Program Overview

PGCE Secondary Geography with QTS

The Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) in Secondary Geography with Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) is a one-year program designed to prepare students to teach the secondary school geography curriculum for the 11-16 age range.

Course Overview

The program explores different ways to teach geography, including enquiry learning, fieldwork, and using geographical information systems (GIS). Students will question issues such as how the school environment affects a student's understanding of geography and who decides the geographical knowledge students learn.

Features and Benefits

• Employability: Students will gain the knowledge, skills, and experience to teach Geography at Key Stage 3, GCSE, and potentially A/AS-level.
• Teaching Experience: Students will spend at least the minimum Department for Education (DfE) required time (approximately 120 days) on placement, gaining experience in mainstream secondary schools.
• Postgraduate Credits: When students graduate, they will achieve 60 masters level credits, which can be put towards further study and career development.
• Partnerships: The university has partnerships with over 500 schools, colleges, and educational organizations, providing students with a range of school experiences.
• Research-led Teaching: Many of the staff are active researchers in education, and their research influences the programs.

Year 1

The core modules include:

• Subject Pedagogy: Develops students as teachers, enabling them to reconceptualize their knowledge and understanding of their subject and apply this to planning, preparation, and classroom teaching.
• Secondary Professional Studies: Explores current and critical issues, educational theory, and research connected to practice in schools, developing reflective practice and professional development.
• Professional Development and Employability (Secondary Education): Supports and challenges students to reflect upon and develop their professional practice and teacher identity.
• Placement A (Secondary PGCE): Enables student teachers to demonstrate their progress toward meeting the Standards for Qualified Teacher Status.
• Placement B (Secondary PGCE): Provides contexts in which students can put into practice their own learning, reflect on their actions, evaluate their role in relation to pupils' learning, and review their performance in supporting teaching and learning.

Study and Assessment

• Full-time: 21% lectures, seminars, or similar; 67% placement; 12% independent study.
• Full-time: 50% coursework; 50% practical; 0% examination.

Entry Requirements

• Degree: A minimum of a 2:2 undergraduate honors degree awarded by a UK university, or an equivalent higher education qualification.
• GCSE: Grade C/4 or above in English language and mathematics.
• Other Requirements: Appropriate post-16 qualifications, an ability to communicate effectively in spoken and written English, excellent interpersonal skills, and an informed and realistic understanding of the complexities and challenges of teaching in a secondary school.

Fees and Funding

Tuition fees for the 2026/27 academic year are still being finalized. Information on 2025/26 standard undergraduate fees for UK/Channel Islands and EU/Non-EU international students is available.

Careers Support and Prospects

Most graduates go on to work as geography teachers in secondary schools. The PGCE program provides 60 masters level credits when students graduate, which can be put towards a masters degree to help develop their career in the field of education.