The OU was founded to offer people who, for whatever reason, had missed out on a University education.  For many this remains true today.   

After growing up in care, Faye Banks left school at 16 with no qualifications and started working in low skilled manual jobs.  Bored and frustrated with her limited career options she decided to go back to college to get her GCSEs – she achieved straight As proving herself more than capable.  Then something momentous happened…

"I saw an advert for the OU in the local newspaper and it ticked every box, so I enrolled and have never looked back.  I chose to study Engineering because I knew there was (and still is) a shortage of female engineers in the UK."

In 2000 Faye began her OU journey and, over the last 18 years, she has continued studying to achieve an MBA, MSc, MEng and started an LLM in November 2017. Her OU qualifications have seen her career go from strength to strength as Engineering Consultant for Enzen Global Ltd and she has recently secured a role as Director of Energy for Costain.

Faye describes the OU as life-changing, yet challenging. Studying around a full-time job was tough but she was organised, reading in lunch breaks and in the evenings and listening to tutorials whilst travelling. 

"It has enabled me to achieve my dream of becoming an Engineering Consultant and without my OU qualification, I would never have had the opportunity to develop into this role."

In 2004 Faye became the UK Young Woman of the Year, won the National Higher Educational Gold Award in 2005 and became the Institute of Engineering and Technology’s (IET) Youngest Fellow in 2015, as well as being listed in the Telegraph’s Top 50 UK Female Engineers 2016.