Teacher training routes in England

Every route into teaching in England leads to qualified teacher status (QTS), the award that lets you teach in maintained schools and move on to the main pay range. The routes differ in who runs the course, whether you pay fees or earn a salary while you train, and how much time you spend in a classroom from the first week. If you already have a degree, the realistic choice is between a fee-funded course (with a bursary in some subjects) and a salaried place.

Fee-funded postgraduate courses

Most trainees take a one-year postgraduate course that leads to QTS, and usually a PGCE as well. Two kinds of provider run them.

University-led courses are based at a university but most of the year is spent on placement in at least two schools. You attend lectures and seminars between placements and write assignments at master’s level, which can carry credits towards a later master’s degree.

School-centred initial teacher training (SCITT) is run by a school or group of schools. You spend more of the year in school from the start, and the training sessions happen there too. Many SCITTs partner with a university so you can also get a PGCE; some award QTS only.

School Direct (fee-funded) sits between the two. A lead school recruits you and you train in its partnership, but the course itself is run with a university or SCITT.

On all of these you pay tuition fees, normally with a student finance loan, and you can get a maintenance loan. Fee levels are set by each provider; check the course listing. Depending on your subject you may also get a tax-free bursary or scholarship. For 2026/27 that ranges from £5,000 for biology and geography up to £29,000 for chemistry, computing, maths and physics. Teacher training bursaries and scholarships has the full list.

Salaried routes

On a salaried route your school employs you from the start and you are paid while you train. There are no tuition fees, and you cannot get a bursary on top.

Salaried School Direct places are usually paid on the unqualified teacher range. In England outside London, that range runs from £23,732 to £36,494 from September 2026, with higher figures in the London areas. Schools get a grant towards the cost, using the same per-subject amounts as the bursaries.

The postgraduate teaching apprenticeship works in a similar way. You are employed by a school, paid at least the unqualified minimum, and spend part of your week in off-the-job training. It leads to QTS, and the apprenticeship ends with an assessment against an apprenticeship standard.

Salaried places are competitive and some subjects or areas have very few. You also carry a timetable from early in the year, which makes the year harder than a fee-funded course. In return you avoid a fee loan and keep a wage.

Teach First is a separate salaried programme that places graduates in schools serving disadvantaged communities, with a two-year commitment. See Teach First for how it works.

Routes for undergraduates and people without a degree

If you do not have a degree yet, you can take an undergraduate degree with QTS, such as a BEd or a BA or BSc with QTS. These usually last three or four years and are most common for primary teaching. Some universities also offer “opt-in” QTS on subject degrees in maths and physics, and an undergraduate bursary of £9,000 is available for those.

A teacher degree apprenticeship is being piloted for maths. It lets you train while employed by a school, without first having a degree. Places are limited and the subject list may grow, so check Get Into Teaching for the current position.

Assessment only

If you have a degree and have already been teaching without QTS, for example as an unqualified teacher in an academy or independent school, you can apply for assessment only. There is no taught course. A provider observes your teaching, looks at your evidence against the Teachers’ Standards and decides whether to recommend you for QTS. It suits people with substantial experience; the provider sets its own fee and entry requirements.

Which route fits

Route	Fees	Paid while training	Bursary possible	Typical length
University-led postgraduate	Yes	No	Yes	1 year
SCITT or fee-funded School Direct	Yes	No	Yes	1 year
Salaried School Direct	No	Yes	No	1 year
Postgraduate teaching apprenticeship	No	Yes	No	About 1 year
Undergraduate with QTS	Yes	No	£9,000 for some maths and physics courses	3 to 4 years
Assessment only	Provider fee	Already employed	No	A few months

If money is the main worry, compare a fee-funded course with a bursary against a salaried place: in chemistry, computing, maths or physics the £29,000 bursary is more than the take-home pay on the unqualified minimum, because no tax or National Insurance comes off it, although you still owe the fee loan. In subjects with no bursary, a salaried place is usually better financially if you can get one.

If you are changing career, decide how much time you want in school before you take responsibility for classes. University courses build up more slowly, and salaried routes put you in front of pupils sooner. Changing career into teaching covers the practical side.

Entry requirements and applying

For any postgraduate route you need a UK degree or equivalent and GCSEs at grade 4 (C) or above in English and maths, plus science for primary. Providers can accept equivalency tests. You also need an enhanced DBS check with a children’s barred list check before placements, and providers check that you are fit to teach.

Applications go through the Department for Education’s Apply for teacher training service, linked from Get Into Teaching. You can make several choices at once. Interviews usually involve a short teaching task or a discussion about your subject, and many providers ask about time spent in schools beforehand. Good places in popular subjects go early, so apply in the autumn before you want to start for the widest choice.

Once you have QTS, you start a two-year induction as an early career teacher. What is QTS? explains what the award covers, and the first salary you can expect is on teacher pay scales in England.