“…there are many opportunities across a range of specialisms, enabling staff across the Trust to access exceptional CPD, whilst improving skills, knowledge and experience.”
What qualifications does someone need in order to do a Teaching Apprenticeship?
A teaching apprentice either needs to be a graduate, holding an Honours degree or equivalent, or they need to have attained a Level 5 Teaching and Skills Apprenticeship or a Foundation* degree plus complete a further year of study (via Open University or an appropriate conversion course) to 'upgrade' their Foundation degree to the equivalent of an Honours degree. In addition, they must have the equivalent of GCSE Grade C or above in English, Maths and Science.
*Foundation degrees are not equivalent to Honours degrees. Foundation degrees are at the same level of study, but are equivalent to 2/3 of an Honours degree. They are normally studied as a part-time process while working with an employer who sponsors that Foundation course, and they focus on a particular occupational domain. A Foundation degree can typically be extended to an Honours degree with an additional year or more of study.
How does the Teaching Apprenticeship work in practice?
If a school has a Teaching Apprenticeship vacancy, the post needs to be advertised, and suitably qualified candidates can apply. Successful teaching apprentice applicants need to be school employees, and so have to be offered an employment contract. Teaching apprenticeships take a year to complete, so an apprentice starting a teaching apprenticeship would need a contract that lasted until completion. The salary for the teaching apprentices is met by the school, and the training element of the apprenticeship is funded from the Apprenticeship Levy. Teaching apprentices are paid on the unqualified teacher pay-scale. A teaching apprentice typically spends one day per week at college, and the four remaining days per week teaching at school. This route into teaching is most similar to the Salaried School Direct trainee teacher scheme.
For more information on Teaching Apprenticeships, please contact Leah Paiano, Trust Development Officer, lpaiano@plymouthcast.org.uk.
