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How to become a teacher


Teaching is one of the most rewarding careers available. You’ll get the chance to educate future generations, inspire knowledge and shape lives. Or, you may have the satisfaction of upskilling older learners, allowing them to improve their lives and achieve their ambitions.

If you’re looking to help children or adults find their potential and flourish, there is a wide array of potential paths and career development opportunities. So, it’s no surprise that many people feel inspired by the prospect of teaching.

So, how do you become a teacher?

When considering training to teach, one of the first things you’ll need to decide is which age range you’d like to teach. We offer courses that cover birth to five, the primary phase, secondary phase and Further Education. It’s important you review the entry requirements and think about the route that will be most suitable. 

Studying teaching at university

There are several university routes into teaching. The type of course you choose will depend on your current qualifications and experience, and the type of teaching career you want to pursue. 

Undergraduate teacher training courses

If you want to train to be a primary school teacher and you don’t have a degree, then you can study for our undergraduate degree BA (Hons) Primary Education. At the end of the three-year course, you will be recommended for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). You do not need to do a PGCE and can start work as an Early Career Teacher (formally known as a Newly Qualified Teacher or NQT).

By training to teach with us, you’ll gain practical teaching experience in schools, and develop your theoretical knowledge of educational approaches. Experience in a school will be a key part of your course, and there will be a set number of hours you will be required to complete. For our undergraduate degrees and PGCE courses, this includes a minimum of 120 days on placement in schools over the course of your training.

PGCE (Postgraduate Certificate in Education) courses

For those who have completed an undergraduate degree, a PGCE (Postgraduate Certificate in Education) is the most popular path to teaching. This postgraduate course takes one year to complete.

Take a look at our PGCE courses for more information:

If you want to teach in further education, the PGCE Further Education course might be for you.

Fees and funding

You’ll have a variety of funding options available to you as a trainee teacher. These most popular options include student loans and teacher training bursaries

Student loans - Government-funded loans are the most common type of funding for teacher training. This includes a tuition fee loan of up to £9,535, which helps cover the university course fees. It also includes a maintenance loan of up to £13,762, which helps cover your living costs while studying. 

Teacher training bursaries - Depending on the course you study, you may be eligible for a teacher training bursary or scholarship. Bursaries range from £5,000 to £31,000.

You will need to have either a Bachelor’s (honours, class 2:2 or higher), Master’s, or PhD qualification in order to be eligible for a bursary or scholarship. 

Useful skills in teaching

Teaching is a multifaceted profession. You’ll manage a lot of different areas day-to-day, from supporting young people’s learning and organising lessons, to developing your subject knowledge. 

Here are some of the most valuable skills you’ll need as a teacher:

Phase and Subject knowledge and expertise – children and adults will learn best when you are confident in your knowledge and demonstrate your expertise. 

Strong organisation - teachers manage a lot of responsibilities. Being well organised will help you manage your time, workload, and lessons. 

Empathy - being empathetic will help you teach children and students in a sensitive way and support them to be the best they can be. 

Communication - teachers need to be able to communicate their ideas clearly in order to teach effective lessons. 

Patience - no matter what age group you teach, you’ll need a lot of patience. It’s important to give students the time they need to understand things and deliver information at a suitable pace.

Image for case study: Abbie Martin, PGCE Primary Education
The opportunities and support provided are endless. If you believe in yourself and work hard, you can go the distance!
Abbie Martin, PGCE Primary Education

Case Studies

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    Frequently Asked Questions

    To train to teach, you will need to have GCSE Grade 4 (or equivalent) in English (Language or Literature) and mathematics. For Early Years or Primary ITT, you will also need to have GCE Grade 4 (or equivalent) in a science subject.

    For the postgraduate teacher training courses, you will need to have an undergraduate degree.

    If you don’t have these GCSE qualifications, we can offer you an Equivalency Test. Please see further details on our p.

    We have experienced Placement Teams who allocate placements in our partner schools and settings. If you would like to arrange your own placement, please discuss this with our Placement Leads. 

    Teaching is an exciting, rewarding career that helps shape the lives of the world’s future parents, leaders, scientists, writers… in fact, every career and role that there is. It’s never dull – each day will bring different challenges and opportunities, and see you guiding and interacting with children and young people from different backgrounds and experiences, each with their own unique needs, strengths, and challenges. Quite simply, there is no other job available that combines the same variety, opportunity, stability, and rewards of teaching.

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