New Open University office at North West Regional College’s Strand Road campus

North West Regional College (NWRC) has officially cut the ribbon on a brand new Open University (OU) office at their Strand Road campus in Derry~Londonderry.

The office, adjacent to NWRC’s Careers Academy, is the OU’s first official premises in the North West and strengthens a partnership between the two organisations which saw the validation of two OU higher education level courses in September 2023.

During the official opening on Thursday, Dr Catherine O’ Mullan, NWRC Director of Curriculum and Academic Standards, handed over keys for the new office to John D’Arcy, Director of The Open University in Ireland.

Dr O’ Mullan said: “Today is another exciting chapter in this unique educational partnership. We are delighted to welcome The Open University to our Strand Road Campus with its own office and base in the North West.

“NWRC is committed to growing and developing our curriculum, offering something really different and much needed within the North West region.

“Our partnership with The Open University is the culmination of extensive diligence and hard work from both organisations, as well as significant consultation with employers, over the past two years. It complements the existing partnerships we have with other Higher Education Institutions in the region and has allowed us to add to our portfolio of courses, providing a more diverse offer related to areas of skills gaps .

“But this is just the beginning. We intend to grow our Higher Education curriculum offer at NWRC and hope to announce details of further developments in specialist subject areas with The Open University in the future.”

John D’Arcy, OU, added: ”The Open University is proud to officially move into our new office at NWRC allowing us to work even closer with staff and students. We have worked hard with NWRC Senior Management to provide this level of choice and provision of higher education and I am delighted to see the students on our Foundation Degree in Cyber Security and Level 4 Certificate in Healthcare Practice courses performing so well since they first began in September 2023. This partnership will continue to grow, and we look forward to seeing what 2024 will bring to the North West region and further afield.”

Applications are now open for all Higher Education courses beginning at NWRC in September 2024, including the OU Foundation Degree in Cyber Security (full and part-time), OU Level 4 Higher Education Certificate in Healthcare Practice, and OU Foundation Degree in Housing Practice. Further details of additional courses presently being approved by OU will be made available in due course.

For more information visit www.nwrc.ac.uk/higher-education