Institute of Mathematics' Polymaths Certificate part-time

"I would definately recommend this course, especially to those who have not studied A Level but want to progress to a Maths Degree. I joined the course as a mature student, having left school with GCSEs and gone straight into work. The course leaders were extremely helpful and approachable, made sure I had all the information I needed to choose whether or not to take Polymaths and supported me throughout the course. The course content was pitched at the right level, the assessments were fair and, with the help and guidance of the excellent lecturers, I achieved a high standard and moved on to the degree. Many thanks to all concerned!" - 17-05-2012 13:11

"I have just finished this course and found it to be an interesting and very educational course. Polymaths is designed to get you up to A-level standard in one year so as such is pretty intensive and some of the lessons are quite fast paced. The tutors all have different styles of teaching but are all very friendly and approachable, all of them are more than willing to help when you need it, you just have to ask. While the styles are different the lesson structure is always the same, learn about 1/2 topics then you are given a homework based on that to be given in next lesson where you start something new. There isn't time to cover things again and again as it's essentially a 2 year course condensed into 1 year so missing a lesson could put you behind a fair way unless someone in the group takes very detailed notes to give you. This course was ideal for me as I wanted to do the maths degree but did not have the right level of qualification so this got me up to speed in a short amount of time and I have now been accepted to go on and do the degree. One issue that some people seemed to have was using this when applying to other universities as some didn't really know about it and a lot don't seem to have a requirement points wise. This doesn't happen often but when it does is easily dealt with by contacting the university directly and telling them your situation/asking their advice. There was a wide range of people taking this course and all for different reasons/goals in mind. I recommend this to anyone who has a goal but not currently the qualifications to get there, anyone who maybe did their GCSEs/A-level a long time ago and wants a bit of a recap/top up of their knowledge or anyone who just has a genuine love of maths. I wouldn't recommend this course unless you really want to do it, as I said it's pretty intensive and it does assume a certain level of previous knowledge so unless you really want to do it and really do enjoy maths it probably isn't for you. I thoroughly enjoyed this course at UoB and cannot wait to start the degree there later this year." - 16-05-2012 13:11

"I found this course very uselful - i am currently in full time employment but wanted to start a degree, the hours and work load were suited to my situation. The course covers wide area of a-level maths and will allow me to go onto the Maths degree to further my education. I found the course was at a good pace and the tutors very helpful and informative. The course is split into 4 main areas which start at the basics and move you to the more advanced subjects allowing you to gain the understanding behind each area. The tutors in particular have been fantastic, all of them are approachable and want to see you suceed.Overall i think this course is of a high standard and has proved invaluble to my future studies. " - 16-05-2012 13:04

"I found this course badly run, unorganised and would not recommend it to anybody. One of the teachers was consistently away on holiday with the supply teachers being unaware of the lesson plans. The content in the tests was completely different to what had been taught in the classes and the tutors were often unable to answer any questions. Also a lot of universities do not accept this as an acceptable qualification for offers onto their degree courses." - 26-01-2012 20:02