Teaching PE with Biology PCGE??????

Hi Guys,

I'm a final year student studying Applied Sport Science and was just wondering has anyone heard of somebody doing a Biology PCGE (Yes the bursary is very attractive) and then following on to teach PE instead of doing a PE PCGE??

I have operated my own Personal training and fitness coaching business for a number of years, so in terms of coaching etc, that would not be an issue.

any thoughts?

Reply 1

Veggiechic6

14

Original post by eamonkearneypt

Hi Guys,

I'm a final year student studying Applied Sport Science and was just wondering has anyone heard of somebody doing a Biology PCGE (Yes the bursary is very attractive) and then following on to teach PE instead of doing a PE PCGE??

I have operated my own Personal training and fitness coaching business for a number of years, so in terms of coaching etc, that would not be an issue.

any thoughts?

I might be wrong, but I think if you were to do a Biology PGCE, you would be hired as a Biology teacher and would be expected to teach Biology. If you want to teach PE, you need to do a PE PGCE. It almost sounds like you want to do the Biology one simply because of the bursary. That's not a very good reason.

Original post by eamonkearneypt

...

PE is not a shortage subject (we typically get over 100 decent applications for a PE post) so I would imagine you would find it pretty difficult to secure a PE teaching position if you train to teach Biology.

Reply 3

Airfairy

21

Original post by Veggiechic6

I might be wrong, but I think if you were to do a Biology PGCE, you would be hired as a Biology teacher and would be expected to teach Biology. If you want to teach PE, you need to do a PE PGCE. It almost sounds like you want to do the Biology one simply because of the bursary. That's not a very good reason.

That's not necessarily true - you don't have to teach your PGCE subject. However, OP, As Mr M said, PE is one of the most competitive subjects to secure a job in. If you did a Biology PGCE, you'd really be better going into Biology rather than planning to go into PE. Despite your background, schools would most likely put those with a PE PGCE before you.

Reply 4

Veggiechic6

14

Original post by Airfairy

That's not necessarily true - you don't have to teach your PGCE subject. However, OP, As Mr M said, PE is one of the most competitive subjects to secure a job in. If you did a Biology PGCE, you'd really be better going into Biology rather than planning to go into PE. Despite your background, schools would most likely put those with a PE PGCE before you.

　I know that, but given the OP's sporting background and desire to teach PE, it came across to me like the only reason why the OP wants to do a Biology PGCE is because it gets more bursary money than the PE PGCE.

Reply 5

Airfairy

21

Original post by Veggiechic6

　I know that, but given the OP's sporting background and desire to teach PE, it came across to me like the only reason why the OP wants to do a Biology PGCE is because it gets more bursary money than the PE PGCE.

Oh yeah, I must have misread - I'm not doubting their reason. It's not a good reason...but that's what bursaries tend to do. The amount of maths PGCE students on my course who aren't even planning to go into teaching is mental.

Reply 6

Veggiechic6

14

Original post by Airfairy

Oh yeah, I must have misread - I'm not doubting their reason. It's not a good reason...but that's what bursaries tend to do. The amount of maths PGCE students on my course who aren't even planning to go into teaching is mental.

They've mentioned that the Biology PGCE bursary is 'very attractive' and offered no other reason why they're considering Biology over PE as a route into PE teaching. The PGCE year is hard enough, training to teach something you're not passionate about teaching is a bit pointless and will only make the year harder and limit the end job prospects.

Reply 7

eamonkearneypt

OP

Thanks for the replies, but here's my position.....

I'm a 30yo mature student, so my options post graduation are limited, i can't exactly chop and change my mind and do different things unlike say a 22yo whos got options. I also have a young daughter so it's really important I settle into something very soon after graduation.

Now, teaching was always in the back of my mind, as a possible career option, but i never give it any real thought until recently.

I absolutely love the science end of things, and was hoping maybe to become a S&C coach, but it's more or less who you know in industry that gets you on the ladder, i'm not prepared to do an internship or 'shadow' for a measly £14-16k a year.
Then I was considering exercise physiology...a strong subject and interest of mine, again jobs are few and far between with a mediocre salary not to mention those with a masters or BSc in physiology get the nod.

So with all sports science related jobs on pretty poor payscales I turned my thoughts to teaching, which, considering my background, i would adapt well to.

So this brings me to the Biology v PE PCGE.
Yes, yous are right....the Biology PCGE has a £12000 (2:1) or £15000 (1st) bursary (which ontop of a student loan is very appealing). I wouldn't soley do Biology for this reason as i have an A-Level in Biology and of course it does play a huge part in sport science, at least the human Biology part.

But, what if i started teaching and thought eemmm maybe i should of done PE....but because of the competition for places and the fact there is no bursary (i couldn't afford it even if i wanted to do PE) i thought i could probably use my Biology PCGE down the line.

It's just options really.
Anyway,i have applied for Biology PCGE and yes i would see it as a job for a year with around £18k salary at the very least. Then if i decided to go elsewhere or into FE at least i would have a teaching qualification.

Final thought....

I'm seeing a lot of negative comments about teaching recently and the bureaucracy, ofstead expectations and 55+ hr weeks. It's really giving me food for thought. We're meant to work to live, not live to work.....evenings and weekends sacrificed with no social life. Apparently 40% of NQT's quit within 5 years.....not good :frown:

Reply 8

Vicky_B_10

1

OK, it sounds like you are very driven by the money side of things (which I understand if you are supporting a young child) and you have applied for a PGCE based on how much money you will get for the year. So you've have finished your degree and aren't happy with the immediate career prospects, but after doing the PGCE and deciding you don't want to go into teaching I don't see how having the qualification will help. If you then decide to completely change career path you will be starting from the bottom again.

As people have said, it would probably be very hard to get a PE teaching job after training in Biology.
I am doing a Chemistry PGCE in September, but have been warned that my degree (an undergraduate Master of Marine Science) might make some schools completely ignore my application for a job because I don't have a Chemistry degree. Even in one of the real shortage subjects it might be difficult for me to get a job, so imagine trying to compete in an oversubscribed subject like PE with training in a different subject.

I think of all the professions out there, teaching isn't one to enter if you want a nice salary, decent work-life balance and a job with limited politics and bureaucracy.

Reply 9

easy4tutoring

That is not so much genuine - you don't need to instruct your PGCE subject. On the other hand, OP, As Mr M said, PE is a standout among the most focused subjects to secure a vocation in. In the event that you did a Biology PGCE, you'd truly be preferable going into Biology rather over wanting to go into PE. Regardless of your experience, schools would probably put those with a PE PGCE before you.

Teaching PE with Biology PCGE??????

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