What do you think please?

[Serena1977]

I am starting teacher training in September. The course I prefer is only the QTS not the pgce too.

Does this matter? Will it affect my reputation as a teacher? Reduce my employability etc?

Btw Happy Christmas and I hope you all have a restful a holiday as possible!

QTS is the bit you need to teach in a maintained school.

Sorry, I meant the course is QTS which I know is required in all schools but does it matter for my future that the course doesn't give the pgce as well?

Nope :)

At least, not in most places. Is there a reason you don't want the pgce element?

Because of the university essay writing side. I'm much more suited to being in the classroom and doing rather than being at a university theorising and writing essays. I've been told the pgce is intense and I suppose as its been a while since my uni days, I've lost a bit of confidence.

I used to run a Scitt - I found our more mature trainees tended to cope better with the juggling act than the really shiny new graduates.
Teacher training is intense, certainly, but the essays tend to be designed to develop the theory alongside the practical.

When people say that the PGCE is intense, I think it's a generalisation for all ITT courses. Obviously not doing the PGCE element will help, but in general I felt the high workload on the PGCE was mostly the admin needed for QTS and the actual teaching placements

I don't think there's any real benefit to having the PGCE though, unless you want to teach abroad!