Explore your path into teaching

Posted on 1 October 2021 • Career planning, England, Graduate opportunities, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Scotland, Teaching and education, Wales

You can have a massive impact on that person’s life. It really is the best job in the world.
        – Raz Rahman, Programme Manager, SCITTELS (School Centred Initial Teacher Training in East London Schools)

Decided teaching is for you, or thinking about it? If so, explore the pathways and start your journey with our range of resources for 2021/2022. It’s a sector that is working hard to welcome people from a wider range of backgrounds, cultures, races, identities, abilities, and disabilities.

New downloadable teaching guides for 2021/2022

Take a look at our newly updated Becoming a Teacher Guides 2021/2022 for England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Last year’s guides were downloaded over 18,000 times – not surprising when 27% of OU alumni are pursuing a career in education four years after study (Employability of Qualifiers Survey 2020), with ‘teacher’ the top job title listed. You’ll find lots of advice, plus updated answers to the questions OU students most often ask us.

Thank you for this guide, the information it contains is invaluable.
        – OU student

Short on time? Listen to our new webinars on your lunch break

Our 15-minute Get into Teaching recorded webinars for: England, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Scotland and Wales guide you through the routes into teaching specific to each country. We’ll talk you through the teacher training application process and the main points to consider.

Learn what it takes to become a teacher in our free course

What is being a teacher really like? Find out with the free OU FutureLearn course – Becoming a Teacher. It will help you to decide if teaching is for you and give you a sense of what it’s really like.

Top tips from a teacher training programme manager

OU Careers Consultants Marie and Leigh interviewed Raz Rahman, from SCITTELS (School Centred Initial Teacher Training in East London Schools). He gives some fantastic insights in these short videos:
 
– The personal journey of a qualified SCITT teacher
– How to successfully apply for teacher training
– Equality and diversity in teaching

Just be honest, give real examples, be yourself.
       – Raz Rahman, Programme Manager, SCITTELS (School Centred Initial Teacher Training in East London Schools)

Not all pathways are the same – Teach First and Now Teach

Popular with OU graduates, Teach First offer a 2-year salaried Leadership Development Programme. Get first-hand advice from Teach First in our Graduate opportunities with Teach First webinar and hear why Teach First want OU students on board. Changing career? Now Teach offer a Teacher Training Programme for those with a career history that would like to retrain. Find out more in our Introduction to Now Teach webinar.

The Open University allows us to tap into different skill sets … we’d really like to get OU students on board.
       – Charlotte Sangster, Teach First

Love education but not teaching?

Our recorded webinar Education Alternatives: What can I do if I don’t want to teach? and downloadable guide may give you new ideas about a range of education-related careers.

Thank you for sharing the guide on alternatives to teaching – it has really opened my eyes to the diverse roles where teaching skills are needed!
        – OU student