Does anyone else have an interview for IMA teacher training scholarship next week?

Hi,

Just found out I've been offered an interview next week for the IMA teacher training scholarship (for maths ITT applicants with/expecting to achieve a 2:1 and above). Anyone else applied/heard back?

There are interviews all the time at different regional centres. It is unlikely you will encounter anyone else who shares your interview date on here. Good luck.

That's not actually true...there's only 26 scheduled throughout the year with 8 people at each. Approx 200 people in total...that's not a great deal.

Do you really think everyone who turns up to interview is successful? I ask because under your model they would need to be if the IMA is going to recruit anywhere near the 250 scholars required by the DfE! There are between 4 and 7 applicants at most interviews by the way - 8 is rather high.

In my group interview 8 were invited and only 6 of us showed up. They told us last year that they only awarded 86 scholarships out of 150 that were available so they don't always award the number that are available. 250 scholars are not 'required' it's more of a guideline so there could be more or less than that...or at least that's not what the people that are awarding the scholarships themselves said!

I'll bow to your greater knowledge. I'm merely a scholarship assessor.

Was what they said false then? I can only go with what I'm told...

...

There is great pressure to award the full 250. The DfE were furious about the number awarded last year. The process was made less onerous after one round last year in order to encourage more applications and the offer is financially more attractive this year. It's still like getting blood from a stone.

Maybe the way to do it would be to put all maths grads that apply to teacher training with a 2.1 or above through it [ie. it could be made a part of the UCAS application system]. So many people must just not apply because they are busy with final year revision etc (I was the only one in my interview that had already graduated) or just not be proactive in their research to know of its existence.

I got invited to an assessment centre on the 17th of February. Could you tell me a little more about how you found it?

What difficulty was the test, was it A-Level or Further Maths level? I'm doing maths at Imperial but am only doing pure and decision modules this year, and I haven't integrated or differentiated or used most A-Level maths in over a year. I'm obviously going to go over the A-Level syllabus to remind myself, but it's just leaving me a bit worried that I'm not as fluid in calculus and trig as I was last year.

I did the test and the group activity. The test wasn't that difficult, if you know your A level Maths, you don't have anything to fear. The group discussion counts for a lot more marks than the test. I my experience, they messed up the Group discussion, they mixed up what people said. i.e. They put the wrong quote for the wrong person. They also put some very subjective remarks about me things like

"it seemed that she brought a lot of baggage." The assessor was asking people about their ethnic background things like "where is your name from?" They rejected me and I appealed. I wasn't told the result for 3 months, in the end they asked me to do it again. It is not worth it if you can get a bursary.