University of Birmingham
Religious Education (V6X1)

PGDE with QTS full time

• Financial support: Student finance if you’re eligible
• Qualification:
  PGDE with QTS

  A postgraduate diploma in education (PGDE) with qualified teacher status (QTS) will allow you to teach in state schools in England and may allow you to teach in other parts of the UK.

  It may also allow you to teach overseas, though you should always check what qualifications are needed in the country you’d like to teach in.

  Many PGDE courses include credits towards a Master’s degree.

• Course length: 36 weeks
• Date you can apply from: 13 October 2020
• Date course starts: September 2021
• Website: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk

Contents

About the course

Our Initial Teacher Education course in Religious Education received the top grade in all areas in the last Ofsted subject inspection. The course tries to develop a deep understanding of issues and complexities which surround the teaching and learning of religious education, religious studies and philosophy education. We wish to develop you as a thinking teacher who can be aware of a variety of effective ways to teach Religious Education and make informed decisions about how you work with students.

At the University of Birmingham we believe we should provide student teachers with the highest level of teacher training possible, and this is why we offer a Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDipEd also known as a PGDE) rather than a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE). Both qualifications lead to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) but the PGDipEd also offers the equivalent of 120 credits towards a masters (out of 180 credits), which makes it a highly rewarding course by combining both theory and practice.

Following satisfactory completion of this course, plus a successful induction year in school and references, you can return to complete an MA in Teaching Studies. Additionally, the School also offers a number of specialised Professional Development programmes which will enable you to further develop your career.

Visit our course page to find out more

Interview process

Selection is rigorous and designed to identify candidates with the strongest aptitude. Candidates selected for interview will be invited to the School of Education to:

• meet course tutors
• find out more about the course
• complete a written task
• have a one to one interview
• show GCSE and Degree certificates (where these are available).

We work closely with partner schools to select candidates and applicants will often have the opportunity to meet senior colleagues from partner schools when they join us for interview day.

How school placements work

School-based work is an important part of the programme, with students normally spending a total of 24 weeks in schools. During the programme you benefit from both carefully supported introductory work in different schools and the experience of spending a significant length of time in two schools.

The final assessment of teaching is based on the spring/summer term school placement. Assessment is shared between University tutors, staff responsible for students in schools, and external examiners. All aspects of your contribution to the life of the school are taken into account, in particular the teaching of your main subject.

During the course supervised experience and practice are arranged in schools of various kinds across the 11–18 age range. We are fortunate in being able to work with a wide range of partnership schools, including mixed comprehensives, single-sex schools, sixth-form colleges and our own University Training School (www.uobschool.org.uk). Many of the schools offer opportunities to work with pupils from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds.

Fees

The course fees for 2021 to 2022 are as follows:

UK students	£9,250
International students	£18,450

When you apply for this course, it is important that you also take into account living costs and should ensure that you will have sufficient funds to finance the full duration of your studies. Our PGDipEd programmes include a significant amount of time spent on placements in a variety of schools at different locations, and so when budgeting to study you should also allow for travel to and from placements, as well as textbooks, printing, photocopying and stationery that you may need.

Financial support

You may also be eligible for a loan while you study – note that you’ll have to apply for undergraduate student finance.

Find out about financial support if you’re from outside the UK.

Requirements

Qualifications

All applicants to the Secondary PGDipEd(QTS) Religious Education course must hold a degree from a UK Higher Education Institution. Normally this should be a minimum of 2:2 or equivalent qualification and this will be a condition of any offer where the degree has not already been awarded. Your degree should normally have 50% Religious Studies, Philosophy or Theology content. Graduate with Sociology, Ancient or Modern History, Classics or Politics who also have a good pass in A level Religious Education, Religious Studies, Philosophy or Critical Thinking are also invited to apply.

Personal qualities

In selecting candidates for a place on a University of Birmingham ITE programme, University and school-based colleagues look for:

• Relevant academic profile and intellectual capacity
• Strong subject knowledge
• Relevant work/volunteering experience
• Awareness of contemporary educational issues
• Motivation, enthusiasm and a clear rationale for teaching
• Responsibility, maturity, open-mindedness
• Appropriate ethics and values, including equal opportunities awareness
• Effective spoken and written Standard English
• Commitment to teaching as a career.

Other requirements

You must also:

• have a GCSE in Maths and English (grade 4 or above) or an equivalent qualification;

• complete an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check;

• complete relevant checks to ensure you have the health and physical capacity to teach;

• agree to abide by the University of Birmingham Code of Professional Conduct and Fitness to Practise.

About the training provider

Our Primary and Secondary teacher training pathways prepare top graduates for a career inspiring learning and transforming lives. We work in partnership with a wide range of primary and secondary schools, sixth form colleges and special schools, across Birmingham and the surrounding authorities, to offer both core and School Direct routes into teaching.

The School of Education at the University of Birmingham has a long tradition of delivering teacher training courses. Its teaching has been graded as ‘outstanding’ for the third consecutive time by Ofsted inspectors which reaffirms the University’s status as one of the UK’s leading institutions for excellence in teacher training.

Training with disabilities and other needs

The University of Birmingham strives to be an inclusive learning community. Whatever your disability, mental health or learning support needs, the Disability, Mental Health and Learning Support Service can provide assistance to make sure you that you can access appropriate support. Find out more at: https://intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/student/welfare/disability/index.aspx

Contact details

• Email: admissions@bham.ac.uk
• Telephone: 0121 414 3344
• Website: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk
• Address: Admissions; The University of Birmingham; Edgbaston; Birmingham; B15 2TT

Apply

Choose a training location

You’ll also need to choose a training location – select the relevant location name on the application form.

Location	Vacancies	Code
Main Site The University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT	Yes	-

Support and advice

For questions about this course you should contact the training provider using the contact details above.

Get support and advice about teaching

Register with Get Into Teaching, the Department for Education’s free support and advice service, for personalised guidance from teaching experts. They can help you to prepare your application, book school experience, and access exclusive teaching events. You can also call them free of charge on 0800 389 2500, or speak to an adviser using their online chat service, from 8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday.

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