NITE: National Institute of Teaching & Education, part of Coventry University Group Biology (B408)

Postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE) with qualified teacher status (QTS)

• Financial support: Bursaries and student finance are available if you’re eligible
• Qualification:
  PGCE with QTS

  A postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE) 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 PGCE courses include credits that count toward a Master’s degree.

• Age range: 11 to 18 - secondary
• Course length: 1 year full -time, 2 years part-time - full time or part time
• Date you can apply from: 11 October 2022
• Date course starts: September 2023
• Website: http://www.nationalteachinginstitute.org

Contents

Course summary

We believe that training to teach is best done ‘on-the-job’ in schools, so that the knowledge you gain can be immediately applied in real lessons. Therefore, on our Secondary PGCE with QTS in Biology you will be based in school all of the time (5 days a week for full-time trainees and 2.5 days a week for part-time trainees). To enable this we deliver our course online, which means that you can study with us in a location of your choice in England.

Designed and delivered by the country’s leading teachers and educators, who know what it takes to successfully teach in schools today, you will be taught through a host of online mediums which are accessible 24/7, including webinars, lectures, podcasts, videos, research and discussions. Trainees tell us that our online model is a tremendous help in managing workload, as you can choose to study at times most suitable for you. As all of the course content, curriculum and materials are online, you are able to revisit them as required, which is something our trainees also really value.

In addition, and described as “excellent” by Ofsted, our tutorial system provides you with regular online teaching and support, both 1-1 with your own personal University Tutor and in a small tutor group. Tutorials deepen your understanding of the topics we cover, and prompt you to think about what works best for you in your teaching.

As you are in school each day, you will have significant time to observe colleagues in action and to practise and develop your teaching within a planned timetable of lessons, which increase in number as your skills develop. Your own in-school Mentor manages this and aligns your training in school with the topics you are studying online and with your University Tutor.

Additional advantages of training with us are:

• A competitively-priced course fee of £7500.

• Multiple start dates: You can start in September, January or April and choose to train on a full-time or part-time basis.

• The course carries 60 Master’s credits (one third of a full Master’s degree), and you will have the option to extend your study for a further year to gain a full Master’s degree in Education (alongside any employment you may gain).

• Included in your course fee are two 2-day residential face-to-face training sessions at our campus in Silverstone.

For more details, visit www.nationalteachinginstitute.org

School placements

All of our current partner schools are experienced in hosting trainee teachers and have undergone a rigorous selection process. You will be based in two schools for the entirety of the course – a main school placement for two terms and a contrasting second school for one term. For part-time trainees, you will spend your first year in one school and your second year in a contrasting school. Your placement schools will be within a reasonable commuting distance from your home.

Our teacher training programme is popular, and if we fill our school placements in the area you wish to train, you may be requested prior to offer to source your own placement, and we can support you to do this.

We are also finding that more and more prospective trainees have existing relationships with schools, which are keen to host them. We happily accept these proposals and will help the school to meet our criteria to partner with us.

Outstanding, daily mentoring is one of the most important elements of teacher training. On placement, your in-school Mentor will be an experienced, highly effective teacher, who will receive regular training from us. They will work closely with your University Tutor to ensure that your support is personalised and impacts positively on your progress.

Locations

You can select one of the following locations to indicate a preferred placement when you apply.

Location	Vacancies
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Bedford Area Biddenham Turn, Bedford, Bedfordshire, MK40 4AZ	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Central London Area Stamford Street, SE1 9NA	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Coventry Area Coventry University, Coventry, West Midlands, CV1 5FB	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Dagenham Area Rainham Road North, Dagenham, RM10 7BN	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Derby Area Roundhouse Road, Derby, Derbyshire, DE24 8JE	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - East Northamptonshire Area Hayway, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 6AG	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Leicester Area Colin Grundy Drive, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE5 1GA	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - London Area 109-117 Middlesex St, Spitalfields, London, E1 7JF	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Luton Area Leagrave High Street, Luton, Bedfordshire, LU4 0NE	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Main Campus Innovation Centre, Silverstone Park, Towcester, Northamptonshire, NN12 8GX	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Milton Keynes Area Emperor Drive, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK8 0PT	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Norfolk Area Bluebell Road, NR4 7TU	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - North London Area Shirehall Lane, NW4 2PD	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - South East London Area 6 Mitre Passage, Greenwich, London, SE10 0ER	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - South Yorkshire Area Storth Lane, Kiveton Park, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, S26 5QQ	Yes
The National Institute of Teaching and Education - Surrey Area Ashcombe Road, Dorking, Surrey, RH4 1LY	Yes
The National Institution of Teaching and Education - Southampton Area Minstead Avenue, SO18 5FW	Yes

Entry requirements

Qualifications needed

An undergraduate degree, or equivalent.

Your degree subject should be in biology or a similar subject. Otherwise you’ll need to prove your subject knowledge in some other way.

Grade 4 (C) or above in English and maths, or equivalent qualification.

We’ll consider candidates with pending GCSEs.

We’ll consider candidates who need to take a GCSE equivalency test in English or maths.

We accept equivalency tests from the following providers:

https://www.equivalencytesting.com/

https://astarequivalency.co.uk/

Costs for equivalency tests are the responsibility of the applicant and results must be received prior to the start of the course.

Other requirements

Applicants, whose first language is not English, should have an IELTS of 6.5 overall.

The DfE requires providers to ensure that all trainees have the health and physical capacity to teach and will not put children and young people at risk of harm.

All entrants to ITT programmes are subject to appropriate pre-selection checks, including an enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service), criminal records checks and children’s barred list information.

Further details on these checks will be provided during the selection process.

Fees and financial support

The course fees for UK students in 2023 to 2024 are £7,500.

This includes accommodation and sustenance at our face-to-face residential training sessions.

About the training provider

We are one of the country’s largest providers of teacher training, providing a continuum of teacher education programmes to help teachers and school leaders develop expertise throughout their careers.

All of our training programmes and degrees blend online teaching and learning with school-based practice. Our tutorial system is distinct in the sector and provides regular 1-1 and small group sessions with University Tutors, which personalises training for our students and aligns study with practice ‘on-the-job’. We want our students to be curious and engage with the topics they study, question the knowledge that exists and find what best works for them in their roles in school.

Our programmes are designed and delivered by some of the country’s leading educationalists, who know what it takes to successfully lead and teach in schools today.

Our main campus is in Silverstone in Northamptonshire, overlooking the Formula 1 Grand Prix track. We also have ‘hub-sites’ located across England and a number of partnerships with institutions across the world.

Interview process

Whilst an interview can cause apprehension, ours is designed to be fair and relaxed, and we will look at your suitability to train to teach more than anything else. It is a chance for you to share with us your passion and enthusiasm about your chosen phase and/or subject. The interview is a two-way process, and we encourage you to ask questions about our course and the teaching profession.

For the interview, you will be asked to:

• Prepare a 5 minute presentation to a given brief, which will be sent to you beforehand.

• Complete a task (this is not an exam) about understanding the fundamental English and Maths skills required of a teacher. This task will be sent out before the interview and is designed to inform us of any gaps you may have in these areas, which might require support on the course.

• Reflect on your subject knowledge. A task will be sent to you before the interview, which will inform us of any additional subject-specific training requirements you may need within the course.

• Answer some questions in the interview to demonstrate your communication skills and subject knowledge, as well explain your motivations to train to teach.

International candidates

You’ll need the right to study in the UK. You already have this if, for example, you:

• are an Irish citizen
• have settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme (you may still be able to apply)
• have indefinite leave to remain in the UK

If you do not already have the right to study in the UK, you may need to apply for a visa. The main visa for fee-paying courses (those that you have to pay for) is the Student visa.

To apply for a Student visa, you’ll need to be sponsored by your training provider.

Sponsorship is not available for this course.

If you need a visa, filter your course search to find courses with visa sponsorship.

Alternatively, check if you’re eligible for a different type of visa, such as a Graduate or Family visa, that allows you to train to be a teacher without being sponsored.

Find out more about training to teach in England.

International qualifications

If your qualifications come from a non-UK institution, we may want to see a ‘statement of comparability’ from UK ENIC. This will show us how they compare to UK qualifications.

You can call Get Into Teaching on 0800 389 2500 for:

• guidance on the UK equivalents of your qualifications
• a free statement of comparability once you’ve submitted your application (if we ask you for this)

Training with disabilities and other needs

Coventry University is committed to promoting equality of opportunity to ensure that it meets the needs of all students.

If you have a disability we encourage you to disclose this along with any other relevant information that could support your studies.

Disability Advisors are part of the Health and Wellbeing team and are available to provide advice and support to students from application through to graduation. This team of dedicated professionals have the experience and skills to ensure that individuals receive appropriate support throughout their time at University. They offer support to students with a variety of disabilities including (but not limited to) Specific Learning Difficulty (Dyslexia), Physical and Sensory Disabilities.

Further information can be found here: https://www.coventry.ac.uk/study-at-coventry/student-support/health-and-wellbeing/disability/

Contact this training provider

• Email: NITE@coventry.ac.uk
• Telephone: 02477 650645
• Website: http://www.nationalteachinginstitute.org
• Address: The National Institute of Teaching and Education (NITE); Innovation Centre, Silverstone Park; Towcester; Northamptonshire; NN12 8GX

Support and advice

You can speak to a teacher training adviser for free, dedicated advice. They are all experienced teachers who can give you one-to-one support with your application. They can also help you get school experience, and find events where you can speak to training providers and teachers.

Call Get Into Teaching free of charge on 0800 389 2500, or chat online Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5.30pm (except public holidays).

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