Postgraduate teacher training

To train to teach in primary and secondary schools in England, you’ll need:

• GCSEs at grade 4 (C) or above in English and maths (and science if you want to teach primary)
• a bachelor’s degree in any subject

Different training providers may also have specific criteria. For example, some may ask that you have a bachelor’s degree class 2:2 or above.

Some training providers may consider candidates with pending GCSEs. If you do not have the GCSEs required, they may also ask you to sit an equivalency test or to offer other evidence to show your ability.

Talk to your teacher training provider or find a course(opens in new window) to check what your provider will accept.

Your degree can be in any subject to teach primary or secondary. For secondary courses, your provider will also want to make sure you have a good knowledge of the subject you’re applying to teach.

This could be through having a degree in the subject, or having:

• an A level in the subject
• a degree related to but not in the subject – for example, your degree is in engineering but you’d like to teach physics
• an unrelated degree but relevant professional experience

You can also train to teach primary with a specialist subject, for example primary with maths, so you can develop your knowledge of that particular subject.

Or you can train to teach two subjects at secondary, for example maths with physics, so you can develop the skills to teach in an additional subject.

Talk to your training provider to find out what you can train to teach.

You could also receive a tax-free bursary or scholarship of up to £30,000 to train to teach certain subjects. Find out more about your eligibility for a scholarship or bursary.

Apply for teacher training

You can usually start applying for postgraduate training in October, the calendar year before your course starts.

You can apply throughout the year, but some courses do fill up quickly.

Get tips on making a great application including finding the right references and writing a personal statement.

Apply for postgraduate teacher training(opens in new window).