PCGE with no intention of teaching ?

[Sofabitch]

Has anyone done the pcge with no intention of actually going into teaching?

I'm considering doing it. The bursary is pretty good and I could really do with a year to bump up my finances and repair my savings after 3 years of student finance before starting on the bottom rung of somewhere.

I figure it will look great on my CV regardless and has loads of great skills that I can take with me into my carer, plus I can get 60 credits at Masters level which saves a few thousand on the OU.

Is this an unworkable plan?

I mean there is a possibility I'll love it right ;-) but from everything I've read I'm not holding my breath.

I think i would enjoy it. But realistically don't think I could be a teacher in today's climate.

I trained 5 years ago. Bursary was not included as income forTC purposes. I did not claim housing benefit, however and I suspect it will be included in those calculations.m

needsahalo
Thanks.

Some places say yes, some places say no and the lady at JCP said that she didn't know at all and to look online.

Just a word from the school and teachers perspective. It is really annoying having to put the extra time and effort into student teachers who have no intention of being actual teachers and are just there for the bursary (you require a lot of time and effort!). Trust me it's really obvious if you are there for that reason and probably unsurprisingly common as the government offers such ridiculous bursaries now.

You won't get a good reference because you won't do a good job (I've done a PhD and my PGCE was a lot harder work) and doing something for a year and then giving up doesn't look good on your CV. A PGCE is no use unless you want to teach. All an employer will see is you not being able to stick at something.

All an employer will see is you not being able to stick at something.
Not true at all - employers do not have fixed ideas about things like that - it's how you present it. Most employers would have no idea about NQT year and would accept that have done a difficult postgrad year and got a qualification and would see it as a positive.

I believe they are not included for tax credit purposes, however for housing benefit etc they are. But please double check! Lol

I believe they are not included for tax credit purposes, however for housing benefit etc they are. But please double check! Lol
Thank you.

I am thoroughly evaluating everything before I decide what to do but any input is great.

Only taxable income is included for tax credits purposes, and as student loans and bursaries aren't taxable income they're not included.

My PGCE year was great, exhausting work, but immensely interesting. The subject knowledge was a doddle as I mostly had it, and I loved lesson planning and was good at it, though class discipline didn't come naturally.

However, I was considered too old to teach on completing at 55 and so the time and effort that went into doing it was wasted (for me): I think the students I taught benefited.

Only one subject mentor was helpful, the ITT coordinator was newly bereaved completely out of it, and my HoD found me challenging opinionated, so all that help that if offered to trainees with finding a job wasn't forthcoming. And, in view of family commitments, I wasn't going to apply for anything needing relocation.

Then, a shift of political wind took the subject off the curriculum. I am not rushing to pay off the student loan

I haven't read the whole thread so apologies if this has been said before.

This attitude disgusts me. We bust a gut to get student teachers (some of whom are obnoxious, self important twats) through a PGCE year. I don't get any extra money or time for my efforts.

To read someone asking if they could do a PGCE so they can give their finances a boost is incredibly infuriating!

I hope you don't apply OP!

Sorry OP, but I agree with ChocMinty101's post above.

When I did my pgce 20 years ago there were plenty of students doing it to get the bursary. In those days, you got it for maths, science, mfl and Welsh and two of the students in my teaching practice school were very open about doing the course for the payout (in May I think it was).

We bust a gut to get student teachers (some of whom are obnoxious, self important twats) through a PGCE year
I am seriously considering applying to do a PGCE through a SCITT programme at the school I used to attend.

The more I think about it, the more I want to do it and I would want to then hopefully be able to continue teaching either at the same school or another one for the foreseeable future.

I would be so disappointed if I applied and I was rejected but instead somebody who was just in it for the bursary was given this amazing opportunity.

Also if I do manage to get a placement I would be so happy to have someone like you, ChocMinty101 to be my mentor as it sounds like you really go the extra mile to help out the PGCE students at your school.

The other thing to consider is that it isn't actually a whole year - the 25k tax-free is for 8 or 9 months including about 7 weeks holiday, not bad at all. You also get student discounts and council tax is paid.

the 25k tax-free is for 8 or 9 months
If I were to do it I would most likely be entitled to a £20,000 bursary which would be paid from October to July @ £1,500 a month.

There would then be two additional payments in February and July of £2,500 each.

Altogether I think that it is more than reasonable as the £9,000 tuition fees can be paid out of a tuition fee loan that is then just tacked on to your existing loan.

The only thing that slightly puzzles me is that not all teacher salaries after qualification are as generous as this so I am surprised that the bursary is so very generous.

Yes PersianCatLady- I have a colleague in another department who was mentoring a PGCE trainee, who was 'earning' more than they were that year!

I have a colleague in another department who was mentoring a PGCE trainee, who was 'earning' more than they were that year!
OK so it does happen then and it is still just as ridiculous (in my mind).