PGDE (Secondary)

• Minimum of a Bachelor's degree or equivalent (depending upon specific applications each year, this may be changed to a Bachelor (Hons) degree, containing 80 credits relevant to subject area being applied for (see below for fuller explanation)

Entry Requirements to the PGDE Secondary programme are shaped by the GTC Scotland Memorandum on Entry Requirements for Programmes of ITE and the application procedures of the university. This section details the overarching entry requirements that apply to all secondary subjects, some subjects have additional entry requirements specific to the subject (e.g. Art & Design, English, Languages and PE). Details of these are included in the GTC Scotland Memorandum but are also detailed in our FAQ documentation which is hosted further up this page.

All applicants should hold a degree validated by a university in the UK or a degree of an equivalent standard from outside the UK. This is the minimum with which an applicant can apply. It may be that only applicants with a good Honours degree (Grade 2.2, or above) will be considered depending on how many places we have available in any specific year.

The degree qualification must contain a minimum of 80 credit points relevant to the teaching qualification that an applicant plans to qualify for in Secondary, with at least 40 of the credit points studied at SCQF Level 8 (RQF Level 5 or EQF Level 5) or above (i.e. around two years full-time study in Higher Education).

All applicants must also have achieved qualifications in both English and Mathematics prior to their application being considered*:

ENGLISH

• a minimum of SQA Higher (Grade C), or equivalent.

MATHEMATICS

• a minimum of SQA National 5 (Grade C), or equivalent.

Applicants who are working towards these qualifications will also be considered on the condition that the applicant, if successful at interview, has attained these qualifications prior to the start of the course in August 2024.

*ACCEPTABLE ALTERNATIVE QUALIFICATIONS IN ENGLISH

• SQA Higher English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Grade C (or equivalent)
• SQA NC (SCQF Level 6) Communications 4 and Literature 1

• GCSE English Language and GCSE English Literature – passes at C or above (England: Grade 4 or above) Wales (Grade C or above) and Northern Ireland (Level 4 or above) Both Language and Literature must be held

• Irish Leaving Certificate Higher English at Grade H4 (or above)
• appropriate Higher Education Access Course

*ACCEPTABLE ALTERNATIVE QUALIFICATIONS IN MATHEMATICS

• SQA Intermediate 2 Mathematics (Grade C, or above)
• Standard Grade award in Mathematics at Credit (Grade 1 or 2)

• GCSE Mathematics Grade 4 and above (England), Grade C or above (Wales), and Grade C/level 4 or above (Northern Ireland)

• Irish Leaving Certificate Mathematics at Level 4

• appropriate Higher Education Access course

Note: This list is not exhaustive and there are other qualifications we may accept as equivalent. We will accept alternative International qualifications in English and Mathematics where evidence is provided via NARIC (National Recognition Information Centre). Please contact our admissions team for support with this. 

Applicants are strongly advised to visit the Teaching in Scotland website for full information on what is required to become a teacher in Scotland.

An offer of a place on this programme is made on the basis of your application and successful interview.

INTERVIEWS

An offer of a place on this course is made on the basis of your application and successful interview. Candidates who meet the academic requirements will be considered for interview.

The interview is designed to enable applicants to demonstrate their interpersonal skills; ability to communicate; insight into the role of a teacher; knowledge about current Scottish Secondary education. Recent experience of a Scottish secondary school classroom is normally required and is certainly desirable.

MORE INFORMATION ON PHYSICAL EDUCATION INTERVIEWS (Word doc)

MORE INFORMATION ON ART AND DESIGN INTERVIEWS (pdf)

Successful applicants who gain a place on this course will need to register on the PVG Scheme, managed and delivered by Disclosure Scotland. An application form will be sent from the University once you have accepted your offer. The fee for joining the scheme is £59.

Visit the Disclosure Scotland website for more information on the PVG scheme.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS OVERVIEW

All academic degrees/awards at UWS are taught in English. For applicants whose first language is not English*, the University sets a minimum English Language proficiency level. All English language qualifications must have been gained within two years of the start of your UWS course.

* applicants who are exempt from english language requirements include:

• native speakers of English
• Erasmus students (unless advised otherwise)
• non-Erasmus students from EU partner institutions (your institution must provide confirmation of your English language ability in the absence of a formal qualification)
• students whose previous degree-level study has been taught and assessed in English in what UK Visas and Imigration (UKVI) define as a majority English speaking country

In general terms, if you are applying to study a course at, or above, Year 1 (SCQF Level 7) bachelor’s degree level, then the UKVI’s minimum level of English proficiency is Common European Framework for References of Languages (CEFR) at B2 (Upper Intermediate).

 

UWS & INTERNATIONAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEST SYSTEM (IELTS)

At UWS, we define our general English language requirements using the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic module (not General Training) as follows:

Undergraduate (bachelor's - BA, BAcc, BEng, BSc etc.) degrees and postgraduate (master's - MA, MBA, MSc etc.) taught degrees

• the CEFR equivalent requirement is normally an overall IELTS score of 6.0 (or equivalent), with a score of no lower than 5.5 in any of the four elements (listening, speaking, reading and writing)

Postgraduate research degrees (MRes, MPhil, PhD, DBA etc.)

• the CEFR equivalent requirement is an overall IELTS score of 6.5 (or equivalent), with a score of no lower than 6.0 in any of the four elements (listening, speaking, reading and writing)

These are minimum requirements and some courses may require a higher standard for admission†.

† Exceptions to this level of IELTS scoring exist for some accredited or professionally-recognised courses (see IELTS Score Exceptions section below for more information). 

 

IELTS SCORE EXCEPTIONS (RESEARCH DEGREES, BIOMEDICAL & PARAMEDIC SCIENCE DEGREES, NURSING & MIDWIFERY DEGREES WITH NMC REGISTRATION, SOCIAL WORK DEGREES, CERTIFICATE OF HIGHER EDUCATION, ETC.)

RESEARCH DEGREES

For our research degrees (MRes, MPhil, PhD, DBA, DProf) applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

• overall score of 6.5
• no sub-test score of less than 6.0

HEALTH & MIDWIFERY AWARDS

For Health, Nursing & Midwifery courses that lead to professional registration with the Nursing & Midwifery Council (BSc Adult Nursing, MSc Adult Nursing, BSc Mental Health Nursing, MSc Mental Health Nursing, BSc Midwifery and MSc Midwifery), applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

• overall score of 7.0
• score of at least 7.0 in reading, listening and speaking and
• score of at least 6.5 in writing

PARAMEDIC SCIENCE DEGREE

Our BSc Paramedic Science degree leads to professional registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC); it has different IELTS requirements than other Health-related courses. Although it is not possible to apply for this degree directly as an international student, for applicants who meet SAAS residency requirements and for whom English is not their first language, then the following IELTS scores are required:

• overall score of 7.0
• no sub-test score of less than 6.5

BIOMEDICAL DEGREES

For our BSc (Hons) Applied Biomedical Science, BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science and MSc Advanced Biomedical Science degrees, which may lead to professional registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

• IELTS 6.0 for level 7 and 8 entry
• IELTs 6.5 for level 9/10 or MSc entry

SOCIAL WORK DEGREES

Our BA (Hons) Social Work and MSc Social Work degrees are professionally recognised by the Scottish Social Services Council and applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

• overall score of 7.0
• no sub-test score of less than 7.0

CERTIFICATE OF HIGHER EDUCATION

For our Certificate of Higher Education courses, applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

• overall score of 5.0
• no sub-test less than 4.5

 

OTHER IELTS EQUIVALENT ENGLISH LANGUAGE TESTS

In additional to IELTS, we also accept a number of alternative English language for application and admission to our courses for both home/EU and international students at bachelor's degree study at Year 3 (SCQF Level 9), and above. From Cambridge to TOFEL iBT qualifications the number of these qualifications is extensive.

Find out about non-IELTS English Language Tests

 

ENGLISH LANGUAGE HIGH SCHOOL QUALIFACTIONS ACCEPTED FOR NON-EU APPLICANTS

UWS has also reviewed a range of High / Secondary School qualifications studied by non-EU applicants that can be used as a basis of entry to a UWS. These range from Botswana GCSEs to USA High School Graduation Diplomas, the number of these qualifications is extensive.

Find out more about international English Language high-hchool qualifications

 

PRE-SESSIONAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE COURSES AT UWS

Applicants who do not meet the minimum English language requirements have the option to study one of our preparatory and pre-sessional English courses. The UWS courses available are:

• 10-week pre-sessional - entry criteria UKVI IELTS 5.0 with no element below 4.5.
• 5-week pre-sessional - entry criteria UKVI IELTS 5.5 with no element below 5.5.
• English Language for University Study - entry criteria UKVI IELTS with an overall score of 4.0, plus a score of 4.0 in all sub-tests (10-month course), or an overall score of 4.5, plus no score below 4.0 in all sub-tests (7-month course).

Find out more about our English language Courses.