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UPDATE ON THE RECOGNITION OF TEACHING QUALIFICATIONS IN THE EEA

As a result of the UK leaving the European Union the automatic recognition of UK teaching qualifications in the EEA will no longer apply for qualifications obtained after 31 December 2020. This means that UK nationals wishing to teach in the EEA and EEA citizens with a UK teaching qualifications will require to have their qualification recognised in the EEA country in which they intend to work. The rules and process for this recognition of third country qualifications/third-country nationals will vary and any student interested in working in the EEA after qualifying should check the relevant requirements in each member state.

PGDE (Secondary) Overview

This programme provides the formal teaching qualification for provisional registration with the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTC Scotland), preparing you for a career in secondary school teaching.

University study focuses on curriculum, methods of teaching and learning and assessment, alongside theoretical and practical aspects of professional studies in education. You can study one module at master’s level, gaining 40 credits.

Teaching qualifications are offered in several areas and you’re able to select one or two of the following subjects depending on your existing qualifications:

  • Art and Design
  • Biology with Science
  • Chemistry with Science
  • English
  • Mathematics
  • Modern Languages (French, German, Spanish)
  • Physical Education
  • Physics with Science

Please note that the University reserves the right to withdraw certain subjects depending on the quotas set by the Scottish Funding Council.

COURSE HIGHLIGHTS

  • This programme is carried out in partnership with schools where you will normally spend 18 weeks on placement.
  • Our undergraduate initial teacher education course was ranked number one in the UK in the Times Good University Guide 2020 and the Guardian University Guide 2020 and you will be taught by many of the academics who teach on that programme.
  • Upon graduating you will receive the formal teaching qualification necessary for provisional registration with the GTC Scotland – a requirement for entry into the guaranteed one-year Teacher Induction Scheme.
Work-Ready Graduate Laughing | Undergraduate Study at UWS | University of the West of Scotland

THE DIVISION OF EDUCATION

UWS's Division of Education is recognised as one of the most innovative providers of education degrees in the UK. From early years to adult education, students gain rich experience from our innovative courses and graduate with unrivalled career prospects.

Our research informs our teaching courses, influences policy and contributes to wider research networks across the world. Our work into the nature and causes of youth violence, crime and gang culture has had an international impact.

Student Discussing How to Join UWS as an Exchange Student | University of the West of Scotland

UWS & Education: League tables

  • Education at UWS was ranked 1st in the UK in The Times / The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2020.
  • Education as UWS was ranked 2nd in the UK overall and 1st in Scotland for student satisfaction in the Complete University Guide 2020.
  • Education at UWS was ranked 1st in the UK for satisfaction in the Guardian University Guide 2020.

*this ranking was achieved for our undergraduate course in initial teacher education which our PGDE Secondary staff also teach on.

Inspire the next generation

Interested in a career in secondary teaching? UWS is the place for you! Together we can inspire the next generation to achieve their true potential. Don’t just take our word for it. Our students are always giving us great feedback.

Here's current student Meghan McGookin,  studying PGDE Physics and Maths at our Ayr campus.

UWS is highly-regarded for its initial teacher education provision and we offer PGDE Secondary courses for August entry, including:

  • Art & Design
  • Biology with Science / Chemistry with Science / Physics with Science
  • English
  • French / German / Spanish
  • Mathematics
  • Physical Education

Inspiring students to great careers

Hear from UWS alumni Alan Sloss, who studied at Ayr campus and is now the Principal Teacher of Physical Education at Ayr Academy.

Entry Requirements

What qualifications do you need?

We welcome Scottish, UK and international students and consider all applicants on an individual basis.

If you are applying with an EU or non-EU qualification, please check our Postgraduate Entry Requirements page which gives more information about country-specific entry requirements.

  • 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, eg. GCSE English Literature and English Language (Grade C/5, or above)

MATHEMATICS

  • a minimum of SQA National 5 (Grade C), or equivalent, eg. GCSE Maths (Grade C/5, or above) or Irish Leaving Certificate Maths (Grade O3, or above)

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 at Grade B (or above)
  • 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 C, or above)
  • Irish Leaving Certificate Ordinary Mathematics (Grade O3, or above)
  • appropriate Higher Education Access course

Note: We will accept alternative International qualifications in English and Mathematics where evidence is provided via NARIC (National Recognition Information Centre).

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

MORE INFORMATION ON ART AND DESIGN INTERVIEWS

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 FOR MOST COURSES

For applicants whose first language is not English, the University sets a minimum English Language proficiency level. The qualifications below must have been gained within two years of the start of your course.

General English language requirements at UWS: International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic module (not General Training)

  • overall score 6.0
  • no sub-test less than 5.5

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

SOCIAL WORK DEGREES

For our BA (Hons) Social Work and MSc Social Work programmes, applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

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

COMMON EQUIVALENT ENGLISH LANGUAGE QUALIFICATIONS

All stated English tests are acceptable for admission for both home/EU and international students for this programme:

  • CAE (Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English): 176 overall; no sub-test less than 169
  • CPE (Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English): 176 overall; no sub-test less than 169
  • Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English: ISEII with the minimum of a Pass in all sub-tests
  • PTE Pearson Academic English: An overall score of 59 to 64 with no element below 59 (for programmes that require IELTS 6.0 with no element below 5.5). An overall score 65 to 75 with no element below 65 (for programmes that require IELTS 6.5 with no element below 6.0)

 

IELTS SCORE EXCEPTIONS (RESEARCH DEGREES, BIOMEDICAL SCIENCE DEGREES, NURSING & MIDWIFERY DEGREES WITH NMC REGISTRATION, 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 less than 6.0

HEALTH & MIDWIFERY AWARDS

For Health, Nursing & Midwifery courses that lead to, or require professional registration with the Nursing & Midwifery Council, applicants are required to have an IELTS or Occupational English Test (OET)*.

For such courses, the IELTS score is as follows:

  • overall score of 7.0
  • score of at least 7.0 in reading, listening and speaking and no less than 6.5 in writing

* Note that the Occupational English Test (OET) will now be accepted in addition to IELTS as proof of a Nurse's English Language Competence (Nursing & Midwifery Council, 2019).

BIOMEDICAL DEGREES

For our BSc (Hons) Applied Biomedical Science, BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science and MSc Advanced Biomedical Science programmes, applicants are required to have an IELTS score as follows:

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

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

 

TOEFL IBT

TOEFL IBT*: 78; no sub-test less than:

  • Reading: 17;
  • Listening: 17;
  • Speaking: 17;
  • Writing: 17

* Please note that TOEFL is still acceptable for admission to this programme for both home/EU and international students.
For international students, the Home Office has confirmed that the University can choose to use TOEFL to make its own assessment of English language ability for visa applications to degree level courses. We therefore still accept TOEFL tests taken in the last two years for admission to this programme.

 

WEST AFRICAN SENIOR SCHOOL CERTIFICATE OF EDUCATION (WASSCE)

West African Senior School Certificate of Education (WASSCE) including acceptance of WAEC Scratchcard*

  • C6 or above in English

*UWS will accept a WAEC scratchcard confirming that an applicant has achieved C6 or above as evidence of meeting English language requirement from Nigeria if the student graduated within the last 5 years. After 5 years applicants would be required to provide the WAEC Certificate.

 

PRE-SESSIONAL COURSES

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 score of 4.0 in all elements (10 month course), or 4.5 with no score below 4.0 (7 month course).

Find out more about our English language Courses.

“The whole experience at UWS was excellent and incredibly supportive. To be honest, I don’t think I would have secured a permanent teaching post in my first year if it wasn’t for that support.”

Robert Duffin - PGDE Secondary graduate, and Secondary English teacher at Belmont Academy, Ayr

PGDE programmes are funded in the same way as undergraduate programmes. You can apply to SAAS to have tuition fees paid. Eligibility conditions apply. Check SAAS for more information.

Ranked in the top 3% of universities worldwide (THE 2018) | UWS | University of the West of Scotland

Tuition Fees 2023-24

Use the Link below to download details of our full-time, part-time tuition fees for Bachelor, Masters, Research, and English Language pre-sessional courses for session 2023-24.

Tuition Fees

How to apply

Postgraduate courses (MA, MSc, MEd, MBA, DBA, PG Cert, PG Dip, etc.) & some Post-experience courses (CertHE, BA, Grad Cert, Grad Dip, etc.)

All students should apply directly to the University through our online application system. Before you apply, you should check that you meet our entry requirements and you should have all your supporting documents ready.

The first stage of the process is to complete the initial application form. You will then receive a follow-up email with further instructions relating to your application including documents that you will need to forward to support your application, e.g. degree transcripts and certificates etc.

Most courses don't have a formal closing date, but they will close when they are full; apply early to avoid disappointment. There may also be funding deadlines that apply to you.

The Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) applies to all international students and researchers (apart from exempt nationalities) who are subject to UK immigration control and are intending to study or research at postgraduate level in certain sensitive subjects.

Students and researchers who are nationals of EU countries, the European Economic Area (EEA), Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland or the United States of America do not need an ATAS certificate.

An ATAS certificate may be required for certain taught postgraduate master's degrees for international students at UWS.

For the latest information on ATAS and details of eligibility and how to apply for a certificate check the UK Government's dedicated ATAS web pages.

Get in touch

Do you have a question about applying for this course? Get in touch. We are here to help!

Ranked in the top 3% of universities worldwide (THE 2018) | UWS | University of the West of Scotland

Tuition Fees 2023-24

Use the Link below to download details of our full-time, part-time tuition fees for Bachelor, Masters, Research, and English Language pre-sessional courses for session 2023-24.

Tuition Fees
UWS Research Students | Researcher Development & Concordat | University of the West of Scotland

Research at UWS

With cutting edge facilities, specialist knowledge and world-leading and internationally excellent expertise, we aim to develop research outputs that have a tangible, early and positive impact on society across the globe.

Discover

We will always try to make sure that we publish accurate course information but we do not accept responsibility for any mistakes or omissions. We will also try to make sure that we deliver our courses in line with our published information. However, we may not always be able to do so and you can find further information about this in our enrolment terms and conditions.