PGCE Secondary Physics

Course Summary

This course leads to the award of Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) for the 11-to-16 age range, which qualifies you to be a teacher in secondary schools in England and Wales. Where possible, we also give you the chance to gain experience in the 11-to-18 age range. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects, are integral to the success of the UK economy while STEM education has long been identified as a major priority for schools.

Successful education is built on strong subject teaching. Learners need highly skilled specialist teachers to inspire and challenge them. Your challenge is to help young people recognise how the science, design and technology, computer science, engineering and mathematics they study at school or college can lead to rich and varied career pathways.

This complexity offers an enormous opportunity to share your knowledge and enthusiasm for the subject to engage young people and show them how physics is central to everyday life and needn’t be hard to learn. You could also be eligible for the highest range of tax-free training bursaries – or a prestigious scholarship from the Institute of Physics if you have a top degree.

Your Future Career

The Secondary PGCE course at the University of East London was designed in 2001 in conjunction with the local authorities to address the secondary education teacher shortage in east London. The partnership works with input and support from the London Boroughs of Barking & Dagenham, Newham, Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Waltham Forest and Redbridge.

It means that our graduates are represented in virtually every secondary school in east London. Some are now deputy heads or in senior management roles in schools that are taking our current trainees for their placements. Across all subjects, from maths to modern languages, our teacher training graduates are acting as mentors to those following in their footsteps.

The partnership means that you have a head start when it comes to securing a teaching post in east London at the end of your training. You may also decide to undertake further study at the University of East London, either at the end of your course or after gaining teaching experience, perhaps specialising in Special Educational Needs or taking our MA Leadership in Education.