Anyone do the Cambridge PGCE (early years and primary) and not live in Cambridge?

[Cactuscacti]

Considering applying for this. But don’t live in Cambridge and have a young family so don’t want to move.

Anyone do this PGCE and live outside Cambridge? If so, were your school placements near where you live or back in Cambridge?

And what were your days at university like? Were they very long?

London - and my plan would be the train! (KX is not far from me)

This page states that the university usually requires you to live within 10 miles of Cambridge however increasingly more students are further away for family and financial reasons but specific permission is required. So hopefully you would be fine, good luck.

www.homerton.cam.ac.uk/postgraduates/pgce/faq

They give placements at schools in the wider Cambridge area. Many are in village schools. They make some allowances for who has access to a car & who is reliant on buses, but there are no guarantees.

There are also compulsory single day visits to specific schools - not necessarily near train stations.

I really would not recommend it if you're not local. The days are long & demanding enough without adding in lengthy train journeys. Placement schools will have zero tolerance of "Sorry my train was delayed".

I can't see why you'd choose the added complication. A PGCE is a PGCE. Doing it at Cambridge adds no extra kudos... says this Cambridge/Homerton PGCEer.