Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE)

Our Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) without QTS offers school teachers the opportunity to become better practitioners. You’ll develop an area of teaching relevant to your current school and improve your overall practice and understanding of current educational issues and apply your study directly to your day-to-day teachings. Our PGCE also opens the door to further postgraduate study for those with longer term career goals, with credit towards our master’s degrees.

Our Postgraduate Certificate in Education comprises of a compulsory teaching observation within your educational establishment. It's therefore essential that you are in a teaching role before the start of the course, with the support of an identified school mentor/leader so your school mentor/leader can observe you. The teaching observation will form part of the quality assurance processes and support your continuing professional development, and will focus on assessing your practice in relation to the related learning outcomes within the modules.

You’ll learn about the latest educational theories and how they impact teaching policy and practice in England, and how to create appropriate learning resources for children. You’ll also collaborate with your peers, learning from observation and feedback, critically reflecting on your experiences in the classroom, and demonstrating how you’ve deployed your new skills and knowledge.

You’ll begin to establish a professional network by working alongside other like-minded teachers on the course and establish a secure foundation upon which to build a highly successful career in education. During the course you’ll also engage in a professional enquiry, developing specialist expertise in an area of teaching and learning that interests you.

Modules

The Reflective Practitioner
Enhance your knowledge and skills within your teaching practice and complement your professional development as part of your career in teaching. Examine current theoretical perspectives related to the reflective practitioner discourse and make comparisons to the competences discourse in teaching as well as current national agendas within teacher education in England. You’ll critically reflect on your own teaching skills and examine the skills needed for successful reflection, then use this to identify areas for self-improvement. You’ll identify critical incidents in teaching children and their learning, considering how these influence pedagogical approaches. You’ll appreciate how professional feedback through observations supports on-going development as a teacher as well as how to create appropriate learning resources to enhance children’s learning. You’ll be expected to draw on your own professional experiences to support your development of linking theory to practice and demonstrate how you have critically applied your knowledge and understanding to your professional role.

Professional Evidenced-based Enquiry
In this module you’ll develop specialist expertise in an area of interest relating to teaching and learning. The notion of enquiry is intended to reflect the contributions you bring to advanced study from your professional teaching. You’ll pursue individual enquiries into a subject area which is directly linked to professional teaching and learning experiences. The use of enquiry is based on social constructivist approach to learning, which reflects a belief that our thoughts about the world and our ways of knowing are developed through our shared perceptions of it. Central to this is the use of critical thinking which underpins reflective learning. You’ll have the opportunity to engage in professional enquiry which will predominantly be work-based; the aim is to develop a deep understanding of factors which shape ways of thinking, working, and learning in Primary and Secondary educational settings.

Assessment
We’ll assess you through a patchwork text (a composite of short, reflective pieces about your professional experiences over time), and an enquiry-based project linked to your own professional setting.

Our Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) without QTS is studied 100% online.

You’ll study through Canvas, our world-class online Learning Management System (LMS), which can be accessed from your phone, PC or tablet, both at home or on the move. Canvas provides instant access to study materials, forums, and support from tutors and classmates, as well as enabling easy submission of your assignments.

Please note this course includes some live webinars, these are not compulsory, but it is recommended that you attend if you can.

On successful completion of your studies, you’ll be invited to attend a graduation ceremony on campus. If attending the ceremony in person is not possible then we’ll arrange to have your certificate sent to you.

What could an PGCE without QTS do for my career?

The Postgraduate Certificate in Education without QTS is an internationally recognised qualification at master’s level that demonstrates your continued commitment to professional standards and development. This will support your practice in independent schools, academies, international schools, free schools and alternative education within the UK and internationally.

What job roles can I consider with a PGCE without QTS?

To study our Postgraduate Certificate in Education without QTS you would need to be working in an educational setting for school aged children. You could be an experienced practitioner or an early career teacher, either way the PGCE will improve your practice and ultimately make you a better teacher, as well as validating your experience and expertise.

Having a PGCE without QTS on your CV can support your career aspirations and combined with your personal experience, other qualifications and areas of specific interest could open doors to a number of teaching roles. Here are just some.

• Early Years Teacher
• Primary School Teacher
• Secondary School Teacher
• Sixth Form College Teacher
• Further Education Teacher
• International Teacher
• Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Teacher
• Head of Year
• Head of Department
• School Leader

If you are looking for more information about these job profiles and potential salary earnings see Prospects.ac.uk. It is important to note that salaries can vary widely depending on the job role, employer, industry sector and location.

What skills will I get from an PGCE to help my career?

Choosing to study an PGCE will give you many transferable skills; here are just some of them:

• Advance your critical evaluating skills but particularly in relation to current research and established pedagogic strategies.
• Develop your effectiveness in group working, team organisation and using learning resources.
• Be able to confidently identify personal goals for professional development and improvement of professional skills.
• Improve your communication skills for professional practice.

What can I study after a PGCE?

Depending on your long-term goals and interests you may decide to explore further postgraduate study such as our online MA Education suite or top up your PGCE to a full Master’s of Education.

Careers Advice Service

Once you become an ARU student you will be able to access our Employability Service, who will work with you throughout your time at ARU and after you graduate, whether that’s landing your dream job or your next progression step.

We offer:

• careers advice, including one-to-one online and telephone appointments with our experienced advisers
• help with your CV, job searches, applications and interview preparation
• an online portal packed with useful careers resources
• our Employability Programme, which helps you hone the skills employers say they want in graduates.

Fees

The full tuition fee for this course is £2,100.

The tuition fees you pay each year for the full Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) without QTS will be £2,100. The course is studied over 1 year.

Approved prior learning may reduce the tuition fees. This will be confirmed once your application has been submitted.

Funding

Your course can be fully funded by the Postgraduate Student Loans now available (subject to eligibility).

We offer payment by instalments, so you can spread the cost of studying with us.

For military students: You can use your ELCs towards this course. ARU is a recognised ELCAS provider (number 1007). Please contact your Learning Centre for details of ELC, eligibility and how to apply.

For more information on how you fund your studies please see our funding page.