How to become a teacher in England
The one thing you need: QTS
Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) is the professional status required to teach in maintained primary, secondary and special schools in England. You earn it by completing an approved initial teacher training (ITT) programme that assesses you against the Teachers’ Standards. Academies and private schools can employ teachers without QTS, but most prefer it.
The main routes in
All of the routes below lead to QTS (except Early Years ITT, which leads to Early Years Teacher Status). The right one depends on whether you already have a degree, and whether you want to earn while you train.
- Postgraduate, fee-funded – for graduates; a roughly nine-month course where you pay tuition fees (student finance is available). Usually includes a PGCE.
- Postgraduate, salaried – for graduates; you train as a paid employee of a school instead of paying fees.
- Undergraduate – a three- to four-year degree (such as a BEd or BA/BSc with QTS) if you don’t yet have a degree.
- Teacher Degree Apprenticeship (TDA) – a newer earn-while-you-learn undergraduate route, with the first cohort starting in 2025/26.
- Assessment Only – for experienced unqualified teachers who already meet the standards and can evidence their practice.
- iQTS – an international route leading to English QTS for those training outside England.
See routes into teaching compared for the full picture.
Funding
Many postgraduate trainees in shortage subjects receive a tax-free bursary – up to £29,000 in chemistry, computing, mathematics and physics for 2026/27 – or an even higher scholarship. See bursaries and scholarships.
Once you start: induction
New teachers get a funded, structured two-year induction under the Early Career Teacher Entitlement (ECTE), including a trained mentor and time off timetable. See the ITTECF and ECTE explained.