Life after PGCE- What if I dont get a job?
Is anyone else really worried about not getting a job straight away after their pgce? Those of you who completed their PGCE how long did it take you to find a job? I dont know why I'm terrified looking into the future thinking you wont get a job or I'll get a job too far away. My Brain cant top thinking...
PGCE in MFL ....Very less chance of getting employed as most schools only have one or max two teachers to teach a language
PGCE in English.. so many people apply and the place have all gone that means less chance of a job...
PGCE RE...Well I've not heard of any success stories yet and my local schools have 3-4 teachers still there from 10 years still teaching...I dont want to feel bad teaching religion to kids...
PGDE bolton.. its only a diploma i have a friend whose doing the 2 in 1 skills for life which has literacy and esol in it...plus u can teach english to over 16's..im not sure if this is true...wouldnt schools take on people who have secondary pgce rather than a pgde in skills for life?
I dont know how to calm down its like choosing what subject I wanted to study at university except now its really harder and my whole life depends on it....
(((
PGCE in MFL ....Very less chance of getting employed as most schools only have one or max two teachers to teach a language
PGCE in English.. so many people apply and the place have all gone that means less chance of a job...
PGCE RE...Well I've not heard of any success stories yet and my local schools have 3-4 teachers still there from 10 years still teaching...I dont want to feel bad teaching religion to kids...
PGDE bolton.. its only a diploma i have a friend whose doing the 2 in 1 skills for life which has literacy and esol in it...plus u can teach english to over 16's..im not sure if this is true...wouldnt schools take on people who have secondary pgce rather than a pgde in skills for life?
I dont know how to calm down its like choosing what subject I wanted to study at university except now its really harder and my whole life depends on it....
(((I got my job in February during my PGCE. I think the employment statistics for education courses are in the high 90%s.
The thing you have to remember is that there is a massive turnover of staff in the education sector, people moving to another school, or retiring. As such there are always jobs every year to apply for so "the place have all gone" doesn't really happen, though there are some people that struggle to find a job.
Regarding MFL - now that languages are part of the EBac, language teachers are in more demand than ever. They aren't paying them 9-20k a year to train for no reason.
You also have to remember that PGCEs are not like degrees, where unis offer as many places as they have space (well, pretty much). The government controls the number of PGCE places so that there are not too many people doing them that they can't get jobs after.
TBH, the only thing that may cause difficulty with finding a job is if you have to be very tight location wise, or are massively picky about the school.
Even in the middle of the summer, there are teaching jobs up on TES. 13 English ones and 11 MFL ones as well as many in other subjects.
The thing you have to remember is that there is a massive turnover of staff in the education sector, people moving to another school, or retiring. As such there are always jobs every year to apply for so "the place have all gone" doesn't really happen, though there are some people that struggle to find a job.
Regarding MFL - now that languages are part of the EBac, language teachers are in more demand than ever. They aren't paying them 9-20k a year to train for no reason.
You also have to remember that PGCEs are not like degrees, where unis offer as many places as they have space (well, pretty much). The government controls the number of PGCE places so that there are not too many people doing them that they can't get jobs after.
TBH, the only thing that may cause difficulty with finding a job is if you have to be very tight location wise, or are massively picky about the school.
Even in the middle of the summer, there are teaching jobs up on TES. 13 English ones and 11 MFL ones as well as many in other subjects.
I've just finished an English PGCE - got my job in early January.
By the end of the course every English PGCE student had secured a job and schools were contacting the uni to see if they still had any students left without jobs as they had positions left to fill.
I live in the Midlands - a lot of demand may depend on where you live.
By the end of the course every English PGCE student had secured a job and schools were contacting the uni to see if they still had any students left without jobs as they had positions left to fill.
I live in the Midlands - a lot of demand may depend on where you live.
My boyfriend just did an English PGCE last year, it took him a while to get into the flow of it and only started applying for jobs in March, but still managed to get one by May. It took him 10 interviews but he got there and had another 3 interviews lined up. I'm doing my Primary PGCE next year and I am worried too as we have a little girl and due to her and partner's work we can't move, so it is important I get a job close to here, but my boyfriend just told me to stop worrying about a job I don't even know if I'll want in six months time. You might do the PGCE and decide teaching isn't for you, but the PGCE still makes you much more employable. You might find another role in education which suits you better. You might decide to go in another direction entirely. So try not to worry about 'what if I don't get a job' and focus on enjoying it as much as you can and developing your skills so you DO! 
To be honest, as somebody starting a PGCE this Sept, the last thing I am worrying about is getting a job. Coping with the course is the main worry for most I am sure.
Original post by Vitalite21
Is anyone else really worried about not getting a job straight away after their pgce? Those of you who completed their PGCE how long did it take you to find a job? I dont know why I'm terrified looking into the future thinking you wont get a job or I'll get a job too far away. My Brain cant top thinking...
PGCE in MFL ....Very less chance of getting employed as most schools only have one or max two teachers to teach a language
PGCE in MFL ....Very less chance of getting employed as most schools only have one or max two teachers to teach a language
I got a job (in MFL) in June. It was my fifth interview. I mostly never met an MFL department of fewer than 5. My only experience of small departments was in incredibly small schools (600-800 students, one was placement with 4 teachers and one interview school with two full time and one part time teacher).
There weren't LOADS of jobs for me to apply for as I specialise in German and only want to do KS3 French (ideally I would completely specialise in German), but overall the job market for MFL is decent if you're free to move for a job, like I have. Had I stayed where I trained I'd be unemployed right now.
Original post by Jimmy Mullen
To be honest, as somebody starting a PGCE this Sept, the last thing I am worrying about is getting a job. Coping with the course is the main worry for most I am sure.
Once jobs season comes round that will change, I promise! If we weren't talking about our bad days etc when I saw my coursemates we were talking about jobs, applications, interviews, others going for interviews and so on.
I didn't get a job by the end of my PGCE despite applying for quite a lot and starting early. My main problem was the fact that I didn't train where I wanted to teach so I couldn't do my PGCE and apply for jobs at the same time because I just didn't have enough hours in the day to visit schools prior to applying and actually be at my placement school as a teacher there. I've learnt from TSR that in secondary it isn't necessary to visit the school prior to applying whereas at primary its part and parcel of the application so if you're doing secondary then its probably not as big a deal but in primary you really do need to train where you want to work.
When I was applying for jobs in the September term after my PGCE there were loads and loads of people in the same position as me (this was in London) which really surprised me. I had convinced myself that I was an absolute failure as I'd not managed to get a job despite leaving my PGCE with an outstanding rating and excellent references when there were people on my course who were on cause for concern who'd walked into jobs more easily than I had done, although I think a lot of that was related to the fact they got jobs at their placement schools whereas neither of my school placements had any vacancies. But as it happened in London in September there were literally loads of people looking for jobs - I applied to one school which had 250 applications and I ended up being one of the five they interviewed. I didn't get the job as they went for someone who had a maths specialism but I was just happy that I got interviewed as it signalled to me how competitive the jobs market was and it wasn't me being stupid and a big failure because clearly I had a good application. On my PGCE there was no discussion about what happened if you didn't get a job as everything was about "jobs, jobs jobs" and no one really mentioned doing supply or getting to the end of term without a job meaning I just didn't really know what to do and thought I was the only one in my position given there were other PGCE'ers on TSR talking about how easily they'd got a job and I didn't know anyone else from my PGCE who hadn't got one either.
The moral of the story for me is that things do work out in the end and okay I was a term behind everyone else but looking back, I wouldn't have been happy in the schools that I interviewed for in the summer and it was only in the autumn term where I had enough time to properly visit schools and do applications without the hassle of doing the PGCE at the same time that I could afford to spend time being picky about applications. When you're on your PGCE you end up losing about 2 days for every school you apply to by the time you've visited the school before applying, done the application (it takes me about 3 hours for each one and I'm relatively quick) and then prepared for the interview/go to the interview, waited for the phone call etc. Its a stress you just don't need and part of me wishes I'd just accepted that I was moving to a different place so I couldn't apply for jobs until September anyway, because as it was I just tried to do too many things at once and made myself feel an awful failure because of it... meaning when I went to later interviews I probably didn't perform as well because I just felt desperate and upset about not having a job.
When I was applying for jobs in the September term after my PGCE there were loads and loads of people in the same position as me (this was in London) which really surprised me. I had convinced myself that I was an absolute failure as I'd not managed to get a job despite leaving my PGCE with an outstanding rating and excellent references when there were people on my course who were on cause for concern who'd walked into jobs more easily than I had done, although I think a lot of that was related to the fact they got jobs at their placement schools whereas neither of my school placements had any vacancies. But as it happened in London in September there were literally loads of people looking for jobs - I applied to one school which had 250 applications and I ended up being one of the five they interviewed. I didn't get the job as they went for someone who had a maths specialism but I was just happy that I got interviewed as it signalled to me how competitive the jobs market was and it wasn't me being stupid and a big failure because clearly I had a good application. On my PGCE there was no discussion about what happened if you didn't get a job as everything was about "jobs, jobs jobs" and no one really mentioned doing supply or getting to the end of term without a job meaning I just didn't really know what to do and thought I was the only one in my position given there were other PGCE'ers on TSR talking about how easily they'd got a job and I didn't know anyone else from my PGCE who hadn't got one either.
The moral of the story for me is that things do work out in the end and okay I was a term behind everyone else but looking back, I wouldn't have been happy in the schools that I interviewed for in the summer and it was only in the autumn term where I had enough time to properly visit schools and do applications without the hassle of doing the PGCE at the same time that I could afford to spend time being picky about applications. When you're on your PGCE you end up losing about 2 days for every school you apply to by the time you've visited the school before applying, done the application (it takes me about 3 hours for each one and I'm relatively quick) and then prepared for the interview/go to the interview, waited for the phone call etc. Its a stress you just don't need and part of me wishes I'd just accepted that I was moving to a different place so I couldn't apply for jobs until September anyway, because as it was I just tried to do too many things at once and made myself feel an awful failure because of it... meaning when I went to later interviews I probably didn't perform as well because I just felt desperate and upset about not having a job.
I wasn't sure teaching was for me and, like oxymoronic, I trained 250 miles away from 'home'/where I wanted to teach.
In primary, visits are pretty essential and we had many heads come in up said they would literally chuck the application out if the candidate hadn't visited. As I was teaching 5 days a week [in real terms, I tended to take 1 afternoon off and assist/lead on the other afternoon - the two together made up my PPA/trainee time], I didn't have the time to travel all that way back to visit schools. Nor did I have the money. A girl in my placement school was also from my area and she ended up missing 10 teaching days because of school visits/interviews! In the end, she had to carry on teaching after the placement had finished to make up the time.
Anyway, I decided to apply in late June. I applied to 4 schools and was shortlisted for 2. Of those, 1 had a comp group visit before the interview, so I travelled back for that. During that visit, I realised I wasn't right for the school and the school wasn't right for me - I withdrew my application before the interview [plus, I couldn't make the interview itself due to other commitments]. For the second school, I went to interview and taught an observed lesson. I didn't get it. At the time, I was pretty gutted as I'd thought the lesson was well prepared and that the children engaged well with it, but I think they wanted someone with more experience.
So, now it is August. I'm back working in retail. Not ideal lol. A lot of the jobs listed at the moment are through agencies and I've already had some annoying experiences with them - basically advertising jobs that have already gone or that never existed, just to get you on their books. However, I've noticed a few appearing this last week or so that are being advertised by the school themselves and have the full and proper application forms etc - they seem to be for November and January starts. So, hopefully, in the next few weeks, I'll start applying again and find a school that fits.
In primary, visits are pretty essential and we had many heads come in up said they would literally chuck the application out if the candidate hadn't visited. As I was teaching 5 days a week [in real terms, I tended to take 1 afternoon off and assist/lead on the other afternoon - the two together made up my PPA/trainee time], I didn't have the time to travel all that way back to visit schools. Nor did I have the money. A girl in my placement school was also from my area and she ended up missing 10 teaching days because of school visits/interviews! In the end, she had to carry on teaching after the placement had finished to make up the time.
Anyway, I decided to apply in late June. I applied to 4 schools and was shortlisted for 2. Of those, 1 had a comp group visit before the interview, so I travelled back for that. During that visit, I realised I wasn't right for the school and the school wasn't right for me - I withdrew my application before the interview [plus, I couldn't make the interview itself due to other commitments]. For the second school, I went to interview and taught an observed lesson. I didn't get it. At the time, I was pretty gutted as I'd thought the lesson was well prepared and that the children engaged well with it, but I think they wanted someone with more experience.
So, now it is August. I'm back working in retail. Not ideal lol. A lot of the jobs listed at the moment are through agencies and I've already had some annoying experiences with them - basically advertising jobs that have already gone or that never existed, just to get you on their books. However, I've noticed a few appearing this last week or so that are being advertised by the school themselves and have the full and proper application forms etc - they seem to be for November and January starts. So, hopefully, in the next few weeks, I'll start applying again and find a school that fits.
Hello, I have done M.sc in geology and has an experience of 3.8 years of teaching Computer Science in school,now I have left the job for doing some course so that I can teach of India (international teaching). But not getting proper course by which i can be able to teach on international platform.Pls suggest me something as per my qualification and experience what i need to do .Thanks in advance.
Hey Ive just finish my PGCE in mfl. Didn't managed to find any job yet, after 49 application all around England not even a reply ..... And I am not the only one ... Among my ex colleagues just 4 of them find a job Anyway I've noticed an high number of math teachers, where just there for the bursary and with no interest in teaching, as is the highest in therm of money and so the demand of math teachers .If you like numbers or just want the higher bursary do math .....
Original post by Bjoky
Hey Ive just finish my PGCE in mfl. Didn't managed to find any job yet, after 49 application all around England not even a reply ..... And I am not the only one ... Among my ex colleagues just 4 of them find a job Anyway I've noticed an high number of math teachers, where just there for the bursary and with no interest in teaching, as is the highest in therm of money and so the demand of math teachers .If you like numbers or just want the higher bursary do math .....
Hi
This is a very old thread, so if you want advice, I'd suggest starting your own thread.
For advice on getting a teaching job, see this thread: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7033912
I know this year has been tough, but I think to send 49 applications and not get an interview may suggest a major flaw with your application.
Not really. Non-teaching jobs are not exactly going to be difficult to come by in the next few years from the sounds of what's going on at the moment (due to that thing that no-one on the news is allowed to mention any more that has led to a lot of people leaving the country), I want to teach, but if worst comes to worst, I'll just do something else while I'm looking.
Hi, I completed a PGCE in Maths and now teaching in Zurich, Switzerland. My wife is also a teacher of Geography. If you plan to teach overseas, definitely go for English as there is always a bug demand for English teachers and fare less for MFL and especially RE teachers. Having a PGCE in Secondary English will open you up to the world and will likely change your life forever. Teaching in the UK is really aweful compared to overseas. In Switzerland, I earn around £80,000 and that is the norm here. Fresh out of uni start on around £50,000 and that is at the very low end. Start going up the management/specialist ladder then looking at anything up to £250,000 as a Principal. Could never get those wages in the UK. Switzerland has living costs though. I have heard of better packages in Singapore though and even in Middle East, China you can get very good packages. In the UK, you would be lucky to earn £50,000 by the end of your career. Teaching in International schools is also way easier than UK schools, no OFSTED and admin nonsense. Good luck!
(edited 1 year ago)
I finished my PGCE (Primary Education) in April this year and I'm already working as a supply teacher 5 days a week in local schools. There is a lot of demand so even though registration took a while (the new DBS I needed took 3 weeks because of Easter break) as soon as I was cleared to work I had many options to choose from. I'm not worried about permanent work because I am sure one of the schools will eventually hire me to stay there (currently I am contracted with one school 3 days a week and another 2 days a week until summer holidays).
(edited 1 year ago)
Hey that was really motivating for my kinda people who are planning to be a teacher. Thankyou for such a helpful reply. It would be very kind of you if you guide me that 1-should i apply directly to QTS via govt website (applying from Pakistan) 2- how would a Masters in Education be helpful to me in attaining a Qualified Teacher Status
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