Am I going the right way to become an A-Level teacher?

Question

I'm just starting my second year of Graphic Design at uni. Are there any special requirements to become Graphic Design teacher? What kind of teaching qualification do I need? Is it even a good enough job or should I try to do Design professionally instead?

I want to teach A-Level. I'm not interested in teaching GCSE or lower, as I'm not interested in that age group.

Answer 1

Why don't you ask some of your instructors about the requirements? Generally to teach you do need a license. And for graphic design, you should probably spend a few years working in the field as a designer so that you can teach your students not only theory but practice.

Answer 2

simple...yes you are going in the right direction.

early in your final year at uni you'll have to apply to get onto a PGCE in a subject of your choice. when you apply and go to visit those unis that do the respective PGCE make sure you mention you're only interested in graphic design for A level as this will affect the placements you get and the course content. the PGCE is a year long course and will mostly be spent in a school learning the hard way!

its a good job being a teacher and a practical subject is probably the most rewarding especially with 16-18 year olds as they would have chosen to do that A level course. pay is reasonable if you get a 2:1 or 1st, expect to be earning in the low 20's in your first year rising to low 30's after 4-5 years. it can go higher if you pick up more responsibility such as head of dept or head of year etc. good pensions also!

if you want to go into design professionally then you will have a harder time in graphic design to be honest - there is not a great deal of it around in the uk. there is quite a bit of engineering design and that can pay very well but competition is very hot and the industry is in decline.

if money is not a major concern to you I think teaching would be more rewarding and you've got much better job security and pension.

good luck....

Answer 3

It depends on where you want to teach. Most universities require a MS or MA degree or higher, but you should specifically ask the universities around you that you are interested in. It is basically up to each individual institution to make that decision.

Public schools require a BS, BA, MS, or MA depending on the state, as well as state certification, however that only applies up to high school. Some high schools do teach introductory graphic design, but it's very limited as to what you can do, so I would say talk to the universities.

Also teaching graphic design at a university is a very flexible job. Many teachers will teach a class or two in addition to their professional jobs. The schedule makes it easy if you want to teach a night or two, on a weekend, or whatever fits.

Best of luck.

Answer 4

To teach a specific subject you need to teach in a secondary school so you need aa PGCE which is a one year course after your degree. You'll get a £6,000 training bursary and a student loan as well if you want one, and a golden hello after your first year working as a qualified teacher. You would probably teach design technology. In a private school you would need no teaching qualifications but many schools prefer them. You could expect a start pay of around £20k, and it would increase with seniority. Maybe you could earn more in the design industry, but if salary is your chief concern maybe teaching isn't for you because the money is okay but sometimes the conditions are awful. Perhaps you could follow the academic route to graphic design lecturing? Junior lecturers are often poorly paid but senior ones are better paid. Talk to your supervisor.

Answer 5

I just qualified to teach 16-18 year olds. Complete your degree and then you have to do a one year Post Compulsory PGCE. Not many Universities do them, most just do PGCE so look it up. You will get a bursary for doing the course. It is a one year teacher training course where 70% of the time you are allocated to a college or sixth form and teach your subject Art and Design or whatever
I finished my course in June and i got a job two weeks later at a sixth form school. I love teaching that age they are more of a challenge
There is no pay scale for post compulsory teachers you will probably start at £23,000 minimum some start on £27,000 there are no restrictions like Schools have
feel free to ask me any questions

Answer 6

Yes, you are! Once you've done your Graphic Design course, you can do a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (post compulsory). This means that you can teach anyone over the age of 14 in a college up to degree level. As well as the teaching qualification, you also need to have qualifications in a course at least ONE level above the level you are teaching. In your case, you will be more than qualified to teach A level (level 3 course) as you will have a degree (level 4 course-Google the term 'national qualifications framework' for an explanation of the different levels of courses). You also need to show that you have a good knowledge of 'key skills' subjects, such as Maths, English and Science. E.g. A B in GCSE Maths would be good evidence. You will also be tested in these key skills when you apply for your PGCE course. The PGCE course is 1 year long full-time and 2 years long part-time. I suggest that you go for the full time course as you won't be studying for more than 3/4 days a week. A good PGCE course will also give you at least 120 hours per year (aprrox 7-12 hours per week) teaching experience at a college associated with the teaching college. The course will also teach you the standards approved by the government. In the past, these were called FENTO (Further Education Network of Training Organisations) but I don't know what it's called but the website address is: http://www.lifelonglearninguk.org/. You can also apply for a bursary of £6000 paid in 9 monthly installments (if on a fulll-time course) if you study at an institution approved by the lifelong learning UK websites and do NOT have any paid teaching jobs while you're doing the teaching course. You also do NOT have to pay tuition fees for doing a teaching course, but you would need to apply to your local education authority (LEA) for funding in the same way as you did when you applied for your degree. Personally, I'd recommend the Institute of Education if you live in or around London. If not, look on the life long learning or the http://www.gttr.ac.uk/website for a list of approved institutions. Be warned! Some teacher training providers set a minimum age limit of 24. E.g. University of Greenwich. Yes, you can also do Masters course in Education and Teaching as well but all expect you to have experience of teaching adults already, as do many part time PGCE courses. I therefore suggest that you stick to the full-time PGCE, if possible.

As for teaching being a good enough job, it totally depends on how you feel about teaching! The pay in London is quite good (approx £19 per hour) and I personally find the work very demanding but rewarding and satisfying. However, some of my more experienced colleagues are disillusioned and therefore do nothing but moan about it! In a subject such as Graphic design, I suggest that it would be a good idea to obtain/keep a part-time job in that alongside a part-time job in teaching, so that you can keep your skills up, as well as have a break from the demands of teaching, and provide your future students with useful professional connections!

By the way, I don't think that you need any special qualifications in addition to the PGCE to teach Graphic Design, but you might want to check this out with one of your lecturers!

I hope that this information has been useful to you!

For further details on getting into teaching, go to:

www.tda.gov.uk

The website is geared towards Primary and Secondary teachers but the advisors can also give you help on Further Education teaching as well.

For further information on teaching courses, go to:

www.ioe.ac.uk

and click on the initial teacher training section.

Hope you get on ok!

Good luck!

Answer 7

Well the best thing to do is to get some work experience and get some things that sound good on c.v's

good luck

Answer 8

I don't know hun I minored in art majored in psychology.

Answer 9

but there is only
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