Taimur

I have been a free plan user of Mega.nz for over 10 years on Linux and Windows for my home needs.

I am very satisfied with their service that gives me 50 GB of cloud storage, making my files available across all the devices (mobile, laptop, and gaming PC). Their paid plans are well above my requirements, so upgrading won't justify costs; otherwise, I would love to support this business.

One suggestion for the Mega.nz team: consider offering bundle plans, probably MS-Office 365 or an LLM service like Gemini/Claude/OpenAI, and I'll be happy to subscribe to such a bundled plan.

Best wishes for the Megz.nz team, and I can't thank them enough for providing me free services for over a decade.

Finally, great news. I am all the way through the MBA Top-Up from University of Gloucestershire (UOG) after my L7 extended diploma from OBS; it was a journey that stretched 2 years years but finally I got there!

My previous progressive reviews discussing each phase can be read on Dec 29, 2019, Apr 18, 2020 and Nov 12, 2020 on this page. This is an updated review about my MBA Top-Up admission which was arranged by OBS team saving me ~40% in the MBA course fee.

I only have one observation in this episode that my MBA admission involved a third party consultant (i.e. Me > OBS > education consultant > University of Glos) which was not disclosed to me by OBS team until I started the course. Although consultant played no role except for arranging the tutors in a Glos approved campus in an Asian country but still, the fact should have been disclosed -- I hope OBS team will consider this in future arrangements.

Lastly, I managed to complete MBA with a merit grade (thanks to the supervisors/tutors). Wish prospective students the best in their studies. Hope my story with OBS will be helpful for many people. Good luck to OBS team as well!

This is my third and final review of OBS. First and second reviews detailing my experience were written on Dec 29, 2019 and Apr 18, 2020 (you can scroll down for reading). This final review is after graduating/completing the Level 7 Extended Diploma in Strategic Management; I have received PDF copies and waiting for the printed to be received via snail-mail. Requirements included completion of 30 online learning modules, 8 written assignments, and passing of external verification by ATHE (assignments are first assessed internally by OBS).

My experience has been great. Their passing criteria is tough but not unfair. In my case, Assessors did failed me couple of times but provided feedback and reasons. Assigned tutor helped me clear all feedback notes and improve my work via calls on Skype (1 to 1 discussion) or emails upon request (again, for record, they didn't ask me extra fee). Note that no one from OBS will follow-up so you should be proactive about your progress else you will waste money, time and the course will never be completed.

Those who do not take online education seriously or otherwise believe that they will get the award after payment of fee then OBS or ATHE courses are not for them.

Lastly, the course turned out to be tougher than I expected and it took almost 14 to 15 months to complete but finally, I am proud to have completed an OfEqual regulated education program.

OBS is highly recommended in my opinion.

Their domain (Next.sa) does not have a registered business address or even a phone number whether in Saudi or in the UK. Offer no payment protection, just shady emails to follow-up about the shipment if something goes wrong. The only way to talk to them is Live Chat only to receive copied/pasted responses and for anything out of script, "send an email to...".

This is my second review, first one can be found in earlier dates below and it detailed my experiences on OBS admission process, payment plan, online learning modules, and student support hence this one will be focused on assignments.

My progress:
a. Passed two assignments, one being a simple 'pass' and other with distinction.
b. Passed 19 modules out of 30.

Feedback:
1. Passing assignments requires in-depth work. Average time spent in preparing an assignment from scratch to pass is about ~80 hours which excludes time spent on completing learning modules and passing related MCQ tests. This may vary from person to person.

2. Assignment assessment / marking criteria is strict so faint hearted might not survive criticism and multiple failed attempts. While the marker criticised weak/lacking areas but provided meaningful constructive feedback for reasons of failure. One piece of advice here that, "stick to the requirements, only things that matter are relevance and completeness (not the word count)".

3. Tutor support has been great. I was able to speak to tutor via Skype and emails without charge. For this, I must mention notably my tutor M. D. (full name withheld due to privacy) who was extremely helpful in providing guidance.

One suggestion for OBS that they should consider upgrading their forum/BBS software, it's quite archaic by 2020 standards.

Looking forward to takedown rest of my coursework. With best wishes to everyone (and yes, 'stay safe - stay home')!

PS: OBS students may approach me via student forums for queries. I would be more than happy to share my experiences/tips/help (where I can).

I am a student of Level 7 Extended Diploma in Strategic Management to start MBA with a British university. My review is based on 2 months experience with OBS (so far) and during this time, I have passed one assignment and a few learning modules.

Good points about OBS (in my opinion):

1. Affordable and legitimate institution.

2. Good student support in answering of all queries.

3. Encouraging and helpful tutors (and free).

4. Supported me in accommodating installment payment plan.

5. No hidden fee for resubmission of assignments or requesting tutor support. I failed my first assignment twice and was not asked to pay anything additional.

Areas where they need to improve...

1. All learning modules are pure text to read which is daunting, however, they do have a 15 minutes summary video at the beginning of every module.

2. The modules seem from 2010-12 era, and should be upgraded to be interactive (but then it is a question of additional cost for everyone hence a 'Catch-22' situation). Besides a fact that there is already great content available on YouTube and many other sites so the learning will not stop.

3. MCQ tests to pass modules include basic "fill in the blanks" type questions. I don't think it's appropriate to expect a master level student to fill exact words from phrases of different theories (e.g. Porter's Five Forces). Luckily, minimum score to pass a module is 50% so I have been successful in first attempts.

Something I disliked...

At enrollment they mentioned a "free laptop" but sent me a "tablet with a keyboard" (brand name Iota One about GBP 120 device) so that was misleading. Besides this, the device had a manufacturing defect which OBS offered to replace but return shipment from my country is 15~20 percent of device cost so I refused the idea of return shipment.

Final verdict:

1. OBS is not a degree-mill, and based on my experience so far I can say that students must work to earn the diploma.

2. Passing assignments require a lot of efforts. OBS Assessors are keen to ensure quality standards to meet the requirements, and based on my experience, I think they are pretty much fair about passing or failing an assignment. People seeking easy diplomas will be disappointed.

3. My tutor "M" is an excellent person, he has been a great help. Also, "L" is a lovely person to deal with (full name withheld due to privacy).

I will update my review as I progress through remainder of my course. Hope my detailed review is helpful.