Robert Jolly

Robert studied part-time for six years and achieved his Bachelor of Laws (Honours) degree in 2020.

“I chose to study law because, for many years, I worked on my own at home as an accountant. I ‘used’ laws daily, but was always curious about how they actually came to be. I also watched the film Educating Rita too many times.

“I studied part-time with The Open University because I have a lifelong visual impairment which means I was unable to commit to working early mornings or late nights.

“I had some personal obstacles to overcome. I had great difficulty in dealing with the first two modules. Firstly, I had no idea how to academically set out my replies with appropriate legal referencing, or how to distinguish between essay writing and descriptive responses – it was a long time since I did my GCE exams.

“I also struggled with reading and utilising the provided printed text books, due to the very small font used. Eventually, I decided to ring the OU and tell them that I was simply not coping. At once, they came to my rescue. They provided me with an amazing magnifying reader, with a large TV screen and a special hand-held device. This changed everything.

“Things got even better by the third module, when there was some improvement to online text book access. I also began to find my way around The Open University’s alternative Word modules. I then had a variety of resources that were putting me on an equal playing field with others. From about that time, my results became far better.

“I cannot even begin to describe the benefit of having my qualification. The mere academic achievement was far beyond what I imagined it would be. It has left me feeling confident in myself and in my professional skills.

“I started life with a disadvantage.  At birth, I started a long trail of hospital visits. I missed schooling. At 11 years old, I was sent to a secondary school where I was treated cruelly by my fellow students. I have had good times – at a children’s hospital where I received an education, and at a wonderful administrative accounting job in the multi-cultural surrounds of Finsbury Park in north London. But the real world has been tough. People in offices and work places are pretty unforgiving, and at times my confidence, health and relationships have been affected.

“Now, armed with my Open University degree, I have a desire to help others – to help the disadvantaged and the disenfranchised in life, as I once was.”