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Further Education and Skills PGCE

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  • Level of study:
    Masters, Professional
  • Entry Requirements:
    More information
  • Start date:
    September 2026
  • Duration:
    One year full-time, two years part-time
  • Attendance:
    Full-time, Part-time
  • Course delivery:
    On-campus (Clifton Campus)
Teacher and students in teaching space

About this course

The Further Education and Skills sector plays a vital role in supporting diverse learners and can have a profound impact on the lives of students. This PGCE in Further Education and Skills will prepare you for a career in the sector by focusing on work-based learning in the local community. You’ll embark on a journey of self-discovery as you develop your professional identity as an educator – giving you the confidence you need to shape learning, teaching and education.

Studying with NTU, you’ll cover key educational theories and get to grips with curriculum design and planning. You’ll gain the skills and hands-on experience to become a resilient and accomplished practitioner.

The full-time course is designed for you if you are aspiring to work in a Further Education setting. We’ll provide you with an exciting and rewarding placement opportunity where you’ll give real-life context to your learning as you carry out teaching practice alongside your studies.

The part-time course is suitable for you if you are already employed in the sector and would like to gain the qualification alongside your employment.

  • Work-based learning opportunities

    are embedded throughout the course through our partnerships with local settings.

  • Aligned with Industry Standards

    Designed to align with the Institute for Apprenticeship and Technical Education’s Occupational Standards.

  • Be taught by highly qualified tutors

    who are experts in further education teaching.

  • Be eligible to apply for QTLS

    Upon completion of this course, you will be eligible to apply for Qualified Teacher (Learning & Skills) through the Society for Education & Training (SET).

This course is delivered on a full-time and part-time basis. For the full-time course, we will organise you a placement. For the part-time course, you will need to be in a teaching role.

Module information

Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll be studying throughout the course:

This is a work-based course where you’ll carry out teaching practice alongside university sessions.

Students are assessed on both coursework and their teaching practice. The focus of assessments is determined by the student's own practice and subject specialism.

Core modules

This is a work-based course that will promote putting learning theories and strategies into your own practice.  You will have a part time or full-time teaching role, with a minimum of 75 teaching hours each year of the two-year programme.  You will be required to attend university one evening a week.

Students are assessed on both coursework and their teaching practice. The focus of assessments is determined by the student's own practice and subject specialism.

Core modules

We regularly review our course content based on student and employer feedback to ensure they remain current and relevant. This may result in changes to module content or availability in future years. Optional modules will only run where there is sufficient demand. This will be determined on a case-by-case basis to protect the academic and student experience.

Student experience

  • Chris Cash

    “The course has given me an excellent grounding in the skills and knowledge required to work in a further education setting, from behaviour management to how to structure an academic lesson.”

    Read Chris's profile

  • Gurneet Banga

    “One of the most valuable things I’ve discovered is that teaching goes beyond just knowing the subject – it’s about reflecting on what works and constantly improving as each classroom brings its own set of dynamics and challenges.”

    Read Gurneet's profile

  • Evie Ainger

    “One of the highlights from my placement has been designing and creating my own module, 'Stable Management'. I have worked on the content, the scheme of learning, the assessment and delivered the practical in a multitude of methods as I please.”

    Read Evie's profile

  • Ellie Torrance

    “I have a passion for teaching Maths which comes from a love of solving puzzles and using logical thinking. Combining this with a desire to help others appreciate Maths, I felt that completing the PGCE was the ideal next step in my career.”

    Read Ellie's profile

Q&A - PGCE Further Education and Skills

 

How you're taught

Placement

Full-time

NTU will provide you with a suitable placement, which will form a key element of this work-based course.

You'll spend a minimum of 250 hours in placement carrying out teaching and the wider responsibilities of an educator. This will include a minimum of 150 hours of teaching and 10 formal observations of your teaching.

Of the 150 teaching hours, at least 100 hours will be in your specialist subject area. You will also gain valuable experience of remote, synchronous delivery. You will also spend at least 20 hours in another placement location. This will allow you to expand the breadth of your experience and will most likely entail shadowing, observations and CPD to give you a sense of the approach to teaching and learning in another Further Education setting.

Your placements will be unpaid.

Part-time

You will need to be employed in a role that will allow you to have access to a minimum of 150 teaching hours for the duration of the two-year programme. You will need to participate in a full educator's role (i.e. assessment, planning, delivery, pastoral role). There will be 10 formal observations of teaching.

Of the 150 teaching hours, at least 100 hours will be in your specialist subject area. You will also gain valuable experience of remote, synchronous delivery. You will also spend at least 20 hours in another placement location. This placement will be unpaid.

This will allow you to expand the breadth of your experience and will most likely entail shadowing, observations and CPD to give you a sense of the approach to teaching and learning in another Further Education setting.

How you're assessed

The assessment strategy for the course is mapped to the occupational standards for the learning and skills teacher, providing you with the opportunity to meet the expected standard of a trainee educator in the FE sector.

This course is assessed solely through coursework with assessment methods including:

  • Journal based on key educational theories and the application of these to teaching of subject specialism and placement context.
  • Poster defence of a scheme of work which demonstrates understanding of curriculum design and planning.
  • Portfolio of evidence of teaching practice including formal teaching observations and evidence of collaborative practice and your wider experiences on placement.

Contact hours

Full-time

Contact time for this course is a combination of taught university sessions (seminars and workshops) and your placement. University days are typically six hours of taught time, delivered by the specialist FES teaching team. After four days of induction, you will have two days at week at university for the first half term, then one day week until the end of the course in June. You will have the support of a university personal tutor and regular 1:1 tutorials. The vast majority of tuition is face-to-face, with a small number of sessions delivered online to support the development of your digital pedagogy.

You should expect to be in placement for a minimum of three days a week from the middle of September through to the end of May. Your placement timetable will be agreed in your first week in placement, and will allow you to reach the minimum national requirements of 250 hours of teaching experience.

Part-time

As this is the in-service version of the course, you will already be employed in a role in the FES sector. You will balance your current teaching role with independent study and assignment work throughout the duration of the course. You will attend university one evening per week for three taught hours. These sessions will typically be seminars / workshops led by our core teaching team. There will be an hour of digital (‘flipped’) learning to complete each week at whatever time suits you best (asynchronous). You will have the support of a university personal tutor and regular one-to-one  tutorials.

Who will teach you?

Entry requirements

UK students

  • A UK honours degree, at a minimum Third Class;
  • If your degree is in a subject other than your intended subject specialism, an A-level at grade C or equivalent in your intended subject specialism would be required.

International students

Academic entry requirements: A UK honours degree or equivalent at a minimum Third Class. We accept equivalent qualifications from all over the world. Please check your international qualifications on our international entry requirements page.

Other requirements: If your degree is in a subject other than your intended subject specialism, an A-level at grade C or equivalent in your intended subject specialism would be required.

English language requirements: See our English language requirements page for requirements for your subject and information on alternative tests and Pre-sessional English.

Policies

We strive to make our admissions procedures as fair and clear as possible. To find out more about how we make offers, visit our admissions policies page.

Fees and funding

UK students

- see the fees for this course, as well as information about funding and support.
  • Full-time - £9,790
  • Part-time -  £4,895 for Year One

Please note that if you are considering a course that runs over more than one year, the tuition fee stated is for the first year of study. The course fee for the second year may be subject to annual review.

Please note that despite this being a Masters-level course, postgraduate students may be eligible for funding via the undergraduate student finance system.

The Department for Education (DfE) offers generous bursaries of up to £31,000 for some PGCE Further Education and Skills courses depending on the subject you are training to teach. Find out more about DfE funding.

Scholarships

You might be able to get a scholarship to help fund your studies. We award scholarships to those who can demonstrate excellent achievement, passion and dedication to their studies. See which courses are eligible for scholarships.

Alumni discount

We’re happy to offer a 20% alumni discount to most current NTU students and recent NTU alumni. This discount is currently available for those starting an eligible postgraduate taught, postgraduate research or professional course.

Postgraduate loans

There is a government postgraduate loan scheme for Masters degrees. The loan contributes towards costs of study, and students can put it towards tuition fees, maintenance costs or other costs at their discretion. Find out more about postgraduate loans.

International students

- see the fees for this course, as well as payment advice and scholarships.
  • Full-time -  £17,950
  • Part-time -  £8,975 for Year One

Scholarships

You might be able to get a scholarship to help fund your studies. We award scholarships to those who can demonstrate excellent achievement, passion and dedication to their studies. See which courses are eligible for scholarships.

Alumni discount

We’re happy to offer a 20% alumni discount to most current NTU students and recent NTU alumni. This discount is currently available for those starting an eligible postgraduate taught, postgraduate research or professional course.

Living costs

See our advice on managing your money, the cost of living as an international student in Nottingham and how to budget.

Paying fees

As an international student, you'll need to make an advance payment as part of your offer conditions. You'll then need to pay your tuition fees in full, or have an agreement to pay in two further instalments, in order to enrol on the course.

Find out how and when to pay your fees, including information about your advance payment, instalment dates and how to make payments securely to the University.

Enquiries

If you have any queries relating to advance payments or arrangements to pay, please contact our friendly and experienced international enquiries team.

Additional costs

Your course fees cover the cost of studies and include loads of great benefits, such as the use of our library, support from our expert Employability team and free use of the IT equipment across our campuses. There are just a few additional things you may need to budget for:

Textbooks and library books

Your modules will point you to key textbooks and recommended reading. Many are available online, and in our libraries, but some students choose to buy their own copies. You’ll receive resource lists showing where to access eBooks, digital resources and physical copies. Our friendly Library team is always on hand to help you find what you need.

Printing and photocopying costs

The University allocates an annual printing and copying allowance of £20 depending on the course you are studying. For more details about costs for additional print and copying required over and above the annual allowance please see the printing and photocopying information on the Library website.

Placements

If you're undertaking a placement year, you'll need to budget for accommodation and any travel costs you may incur whilst on placement. Many of our placement students do earn a salary whilst on placement which can help to cover these living costs.

Careers and employability

The PGCE Further Education and Skills course prepares you for a career teaching in the Further Education and Skills sector.

Upon completion of this course, you will be eligible to apply for Qualified Teacher (Learning & Skills) through the Society for Education & Training (SET). This is awarded following a period of professional formation post completion of the qualification and is valued by employers.

If you’d like to know more about NTU’s groundbreaking Employability Promise, and the support you’ll receive both during and after your course, visit our Careers and Employability page.

  • Employability Promise

    Personalised support, one-on-one coaching and industry-specific advice – it’s all part of our Employability Promise. And it doesn’t end when you leave NTU – you’ll have access to all our careers services for three years after you graduate (conditions apply).

  • Graduate employers

    Graduates from this course have successful careers in organisations such as:

    • Multi-academy trusts
    • Education departments in local government
    • Private education providers

  • Our graduates are…

    Graduates from this course now work in a wide range of roles such as:

    • College teachers
    • Tutors
    • Educational programme leaders
    • Family intervention officers

  • NTU Enterprise

    If you’re a budding entrepreneur, NTU Student Enterprise can help you to develop your ideas and innovations and turn them into a reality. We also offer training, mentoring, workshops, financial advice and more to develop your business skills.

Campus and facilities

As a Further Education and Skills student you’ll mainly be studying in the Ada Byron King building, home to Nottingham Institute of Education. You will benefit from our specially designed teaching rooms simulating classrooms for subjects such as music and science. These purpose-built classrooms will help prepare you for a future in teaching, giving you the chance to gain hands-on experience in a realistic environment.

Our self-contained, community-focused Clifton Campus has been designed to keep our students busy between lectures. Catch-up with your coursemates in the Pavilion’s barista café and Refectory; brainstorm group presentations in chic and stylish study spaces; enjoy some proper R&R in The Point, home of our Students’ Union. The campus also hosts the multimillion-pound Clifton Sports Hub, offering great options for everyone — whatever your interests, and however competitive you’d like to get!

You’re also right next to the bright lights of Nottingham — one of Britain’s top 10 student cities, and one of Europe’s top 25. All through termtime, a dedicated on-campus bus service will get you to the heart of the action (and back) in under 25 minutes. You’ll find a city stuffed with history, culture, and well-kept secrets to discover at your leisure: enjoy lush green spaces, galleries, hidden cinemas and vintage shopping by day, and an acclaimed food, drink and social scene by night.

Applying

UK students

Ready to join us? Just click the Apply now button and follow the instructions for applying. Make sure you check the entry requirements above carefully before you do.

This course is offered at two award levels. You apply for either the PGCE or CertEd depending on your qualifications. You do not need to make multiple applications if you'd like to complete more than one pathway. Please apply to your preferred pathway and mention within the personal statement the pathways you'd like to complete.

Visit the CertEd course page to find out more.

Application Dates

To join this course in 2026, applications must be made before the end of August 2026. Any application made after the end of August 2026 or an applicant who has not provided the necessary information before the last interviews will be considered for entry in 2027 only.

To ensure you have a place on the course we recommend you apply as soon as possible.

Apply now

International students

Apply online through the Department for Education website.

This course is offered at two award levels. You apply for either the PGCE or CertEd depending on your qualifications. You do not need to make multiple applications if you'd like to complete more than one pathway. Please apply to your preferred pathway and mention within the personal statement the pathways you'd like to complete.

Visit the CertEd course page to find out more.

Application Dates

To join this course in 2026, international applications must be made before the end of July 2026 in order to complete all the necessary requirements in relation to visas.

To ensure you have a place on the course we recommend you apply as soon as possible.

Please read our application guidance before you start your application.

We advise you to prepare and apply as early as you can as Student visa processing time can vary.

We'll send you important emails throughout the application process. Please check your emails regularly, including your junk/spam mail folder.

Personal statement guidance

When you apply to NTU, we’ll ask you to submit a personal statement – here are our tips on what to include and how to structure your personal statement.

Application support

If you have any questions about applying, get in touch through our online form or call us on 44 (0)115 848 4200.

Related courses

Teacher and students in teaching space

CertEd Further Education and Skills

Cert Ed

Keeping in touch

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