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PGCE Biology help!!

I want to do a science with biology pgce starting 2015 academic year, it's been my passion for a very long time. But! My undergrad is in psychology (I was young and naive and though it would be a useful degree).


Despite this I have an A at a level for biology, covered a couple modules during psych that were biology orientated, and am willing to take SKE courses to meet the knowledge requirements.


However I am worried that despite my willingness to learn and passion for the subject (I already work as a acting up TA in a school and cover the science teachers amongst other subjects when they are not in) I am worried any admissions team will look at my application and reject it just because my undergrad is non related.


I know it looks bleak but I am absolutely determined to become a specialised teacher, although not a psychology one as I feel they are rare and unsaleable
I'm working on my Secondary Maths PGDipEd at the moment and about half the people in my group did the SKE year. It's not a barrier. Just breathe!
Original post by ktalexander
I'm working on my Secondary Maths PGDipEd at the moment and about half the people in my group did the SKE year. It's not a barrier. Just breathe!


Are their degrees unrelated?
Original post by JonathanJay89
Are their degrees unrelated?

Some of them are. I think one girl has a sports degree. I know another was in neuroscience. I think there might be a couple of psych degrees. Oh, and a law degree too. So yeah, there are definitely some unrelated degrees. The common thread was that they wanted to teach maths. They had a strong enough foundation to get a place in the SKE course and now their in the regular program. It is possible!
Original post by ktalexander
Some of them are. I think one girl has a sports degree. I know another was in neuroscience. I think there might be a couple of psych degrees. Oh, and a law degree too. So yeah, there are definitely some unrelated degrees. The common thread was that they wanted to teach maths. They had a strong enough foundation to get a place in the SKE course and now their in the regular program. It is possible!


Well surely if a psych graduate can get on to a maths pgce (having no math in psych at all) then I'm more inclined for the biology route as it is? That's a bit of good news. Some uni's I have spoken to have been pretty final in their help and advice.
Original post by JonathanJay89
Well surely if a psych graduate can get on to a maths pgce (having no math in psych at all) then I'm more inclined for the biology route as it is? That's a bit of good news. Some uni's I have spoken to have been pretty final in their help and advice.


Some psychology degrees have a heavy amount of statistics in, so that could have been a factor, just fyi.
Original post by Shelly_x
Some psychology degrees have a heavy amount of statistics in, so that could have been a factor, just fyi.


Point noted thanks. I completed modules in biological and evolutionary psychology so am hoping this will count in my favour.
Reply 7
I'm in the same boat. I'm a psychology graduate and I'm thinking of teaching biology. I don't have a biology A-Level though so you already have an advantage over me, JonathanJay89. Some courses will shoot you down straight away if you don't have a biology degree. Other's seem to accept science degrees, including psychology, geography and environmental sciences.
Original post by Shelly_x
Some psychology degrees have a heavy amount of statistics in, so that could have been a factor, just fyi.


But Psychs don't study algebra or trigonometry which is really big on compulsory maths education while knowing stats won't be of great use if you want to teach maths.
Original post by Juichiro
But Psychs don't study algebra or trigonometry which is really big on compulsory maths education while knowing stats won't be of great use if you want to teach maths.


My point was that there is still some maths in some psych degrees which is better than no maths. Maths teachers still teach stats. Although I confess I don't know the maths curriculum that well, being an English teacher.
Reply 10
Original post by Shelly_x
My point was that there is still some maths in some psych degrees which is better than no maths. Maths teachers still teach stats. Although I confess I don't know the maths curriculum that well, being an English teacher.


Statistics underpins everything in psychology. Almost a quarter of my course was devoted to stats and research methods. So you're right there.
There is actually quite a lot of algebra involved in psychology! Some like to explain their theories in terms of algebraic models and such. Obviously not on the same level as a maths graduate but its definitely there
Original post by o-glez
Statistics underpins everything in psychology. Almost a quarter of my course was devoted to stats and research methods. So you're right there.
There is actually quite a lot of algebra involved in psychology! Some like to explain their theories in terms of algebraic models and such. Obviously not on the same level as a maths graduate but its definitely there


No, there isn't. You must be confusing Experimental Physics or Economics with Psychology. And the psychology research papers with algebra (O.P., I am looking at you) are likely to be pseudoscience. The scientific method as employed in the social sciences exclusively relies on statistics to make comparisons between experimental conditions. Psychology is currently at the center of a phenomenon in science (and particularly the social sciences) that includes scientific fraud and misuse of statistics.

Once, again the stats in the maths curriculum are so low (compared to the standard in the social sciences) and the material covered (compared to number theory, algebra and geometry) so small that your knowledge of stats does not really give you an advantage. Because the hot stuff in maths is the purely abstract sub-fields like geometry and algebra. And that's what the NC mostly asks from maths.
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by Shelly_x
My point was that there is still some maths in some psych degrees which is better than no maths. Maths teachers still teach stats. Although I confess I don't know the maths curriculum that well, being an English teacher.


But the material covered is tiny compared to other fields in maths and the knowledge is not transferable. Statistics is a bit of a black sheep. While algebra and number theory are deeply related. Yes, a bit of maths is better than no maths just like doing exercise once a month is better than no exercise.
Reply 13
Original post by Juichiro
No, there isn't. You must be confusing Experimental Physics or Economics with Psychology. And the psychology research papers with algebra (O.P., I am looking at you) are likely to be pseudoscience. The scientific method as employed in the social sciences exclusively relies on statistics to make comparisons between experimental conditions. Psychology is currently at the center of a phenomenon in science (and particularly the social sciences) that includes scientific fraud and misuse of statistics.


There actually is a lot of stats in psychology. Any psychology student would tell you that. I graduated with a psychology degree; trust me I'm not getting it confused with anything else. Have you read a psychology journal? That was a pretty stupid comment from you
[QUOTE="o-glez;51126581"]
Original post by Juichiro
No, there isn't. You must be confusing Experimental Physics or Economics with Psychology. And the psychology research papers with algebra (O.P., I am looking at you) are likely to be pseudoscience. The scientific method as employed in the social sciences exclusively relies on statistics to make comparisons between experimental conditions. Psychology is currently at the center of a phenomenon in science (and particularly the social sciences) that includes scientific fraud and misuse of statistics.


There actually is a lot of stats in psychology. Any psychology student would tell you that. I graduated with a psychology degree; trust me I'm not getting it confused with anything else. Have you read a psychology journal? That was a pretty stupid comment from you


You said "There is actually quite a lot of algebra involved in psychology!". I said that it is false.

The second thing I said was that the standard of stats taught in psychology is medium/high and the standard of stats taught in compulsory maths is low and it forms a tiny portion of maths as a whole. Most compulsory maths is algebra and number theory.

Come again, when you manage to read properly. :rolleyes:
Reply 15
[QUOTE="Juichiro;51127011"]
Original post by o-glez


You said "There is actually quite a lot of algebra involved in psychology!". I said that it is false.

The second thing I said was that the standard of stats taught in psychology is medium/high and the standard of stats taught in compulsory maths is low and it forms a tiny portion of maths as a whole. Most compulsory maths is algebra and number theory.

Come again, when you manage to read properly. :rolleyes:


You also said I got psychology (my degree) confused with physics and/or economics which was a very dumb thing of you to say
Original post by o-glez


You also said I got psychology (my degree) confused with physics and/or economics which was a very dumb thing of you to say


You said "There is actually quite a lot of algebra involved in psychology!". I said that it is false and added that since, physics and economics use algebra, that must be confusing psychology with those 2. Confusion > making obviously false statements
It is up to individual providers whether they will let you study a pgce in biology. Just because you degree isn't in biology, doesn't mean you can't study the pgce (one of my best mates from uni's Mum was a bio pgce admissions tutor). The big question is how much nuerobio and other more science focused areas you did during your psyc degree. If you have a fair amount then you may be able to straight up do the bio pgce, so I'd contact providers. It is possible if you were focused on social psyc or a less 'science-y' area that they won't take you. (That doesn't stop you from doing a relevant masters, though. There aren't SKTs in bio as far as I'm aware)
I have met people that teach science with a psychology degree. Granted she had a neuropsychology masters too, but it's worth a shot. Good luck.


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Original post by ktalexander
Some of them are. I think one girl has a sports degree. I know another was in neuroscience. I think there might be a couple of psych degrees. Oh, and a law degree too. So yeah, there are definitely some unrelated degrees. The common thread was that they wanted to teach maths. They had a strong enough foundation to get a place in the SKE course and now their in the regular program. It is possible!



Because their degrees were unrelated... Did they have maths at a-level or some kind of maths related experience?

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