Postgraduate Diploma Secondary Education (QTS) - Mathematics

Start date
September
Duration
36 Weeks
UCAS code
G1X1
Course Type
Postgraduate, Taught

The Postgraduate Diploma in Education (Mathematics) leads to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and offers 120 credits towards our MA in Teaching Studies. Our specialist programme, which offers high quality training and support, will prepare you to teach in the 11-18 age range and is run in close partnership with schools.

On our Postgraduate Diploma Secondary Education (QTS) Mathematics course you will be challenged to develop informed and justified decisions about how you approach your teaching, in order to enable you to continue to develop over your career. You will also benefit from our unique collaboration with the University of Birmingham School as well a wide range of partner schools, including mixed comprehensive, single sex, religious and selective schools and sixth form colleges. The diverse communities we serve will enrich your experience on the PGDipEd Mathematics course. 

PGDipEd (QTS) Secondary Mathematics is also offered as a School Direct programme with St Paul’s Caritas Christi, Windsor Academy Trust and Wood Green ITT Alliance

You may be eligible for bursaries of up to £27,000 (depending on qualifications) in line with the government’s priority to attract more well qualified Mathematics teachers or a scholarship of £29,000 in lieu of a bursary (for 2023 entry). 

On successful completion of your PGDipEd, you may return to study with us on a part-time basis to complete your Masters in Teaching Studies

For those who have studied a degree with less than the 50% of mathematical content of an undergraduate mathematical degree as well as career changers we have the Subject Knowledge Enhancement (SKE) course, which is a full time, campus-based conversion course for those who wish to teach Mathematics in secondary schools. 

The School of Education at the University of Birmingham has a long tradition of delivering teacher training courses. Its teaching has been graded as 'outstanding' three times by Ofsted inspectors which affirms the University’s status as one of the UK’s leading institutions for excellence in teacher training. Our Mathematics Postgraduate Diploma in Secondary Education (QTS) received the top grade in all areas in the last Ofsted subject inspection. 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 

Equal Opportunities

The School of Education and University of Birmingham is committed to equal opportunities in the access to and provision of education. For more information please see the following documents:

Information on all our other PGDipEd secondary subjects may be found on the  Postgraduate Diploma Secondary Education (QTS) course page.  

When I was young, I didn’t want to teach, friends always said to me “you’re definitely going to be a teacher!” The breakthrough came for me when I took a summer job in a shoe shop and really enjoyed interacting with young people in the children’s department. I realised it was something that I enjoyed and was good at and then, with my degree background and the shortage of maths teachers, I saw a great opportunity to share those maths skills with the next generation.

Matthew Man

Fees

Fees for 2023-2024 are:

£9,250 (UK), £21,150 (International).

When you apply for this course, it is important that you also take into account living costs and should ensure that you will have sufficient funds to finance the full duration of your studies. Our PGCE programmes include a significant amount of time spent on placements in a variety of schools at different locations, and so when budgeting to study you should also allow for travel to and from placements, as well as textbooks, printing, photocopying and stationery that you may need.

Scholarships 

The Institute of Mathematics and its Applications (IMA)  in collaboration with the London Mathematical Society (LMS), the Royal Statistical Society (RSS), The Mathematical Association (MA), Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI), and the National STEM Learning Centre are awarding Teacher Training Scholarships to the most outstanding individuals, worth £29,000. 

Tuition Fee Loan and Maintenance Loan

With or without a bursary, you can also access a  Tuition Fee Loan to cover your tuition fees and a Maintenance Loan for your living costs. The available loans for 2023-2024 are:

  • a Tuition Fee Loan of up to £9,250 to cover your fees
  • a Maintenance Loan of up to £13,022 to support your living costs

Additional financial support

If you have children or a disability, extra funding is available. For instance, you could get:

Find out more information on the  extra financial support available

For further information contact the School directly or visit the Funding, Graduation & Awards Office via online enquiries. 

How To Apply

Apply online through DfE Apply. We recommend you apply as early as possible as the course becomes full well before summer. 

Course code: G1X1

The Interview process 

Selection is rigorous and designed to identify candidates with the strongest aptitude. Candidates selected for interview will be invited to:

  • meet course tutors
  • find out more about the course
  • have a one to one interview
  • show GCSE and Degree certificates (where these are available).

We work closely with partner schools to select candidates and applicants will often have the opportunity to meet senior colleagues from partner schools when they join us for interview day.  

Our Standard Requirements

  • All applicants to the Secondary PGDipEd (QTS) Mathematics course must hold a degree from a of a UK Higher Education Institution or equivalent qualification. This will normally be a minimum 2:2 classification and will be a condition of any offer where the degree has not already been awarded.
  • We will expect your degree to not only have a high Mathematics content, but it will also have a range and depth of Mathematics which might be found in at least 50% of a Mathematics degree.
  • Graduates in other degrees who have a good pass in A level Mathematics may also apply and satisfactory completion of a Subject Knowledge Enhancement programme may then be set as a condition of any offer.
  • Please be aware that your degree classification may have an impact on your eligibility for a bursary. 
  • You must also have a GCSE in Mathematics and English (Grade 4/C or above) or an equivalent qualification which must be attained before making your application. Equivalency tests will be accepted but only from equivalency testing. 

If you have any questions about entry requirements, please contact us on ITEadmissions@contacts.bham.ac.uk

You must also:

  • complete an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check before taking up a place.
  • complete relevant checks to ensure you have the health and physical capacity to teach.
  • agree to abide by the University of Birmingham Code of Professional Conduct and Fitness to Practise.

*Equivalent GCSE grades

International Requirements



International Students

English Language requirements

IELTS 6.5 with no less than 6.0 in any band
PTE Academic 67 with no less than 64 in all four skills
TOEFL - 88 IBT overall with no less than 20 in Listening, 21 in Reading, 22 in Speaking and 21 in Writing
Cambridge English Advanced: 176 overall with 169 in each component

The Mathematics Postgraduate Diploma in Secondary Education programme runs from early September to late June. 

PGCE programme information (this is for guidance only and is subject to change).
Number of weeks Programme of activities

Before the course

Pre-course learning

4 weeks (from mid-September)

University Work including some work in schools (SD students will have school induction prior to this)

12 weeks

School Placement 1 (Including School Half Term and 3 University Days)

2 weeks

Christmas Vacation

1 week

Review week

2 weeks

University Work

7 weeks

School Placement 2 (Including School Half Term and 1 University Day)

2 weeks

Easter Vacation

9 weeks

School Placement 2 (Including School Half Term and 1 University Day)

1 week

University Week

The programme will include the study of subject-based teaching methods as well as the study of broader whole school issues.  A variety of teaching styles and approaches to learning will be used in the presentation of the themes. These include University-based lectures, small group seminars and workshops, school-based work with pupils and teachers, and work undertaken individually or with other groups of students. The course will not pretend that teaching Mathematics is straightforward, because it is not! Our sessions will rarely be of the form of a lecture, instead we will use activities and discussion as the main way of working. 

You will benefit from a specialist programme, working with a subject tutor and peers, developing a professional network which will sustain you into your career. We will help you become aware of issues relating to planning lessons, assessment, the difference between telling students information and teaching students, standard misconceptions students have about Mathematics topics, how different approaches to teaching a topic can change the learning experience for students and how choice of resources and technology can change the sort of Mathematics with which students engage. Along the way we will, of course, also introduce you to the National Curriculum and we will also do a lot of Mathematics ourselves!

Our Professional Enquiry course provides breadth and depth of insight across key themes such as learning theories, assessment, equalities, inclusion and teacher health and wellbeing. An additional PSHE award is also available to all students.

You will complete six modules, five of which will require a written assignment. For the final module, University tutors and school-based mentors will share the assessment against the Teachers’ Standards for the award of QTS. You will have a personal academic tutor to guide and support you, as well as a dedicated subject mentor in both placement schools.

Many local schools have a high regard for Birmingham Mathematics PGDipEd (QTS) students and we have an excellent record of students gaining jobs at the end of the course. Many of our ex-students are now Heads of Departments in our partnership schools.

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