETAC awards in the National Framework of Qualifications in Ireland. Click here for details of the National Framework of Qualifications .

Choosing your Course

The task of choosing a course can be daunting. Our student advisors are happy to assist when you are trying to decide upon a course of study. We have helped thousands of individuals to qualify for their chosen career enabling us to understand the kind of support you need - from choosing your course to helping you with your studies.

For additional help in selecting the course that best suits you and your goals, our website provides detailed course information. We also have dedicated course advisers who will answer any questions you have. Please call them on 01 2897564/01 2070597 or email: info@theopencollege.com.

Distance Learning is not a lonely experience

You will be undertaking your course from home, at work or wherever you choose but we hope that you will never feel alone. Your tutor is on hand throughout your course and you can always contact the College staff or drop into us if you have a particular difficulty.

Support for your Studies

Our main aim is to help you enjoy your learning experience and to successfully complete your course. You are appointed a tutor for the duration of your course. Tutors will:

Help you understand the course content
Assess your progress on the course through assignments
Provide you with written feedback on your assignments
Help you with course-related challenges.

What should I expect to pay

Costs vary from course to course. At the start of your course each student receives an introductory pack to guide them through their studies. The materials in this pack vary from course to course and may contain:

Handbooks – specially written and designed to guide you through your studies.
Textbooks – to complement your course notes.
Study Guide - our ‘Guide to studying with Open College Distance Learning’ covers the main points to remember when studying with us.

The only extra things you may need is to access to a computer/printer to download notes and travel expenses to tutorials and exams if required. You will also be responsible for any telephone or internet service provider charges your suppliers may make.