Online PGCE courses are an excellent way to change direction and become a teacher if you cannot make a commitment to a campus-based course.
What is a PGCE program?
The PGCE – Postgraduate Certificate in Education – allows postgraduate students to work in a variety of educational settings and become qualified teachers in the UK with Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). Not all online PGCE courses contain the QTS element, but that doesn’t mean that they are not an option for many people.
Universities offering online PGCE programs
The University of Cumbria, the Open University, University of Nottingham and the University of Sunderland all offer PGCE courses that are delivered by online distance learning. There are also some options in South Africa such as the distance learning PGCE program at MANCOSA or the Cornerstone Institute.
Countries that offer online PGCE programs
Online PGCE courses tend to be taught out of universities based in the UK as they are aimed at the British educational system. However, there are also PGCE courses delivered by distance learning, often with an online element, in countries including South Africa and Dubai. Any country where the educational system is based on the British educational system may have an online PGCE program option. If you know that you wish to be based in a particular country, then it is wise to follow that country’s teaching programs, as you may have to convert your PGCE with additional courses. The University of Nottingham runs online PGCE courses, which includes a small number of on site sessions to attend, and these are based all over the world, in locations including Nigeria, Hong Kong, China, Thailand, India, Spain, Peru and Singapore.
Entry requirements for online PGCE courses
Most PGCE courses require the student to have at least an undergraduate (bachelors) degree of at least 2.2 grade (or equivalent) from a UK university. This table shows the entry requirements for studying an online PGCE program at a selection of universities in the UK and South Africa.
Costs of online PGCE programs
For UK students, the online PGCE program costs £1,675 at the University of Cumbria and is not available to international students. The University of Nottingham’s online PGCE has different tuition fees that depend on the country you are attending the on-campus sessions. The course for those in the UK costs £4,110 for all students and for all students attending the on-campus sessions in Hong Kong, it costs £4,320. The University of Sunderland course is also aimed at students all over the world and the tuition fees are £7,455 for all students. At the Cornerstone Institute in South Africa, the online PGCE costs R375.00 per module credit for all students, international students may have to pay an addition student fee depending on which country they are from.
Course content
The online PGCE course at the University of Nottingham is widely available for students around the world and around 900 students complete the course each year. Modules available include topics such as Educational Aims and Values in International Contexts, Inquiring into Educational Practice in International Contexts, and Understanding Learning and Teaching in International Contexts. Modules at the PGCE course at MANCOSA in South Africa include Education Studies: Curriculum, Teaching and Learning and Education Studies: Sociology and Philosophy. Most online PGCE courses assume that you are familiar with educational practice and are or have already worked in education in some way.
Do you have to do any on-campus or teaching modules?
In the UK it depends if you are planning on gaining Qualified Teaching Status (QTS) as to whether you require an in-classroom or teaching modules. Many courses assume you have access or experience of classroom-based teaching to draw on during the assessments. The University of Nottingham courses all include short sessions – of a few days to a week – that students need to attend on campuses around the world. The University of Sunderland’s distance learning PGCE program includes a module of extended teaching practice, which is entirely based in your workplace in an educational facility.
Duration of the course
The length of time it takes to study an online PGCE varies, and this depends on whether you choose to study full time or part time. The courses last between 11 months when choosing to study full time and up to four years studying part time.