PGCE with different degree

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Hi all,

I have a degree in English Literature and have worked for a few years in different jobs. Now I really want to do my PGCE, and would love to do it in Computer Science as the bursary is much higher, CS teachers are in such high demand and I feel very confident that I'd be able to pick it all up quickly.

Does anyone know whether there is much flexibility for degree topic with PGCEs - as they are so desperate for teachers, would they consider me if I complete the SKE? I just don't want to waste my time/UCAS choices if there's absolutely no chance, and would love to teach Computer Science.

I've already emailed a few unis to ask, but was hoping for some insight in the meantime if anyone could help.

They let me do chemistry with a biology degree, but I'm not sure they'd accept English for compsci. What's your highest relevant qualification? Do you have an A level in compsci or similar?

I have a first class undergraduate degree and a masters in English Literature (undergrad is not in English but in another arts subject) and got told to not even bother applying to a local uni for an English PGCE so I wouldn’t hold out too much hope! Did you do computer science a level?

I did a PGCE in Geography with a Social Sciences degree- best to ask the provider. I had a decent A level in geography and showed that there was crossover of content in my degree.

What are your A Levels?

You feel that you could quickly pick up computer science to degree level? Have you thought this through? What are your current skills and experience in the subject?

We had a maths trainee with an English degree, they had A-level maths and a SKE. What CS experience do you have?

I have a first class undergraduate degree and a masters in English Literature (undergrad is not in English but in another arts subject) and got told to not even bother applying to a local uni for an English PGCE

Warwick? They told me that too. Their loss.

OP - my degree is not in English so when I applied for a PGCE I also emailed admissions tutors and asked if they would accept me. Some didn't reply, one was quite rude, one sent me a lovely email suggesting I did an Open Uni module before the course started. I did. It was fascinating. It definitely helped my teaching.

I'm now mentoring a PGCE student who also doesn't have an English degree; she did a subject top up (I can't remember the official name, sorry!) with the university she's now training with before she started the PGCE.

In a nutshell then, it's possible.

Taking a different tack though, why not English? English teachers are always in demand.

You waited til the end to say you would really love to teach comp sci. You are going to need to convince me (and unis...) on that one!

@MsJaneAusten no, UEA. I don’t have English A level admittedly, but I studied entire English/American literature modules as part of my undergrad degree and then did the MA. If I had no MA but had the A level then they would have considered my application, which seems ridiculous but there you go

If you can prove that you are an expert in compsci you might be considered by the schools direct cluster I used to lead. We didn’t get a lot of applicants for it and wanted to increase our pool but we could always tell who was just in it for the bursary and we would have had a lot of questions about why you wouldn’t want to teach English.

As others have pointed out, you give no indication in your op of where your compsci knowledge comes from. Do you have an A level in it? Are you a keen programmer in your spare time (in which case what languages do you use?) We would do quite a rigorous subject knowledge test at interview for someone coming in from such a different subject background. If your degree were maths I would find it more credible.

To test your own subject knowledge, I would suggest trying out some A level past papers (make sure they are compsci and not ICT). If they don’t feel easy then you will have a lot of work to do to convince anyone you should be teaching this subject. There are SKEs but they will often be designed for people coming in with degree level maths or physics.

I’ve had a quick google and this is from the admission requirements for the Birmingham City University compsci SKE:
The SKE computer science course is suitable for graduates with a good degree from a UK higher education institution (or a recognised equivalent) who have sufficient computer science knowledge to commence the course.

This could be through holding an A-level in computer science, (not essential) having an element of computer science in your degree course and/or occupational experience of the subject.

I imagine most will have something similar, so it would be possible if you have an A level or occupational experience (as I don’t imagine it features in an English degree) but otherwise not.

Come and train with us sandman! We have a massive shortage of Eng teachers in my area! We even trained up someone recently with a psychology degree she's not very good

@Piggywaspushed Ohhh, where is that?!

I've just started mentoring an English PGCE with a first degree in Japanese...! Jury's out.

Beds sandman

People here talking about doing subjects they don’t have a degree in are either referencing having an A level in the PGCE subject (not ideal but doable) or a have a degree in something closely allied - the English student with degree in Japanese will have studied a lot of things (grammar, literature etc) that overlap with English as part of their degree. Two science subjects will be seen as having overlap (and often ks3 science is not taught by specialists anyway). You need to think about how your current qualifications/ experience make you a good candidate to teach computer science (which is a very difficult subject at both GCSE and A level). If the reality is that you have a GCSE in ICT and are quite good at Excel then you have no chance. If you are running a website building business from home and taught yourself a number of programming languages from scratch then you can probably make a good case and get onto a SKE. What are your qualifications? Overall though I think you are likely to be more successful and fulfilled as a teacher if you teach your degree subject.

In my experience of dealing with trainees, the ones who do not have a degree in the subject they're teaching, find it very, very hard. The workloads are ridiculous anyway, and then on top of that, they have to do a lot more of teaching themselves content, before they even start lesson planning.

We get geology and psychology students applying to teach science, but we tend to avoid appointing them these days. They nearly always shy away from teaching A-level (they all say they can do it at interview!), but all our teachers need to be able to teach to A-level.

You'd be much more employable if you stuck to English.

This does illustrate the government's shortsightedness, rather. The fact that there are people with English degrees (or history) opting to teach other subjects because of big bursaries is depriving schools, and therefore children, of highly qualified English specialists : which is kind of important!

So, shortages are now found in English in many areas and English is increasingly being taught by people with not particularly specialised degrees or niche, narrow degrees or low quality degrees.

I’ve heard that Teach First tend to funnel people into maths and sciences regardless of degree, and they’re now the biggest training provider.

One of the reasons CompSci teachers are so prized is because there are soooo many alternatives open to them, which combine interesting work with great pay and conditions.

If you already have those skills, what is it about teaching that attracts you?

If you don't, how are you planning to gain the skills and experience?

It's such a diverse field, not many really technology focused organisations care that much about how you acquired the skills, they do care a lot about whether you can do the job.

We are always looking for great great applicants. We are always inundated with applications which do not appear to make the grade. We mostly recruit through networks, since having worked with someone is a reliable way of knowing whether they can do the job.

Good luck.

To be honest, it doesn't sound like you have the knowledge to teach CS.

I teach Physics and have a Physics degree but I wouldn't want to try teaching CS - I could probably do things like the basics of binary and programming with KS3 but nothing beyond that. It's a specialist area not something you can just pick up! Similarly, my colleagues who teach Physics at KS3 will openly admit they couldn't do it yo A-level. Neither would I fancy my chances teaching A-level Biology although I teach it at KS3/4.

Although this sounds harsh, your post comes across as you only being in it for the bursary which is not the right reason to come into teaching. Yes we need Physics/CS teachers but we need ones who are passionate about the subject and knowledgeable.

If I were you, I'd have a rethink and maybe spend some time in schools to see what it's like.

I disagree with high bursaries full stop, mostly as many trainees decide to do teaching purely for that reason and not for the actual vocation of teaching..many often then quickly leave the profession...

What makes you think you will love teaching? Not "teaching computer science" but teaching? As that is the crux of it!

Teaching isn't an easy job, nor should it be seen as a "stop gap" or "short term career".

Thoroughly research what it entails being a teacher before you apply, volunteer and get real life experience.

I'm sadly mentored too many poorly equipped trainee teachers and it's not fair on the students, the school or the mentor as it is a LOT of extra work.

In saying that, if you really are passionate and convinced this is the right path for you then go in and give it your all! Yes it will be exhausting and all encompassing but the actual teaching side becomes easier and is a total joy I just hate all the extra shit I'm expected to do.

Good luck op whatever you do!

We can’t afford to turn away people who see it as a stop gap or short term career (indeed Teach First, the largest teacher recruiter are built around that concept).

What we need to do is suck in people who see it as a stop gap and make it so amazing that they don’t want to leave. That’s where the problem is.

Mammy

But without the bursaries they wouldn't get the trainees that they need.

Sought after subjects are thus precisely because there are options for people with those degrees that offer much higher salaries than teaching.

Plus lots of people are retraining into teaching. I couldn't have afforded to do it without the bursary - I had a mortgage and nursery fees to pay, I couldn't just throw away my wage for a year (teaching is already a pay cut!)

@noblegiraffe Whatever your view of Teach First (and I’m well aware that it isn’t popular here) it’s a bit misleading to state repeatedly that they’re the largest recruiter as if they totally dominated the field. They are, of course, as the largest single organisation, but Teach First trainees comprised 9% of all trainees in 18-19 and 10% in 17-18. The vast majority of trainees still enter the profession via a university.