Stephen Gregory
Student spotlight details
Stephen had never studied at university, and hadn’t written an essay in over 50 years. After taking a short online course with Oxford Lifelong Learning, he rediscovered his passion for history, and found the confidence to begin a BA in History.
'I'm 70 years old and left school at 16. I failed my 11-plus, went to a secondary modern school, and left shortly after. Back then, you either went to grammar school or you didn’t, and that one exam shaped your path. I never did A levels, never went to university. I didn’t think it was for people like me.
‘But I always loved history. It was the one subject I really connected with at school. Over the years I kept reading modern European history, especially Churchill. I’ve always been drawn to the question of how we got to where we are.
‘The Churchill: Solider, Politician and Statesman course through the Department was a revelation. It was a ten-week online course, and I was completely engrossed. Each week we worked through a different stage of Churchill’s life, from his birth till his death – with videos, documents and materials that brought the subject to life. Our tutor structured the course beautifully, and the forums gave us space to share different perspectives. One of the other students had worked in the White House under Ronald Reagan, so the range of voices made the experience even richer.
‘I hadn’t written an essay since I was 16, and I’d never done referencing or a bibliography before. But the course taught me all of that. I especially loved researching the final assignment where I chose Churchill’s opposition to appeasement in the 1930's. That was the highlight – pulling books off the shelf, diving into primary sources and learning how to make a case. It was challenging but also deeply satisfying. And to my surprise, I did well. The feedback from my tutor was thoughtful and encouraging and it gave me a huge boost in confidence. I realised: I can do this.
‘That course lit a fire under me. I never expected to do so well. It gave me, someone who had left school at 16 thinking he wasn’t “academic”, a huge boost in confidence. My wife said to me, “Have you ever thought of doing a degree?” I hadn’t. Not seriously. But suddenly, it didn’t seem impossible.
'I enrolled on a part-time BA in History with the Open University. I’m four months in now and the skills I learned from the Churchill course have made all the difference. Some weeks have covered things outside my usual interests, like poetry, but I'm already looking forward to specialising in history in the later years.
‘To anyone in a similar position, maybe you left school young, maybe you’ve always felt university wasn’t for you, I'd say give it a go. If you enjoy reading history, you’ll find that studying it is something else entirely. You become focused, curious, absorbed. You surprise yourself. I never thought I’d go to university. But that Churchill course gave me the push I needed. Now I’ve got my own Churchill library at home (a whole bookcase!) and I’m finally putting it to good use.’