Student and tutor module reviews

I found this to be an interesting course, yes a huge amount of reading but doable. The content was relevant and the TMAs were hard but understandable, I definitely benefited from attending the tutorials it would be hard to do this course without good support from the tutor and other students.

I had done B201 and B203 before taking this course and there were some subjects that were covered again in B301 which relieved the unrelenting amount of material.

I had doubled up on most courses for my degree but didn't on this one for which I was very grateful, I wouldn't recommend doing any other course with this unless you are studying full time.

However revision for the exam is so hard. I would suggest you get your marks up on other courses and don't hang your degree classification on this course. There is such a huge amount of material to revise and anything can come up. All of us in my group struggled with this although for many it was the last course and we had taken exams before. It was horrible - all my careful making of topic notes during the course ready for revising and learning, only demonstrated the impossible task ahead of me when I looked at the huge pile of topics, concepts and theorists.

My tutor advised that I couldn't learn it all and I had to pick a selection of topics, I was lucky that 3 of my 4 chosen topics came up and I gained a good pass but I still feel sick thinking about what would have happened if I hadn't been so lucky. Looking at the exam paper I couldn't have 'waffled' my way through any of the others, the questions were very specific.

With such a large amount of material I think it would have been better and more fair if it had been like the B201 exam where you could select areas of study for the exam. In summary, it is a very interesting course that I have found useful in 'real life' the only downside is the style of the exam.

Course starting: February 2011

Review posted: September 2012

This course is without doubt the most intense that I have studied.
It will require discipline, diligence and good time management.
Each block takes in a significant amount of reading but hang in there because it all comes together as the course ends. So while it places a high level of demand on the student, it also provides numerous sources of knowledge and information that I for one will be able to utilise for the rest of my career.

Course starting: February 2010

Review posted: August 2011

A varied and interesting course which is best tackled (if possible) during a period that you could promote as much time as possible to, I would suggest an extra hour or two above the OU's suggestion. There is a large amount of reading (and thorough comprehension and retention of those works) required, in addition our tutor recommended a further 3 books which he felt would assist our studies.

One TMA requires 2 weeks of online colaboration at specific times (ours clashed with summer holidays and the 2010 world cup!) and whilst enjoyable, proved a challenge for many of my group as it was opposed to the usual flexibility the OU is renowned for.

My expectation was that this was a "how to do strategy" course and as such would be prescriptive in its format, after realising that this is not the case I was able to realign my approach to my studies.

I have to be honest, this was my least favourite course I have taken, having said that I have been able to apply some of the course concepts to my work. My personal experience was that the exam did not really enable me to demonstrate my comprehension of the course.

Course starting: February 2010

Review posted: June 2011

There was a tremendous amount of reading for this 8 month course which really didnt give you much time to digest everything. I found this a difficult course because of all the reading but I managed to scrape though. If it wasn't a compulsory module in my degree I would have avoided it. On the other hand there were some interesting parts which have certainly stuck with me since finishing the module.

Course starting: February 2010

Review posted: May 2011

This course was quite heavy with a lot of reading and was very fast paced. I think it should have been a 12 month course. Strategy was quite intense, some parts were very interesting but other parts I didn't grasp until the end of the block which didn't fair well with TMAs. There was a lot of information to revise for the final exam.

Course starting: February 2010

Review posted: January 2011

As a level 3 I expected this module to be a challenge. However, it was much more difficult, demanding and stressful than I ever anticipated. For each block there is a course book to work through and a book of academic readings. I found the academic readings very difficult to cope with and I had to spend much longer per week on this course than any other I have done with the OU to keep up.
T
he collaborative analysis using a case study was an intense 3 weeks but I found that one of the more enjoyable parts of the course. The TMA questions are difficult and to get good marks critical analysis is key.

If you are thinking of taking this course be prepared to work hard. Good luck.

Course starting: February 2010

Review posted: December 2010

For me, as tutor, the main strength of B301 is the way the module is structured in a very logical and coherent way. Block after block, we explore the conceptual frameworks of strategy formulation (such as the positioning school and the resource-based view) and we learn to apply the tools used to develop and implement a business strategy (e.g. overcoming cultural resistance to change within the organisation, or better understanding middle managers' pivotal role).

The dialogue of "theory" and "practice" makes B301 most relevant, especially as the examples show that planning strategically is important for all types of organization.

It is true that the module is demanding; students have to work hard. Strategy is notoriously seen as a difficult topic, but the learning materials help support independent learning. The collaborative activities (for example a compulsory wiki as part of one TMA) also ensure that students work together and feel part of a community of learners.

Loykie Lomine

Review posted: January 2013