Why study this course
Study with subject experts in a program that goes beyond minimum requirements, with extra opportunities to build your teaching confidence and skills.
Earn a salary while gaining classroom experience and working toward QTS.
This course blends theory with real-world application. You'll study learning concepts and use them in your subject area with students in the classroom.
Course overview
If you already have a degree, you can achieve Qualified Teacher Status in just 12 months with BGU's Secondary Teacher Apprenticeship program. This flexible pathway combines practical classroom experience with expert-led training, allowing you to develop essential teaching skills.
All of our Secondary Teacher Apprentices work with both a university subject specialist and school-based mentor throughout the program. This dual expertise in your teaching subject is just one way we ensure you develop strong subject knowledge alongside practical classroom skills.
All the relevant information
Key facts
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Duration |
12 months |
|---|---|
|
Mode of study |
Full-time |
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Start date |
September |
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Awarding Institution |
Bishop Grosseteste University |
About this apprenticeship
This one-year, full-time Initial Teacher Education (ITE) Apprenticeship programme prepares you to teach in your specialist subject in secondary school whilst employed in a school as an Apprentice Teacher. The programme is highly practical and stimulating and allows opportunities to learn the skills of teaching whilst applying your knowledge to real school experiences. Approximately 20% of the course will be spent in centre-based learning at Bishop Grosseteste University and is delivered by our experienced and passionate team of teacher educators.
The Secondary Teacher Apprenticeship (QTS) programme, provides an ambitious sequenced curriculum, integrating theory and practice. It is underpinned by the DfE’s Initial Teacher Education Core Content Framework (ITTECF). Successful completion of the course enables you to meet the Teacher Standards and all relevant Apprenticeship KSBs, to achieve recommendation for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
Our Ambitious, Diverse, Evidence-based and Professional Transformative (ADEPT) curriculum will also provide you with a rich experience above and beyond the minimum entitlement of the ITTECF, including enrichment and enhancement opportunities to ensure that you develop into a reflective, competent and confident teacher.
The year is divided into several key phases, each focusing on different aspects of your professional development. Mondays are dedicated to university-based training. These university sessions are balanced between collective sessions (which include all ITE Secondary subjects) and subject-specific sessions. Towards the end of the training, your school placement days will increase to five days for at least six weeks.
Placement Schedule
- First Placement: Begins in September and runs until the start of February, allowing you to apply your initial training in a real classroom setting.
- Second Placement: Starts in February and continues for six weeks, providing a period to develop and refine your teaching practice in a different setting.
- You will then return to your first placement from April until the end of the academic year.
Get in touch
If you are interested in our Secondary Teacher Apprenticeship either as an apprentice or employer, please fill in the form below and a member of the team will be in touch.
Entry requirements
Academic Requirements
To join our Secondary Teacher Apprenticeship program, you will need:
- A UK bachelor's degree (or equivalent qualification) - this must comprise 300 higher education credit points with at least 60 credits at level 6
- GCSE grade C/4 or above (or equivalent) in English and Mathematics.
Please note that a grade 4 in either English Language or English Literature GCSE satisfies the English requirement.
If you have a foundation degree, you'll need to have completed additional study totalling at least 60 credits at level 6 to meet the degree requirement.
Additional Requirements
All applicants must:
- Complete an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check
- Meet all current statutory safeguarding requirements
- Meet any additional requirements specified by your employing school
These entry requirements comply with the Department for Education's Initial Teacher Training criteria for the award of Qualified Teacher Status. Should national requirements change, our admission criteria will be updated accordingly.
Speak to us today
If you'd like to find out how we can support you in recruiting an apprentice into your business, please email us at apprenticeships@bishopg.ac.uk or call 01522 563872 for more information.
How you will be taught
At BGU, we believe in a dynamic and flexible approach to teaching, combining traditional methods with innovative techniques to create an engaging and interactive learning experience. You'll learn through a blend of lectures, seminars, tutorials, and practical workshops,
Work-based learning plays a key role, with activities such as school-based reflective tasks, observations, and meetings with your school-based mentor helping you apply theory to practice. Throughout the year, Collective Sessions bring together students for essential sessions and workshops designed to improve your knowledge and understanding as a teacher, whilst subject-specific sessions provide expert support and teaching on how to teach your specialist subject.
To support your learning, you'll have access to our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE – Blackboard), where you'll find session materials, key readings, and additional resources to deepen your understanding.
Our commitment to treating you as an individual and offering one -to-one support ensures you’ll never be just another face in the crowd. Your learning experience is personal, engaging, and designed to help you succeed.
You will be taught by a range of academic staff within the ITE Secondary team as well as having a subject specific course lead as your university-based mentor. Within each school placement you will also be assigned a school-based mentor.
Collective Sessions (at university):
- These sessions bring together all of the ITE Secondary cohort and cover broad educational topics relevant to all subjects. They include lectures, workshops, and group discussions led by experienced educators and guest speakers.
Subject-Specific Sessions (at university):
- These sessions focus on the specific pedagogical and content knowledge required for your specialist subject. They include hands-on activities, practical demonstrations, and subject-specific teaching strategies led by subject specific experts. A significant number of hours are spent within subject-specific sessions.
Intensive Training and Practice (ITAP) (at university and within school placement):
- ITAP sessions are intensive, focused training days that cover essential teaching skills such as behaviour management, lesson planning, and adaptive teaching. These sessions are designed to provide deep dives into critical areas of teaching practice. ITAPs often include practical workshops and teaching simulations to help you practise and refine your skills in a controlled environment.
Independent Study:
- You will have designated time for independent study, allowing you to complete assignments, reflect on your practice, and engage with additional resources.
How You’ll Be Assessed
This course is designed to equip you with the skills and knowledge to thrive in your teaching career. While it does not carry academic credits, your progress is assessed using our ADEPT Curriculum throughout the year, and at the end of the year, you are specifically evaluated against The Teachers' Standards in line with the integrated End-Point Assessment (EPA).
You will be assessed in a variety of ways during the year, you will:
- engage in a range of self-assessment and reflection activities
- have formal and informal observations of your teaching practice
- keep an electronic record of your progress accessed by your mentors
- give presentations to your peers in micro teaching sessions and during EDI week
- You will also complete two 1000-word reflective pieces.
As an apprentice, you will complete a statutory integrated End-Point Assessment (EPA), a crucial milestone in your journey. This assessment aligns with industry standards and follows the same rigorous process as other entry routes into teaching.
What you will study
Our ADEPT Curriculum (Ambitious, Diverse, Evidence based and Professionally Transformative) has four distinct phases for the duration of the course.
Professional Preparation (September)
- Focus: Apprentices as learners
- Activities: Introduction to the curriculum, understanding educational theories, and initial subject-specific training. Typical key sessions include "What is education?", "How do children learn?", and "Pedagogy & practice".
Professional Development (October - December)
- Focus: Pupils as learners
- Activities: Classroom management, lesson planning, and understanding pupil progress. Key topics covered include behaviour management workshops, inclusion and aspiration, and specific educational needs such as ADHD and dyslexia.
Professional Enhancement (January - June)
- Focus: Advanced teaching practices and professional growth
- Activities: In-depth subject-specific training, advanced pedagogical strategies, and consideration of the professional identity. Typical key sessions include "Numeracy across the curriculum", "Measuring pupil progress", and "Literacy and Oracy".
- This phase also includes the Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion week in February. This week aims to support trainee teachers’ professional commitment to equality in education through enhancing their knowledge and understanding of diversity and inclusive teaching practices, to meet the needs of all pupils. See more here.
Professional Enrichment (June)
- Focus: Wider professional and pastoral development
- Activities: Enrichment activities and opportunities to explore teaching beyond the traditional classroom setting. Apprentices typically participate in specialised sessions such as understanding systematic synthetic phonics, trans awareness, SEND education, and making the most of social media as educators. Outside speakers visit to discuss teaching and learning in alternative provision (with the opportunity to take part in micro-placements to visit these settings).
FAQs
Apprenticeships are work-based training programmes that are designed to help employers train people for specific job roles. At the same time, apprentices have the benefit of earning whilst they learn, training towards a nationally recognised apprenticeship standard.
To apply for the Secondary Teacher Apprenticeship, you must hold a first degree (minimum 300 credit points with 60 at level 6) from a UK higher education institution or equivalent qualification. You'll also need GCSE grade C/4 or above in Mathematics, English, and Science to meet national requirements for Qualified Teacher Status. Either English language or English literature GCSE fulfils the English requirement. All applicants must undergo an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and satisfy statutory safeguarding requirements. If you have a foundation degree, you'll need to supplement it with at least 60 credits at level 6 to meet the degree criteria.
We currently use a blended approach for delivering teaching and learning, with some sessions delivered on campus and others remotely. The learning on the apprenticeship will be broken down into individual modules or units.
Progress of students will be assessed through a variety of formative assessment strategies throughout the course. These will take the form of short reflective pieces of writing and will be delivered and reviewed by the ITE team, University Based Mentors, School Based Mentors and their Apprenticeship Officer.
This apprenticeship has a statutory integrated End-point assessment (EPA). The EPA will use the assessment arrangements in use for other entry routes into this occupation and will be completed simultaneously.
Apprentices will be assessed against KSBs and Teacher Standards and recommended for QTS at the end of the course.
Off the job training is an ESFA requirement. Essentially 20% of your working week should be dedicated to enhancing the knowledge, skills and behaviours covered in your apprenticeship standard. Activities can include: • Attending learning sessions • Assignment completion • Subject reading • Research • Pod casts, webinars or conferences • Shadowing or mentoring a colleague • Review meetings with your manager • Training sessions • Observations
Yes. Bishop Grosseteste University will provide you with an OJT logbook so you can record all the training hours and a brief description of the activities you have undertaken.
Yes. A mentor is an essential part of your apprenticeship journey. They will provide support throughout your learning journey and signpost learning opportunities with your job role and organisation.
Your mentor might be your line manager, but this is not necessarily always the case. Ideally your mentor should have some knowledge and experience of the learning outcomes in the apprenticeship standard and have good understanding of your job role. They should be able to support you through a variety of ways across the apprenticeship, by attending review meetings with you and the Apprenticeship Development Officer, provide clear honest feedback, set clear targets, discuss project ideas, and provide witness testimonies which highlight your knowledge, skills and behaviours in the workplace setting.
Fees & funding
Costs may be covered by government funding and/or your employer – employers who pay the Apprenticeship Levy will pay fees directly through the levy contribution.
Alternatively, businesses who do not pay the Levy may be able to claim 95% of the cost of tuition fees from the Government.
Further details can be found at:
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