👩🏫 Are PGCE and SCITT the same thing?

No, they’re not. PGCE is an academic qualification and SCITT is a school-led teacher training route. Many SCITT courses lead to QTS – Qualified Teacher Status. However, some SCITT courses also include a PGCE qualification through a university partnership.

🤑 How much do participants get paid during SCITT training?

Participants don’t always get paid during this training programme. Many SCITT courses are fee-funded, meaning you pay tuition fees (this is an acceptable use of student finance). Some school-led or employment-based routes may offer a salary, but it depends on the provider, subject, eligibility and route type. Always check the funding details for the specific SCITT programme you’re applying to.

SCITT Teaching: Focus, Benefits, and Guarantees

When people search for teacher training options in the UK, they invariably come across SCITT teacher training. This school-based route into teaching in England raises a lot of questions, not the least of which is whether it's suitable for their needs. This article discusses what SCITT is and how the programme works, what it takes to access this programme and how much it costs. We'll also reveal QTS and PGSE outcomes related to SCITT, how to choose the right programme for your situation, and how to apply.

What Is SCITT Teacher Training?

1️⃣ SCITT stands for School-Centred Initial Teacher Training.
2️⃣ It is a school-led route into becoming a qualified teacher in England.
3️⃣ Rather than university training, you'll train in schools to earn Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
4️⃣ Some SCITT programmes include a post-graduate certificate in education (PGCE).
5️⃣ SCITT is best suited to people who want hands-on classroom experience from the start and are ready for an intensive, practical route into teaching.

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What Is SCITT Teaching?

SCITT, the acronym for School-Centred Initial Teacher Training, puts teacher trainees in the classroom to gain practical experience while still working towards their official credentials. Trainees work with experienced teachers and mentors at the school they are assigned, which helps them build pedagogical skills in real-time.

SCITT is not a type of school to learn how to teach, nor is it an extra credential you can earn towards your Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). It is a novel route into teaching that results in a QTS, available in select schools across England.

May I train in any school in England?

SCITT is only available at schools approved to deliver this type of teacher training.

Typically, programme administrators match teacher trainees to schools based on the subject they teach and their location. If you intend to specialise as an English or Maths teacher, you may be placed in any school near you. However, if you teach French or Mandarin, your placement depends on which facility nearest your home offers those courses.

You may, of course, request a particular school when you interview for placement¹. However, the school's requirements and ability to accommodate your preferences factor in when deciding your placement.

A man in a green shirt points to a space a younger man carrying a small box might move into. The mood is welcoming and encouraging. — Local authorities run SCITT programmes to ensure the best accommodations for local schools and teachers.

Who Runs SCITT Programmes?

Rather than a national-level authority managing affairs, local governing bodies oversee local programmes. These boards manage the programme's finances, and steer schools' strategic direction to make programmes successful.

Typically, a school senior executive or someone high in the authority chain - a principal or their designee, oversees the proper use of public funds. This person is someone who Parliament can hold accountable, if needed².

At the head of it all sits the Department for Education (DfE), which accredits and funds providers. Before it grants any money, it makes sure the school has every feature in place to manage the programme, including its existing financial viability.

How a SCITT Programme Works

Let's say your teacher training goals include earning you PGCE, and you had anticipated an extra year at university to do so. You might instead spend that year in a SCITT programme and emerge with your QTS and PGCE, as well as classroom experience. Let's follow the SCITT programme structure from start to finish to see how that could happen.

Step 1

Apply and interview

You must have your 2:2 undergraduate degree to qualify.

Step 2

Pre-course preparation

Academic reading, Occupational Health assessment, Subject Knowledge Enhancement courses, if needed.

Step 3

First school placement

This is considered your 'main', or 'home' school, where you'll spend most of the year.

Step 4

Training sessions

One day per week, plus intensive training modules and seminars.

Step 5

Second placement

Typically a contrasting phase, such as primary to secondary or a standard classroom to a special needs one.

Step 5

Final Assessment

A comprehensive evaluation to measure whether you meet QTS standards.

Step 6

Recommendation for QTS

Your SCITT experience serves as qualifying documents.

It is crucial that you make sure the programme you apply to offers the PGCE component; not all of them do. Should you apply to a programme that offers PGCE as a part of its curriculum, you needn't do anything else. Your QTS and PGCE are assured upon successful programme completion.

A Word on School Placements

This programme is meant to offer as broad a teaching experience as possible while still mentoring teacher trainees. For that reason, each trainee will have a 'home' school, and a second placement where they'll experience different teaching conditions.

'Home' school placement

This will generally accord with your stated teaching preferences, expressed during your interview.
That includes the age group/key stage you'd like to teach, as well as your preferred subject.

Secondary placement

This will give you a contrasting experience.
You may teach a different age group, lead special needs classes, or teach a different subject.
You'll report to another school for this phase.

As this training mode is more demanding than routine academic learning, it's crucial to build solid mentoring relationships early in your SCITT training. Your mentor should help guide your choices and help you process your classroom experiences, as well as provide vital feedback to hone your classroom management and teaching skills.

A woman wearing glasses, seated at a computer, looks down as another woman points to the screen. The mood is collaborative and helpful. — As an SCITT trainee, you'll benefit from regular learning sessions on campus.

SCITT Training Sessions

The timeline above states trainees will undergo training even as they lead classroom learning. Like many teaching apprenticeships, this training addresses administrative issues and pedagogical skills, among other aspects of teaching.

👨‍💼 Classroom management: student behavioural issues, lesson pacing, incorporating educational technology (EdTech).

📃 Lesson planning: compliance with National Curriculum mandates, addressing student interests, etc.

😟 Assessments: how to conduct assessments, marking papers, providing feedback, evaluating student progress and more.

🥰 Pastoral care: assuring students' physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being, and strategies to create such an environment.

📝 SEND: teaching strategies to ensure successful student outcomes as well as ways to ensure student inclusion.

Besides these vital teaching aspects, training sessions drill on aspects of the National Curriculum and trainees' knowledge and skills in teaching them. Seminars may also address 'classroom of the future' talking points: the use of AI in lessons, diversified learning, differentiated strategies and more.

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SCITT Meaning: Comparing Programmes

The teaching profession is full of acronyms, from GCSEs and KS to teacher training pathways: PGCE, QTS, and SCITT. This leads many to wonder what they all are and which is the best, most suitable means of achieving their teaching credentials. This chart defines those three acronyms.

😃 Initiative	🔍 What it represents	🧙‍♂️ Why it matters	↘ The bottom line
QTS	Qualified teacher status.	It's a requirement to teach in English schools.	Several routes into teaching yield a QTS, including SCITT.
SCITT	A school-led training route	It's a teacher training pathway.	Successful completion leads to a QTS. Select programmes lead to a PGCE.
PGCE	An academic teaching qualification	It's useful for academic recognition and international teaching opportunities.	It's an additional year in academic learning, which also leads to QTS.

With the understanding that successful completion of any qualified teacher training programme leads to a QTS, this table compares SCITT with various initiatives.

👩‍🏫 Programmes to compare	🔲 Learning environment	⌚ Time spent learning	📚 Degree of formal study	💶 Funding/support
SCITT vs PGCE	classroom academic	1 year 1 year	Limited to training sessions full academic learning	unfunded, perhaps salaried; mentoring Unfunded, unpaid, perhaps mentored.
SCITT vs salaried teacher training	classroom classroom	1 year 1 year	Limited to training sessions Three years of transferable work experience required	Unfunded, perhaps salaried; mentoring. Funded, salaried; weekly 1-1 support sessions.
SCITT vs Teach First	classroom classroom	1 year 2 years	Limited to training sessions Roughly a month long, intensive study programme.	unfunded, perhaps salaried; mentoring. Funded, salaried; structured mentoring programmes.

We must make clear the difference in status between SCITT and salaried teacher training. Under SCITT, you will be a teacher trainee. Under a salaried teacher training programme, you are an employee of the school, with all that entails.

A further clarification to make: SCITT represents a 'gentler' path into teaching³. Teach First and similar programmes are highly competitive, intensive, and perhaps orientated towards leadership roles. Participants will teach a full class load from Day One, and their intensive summer training takes place before entering the classroom.

A woman wearing blue and a name tag stands at a board, addressing people seated at tables. The mood is stimulating and educational. — Mentoring sessions are commonplace in SCITT training. Photo by Centre for Ageing Better

Choosing the Programme that Suits You the Best

All the routes into teaching in England offer benefits and advantages, and they also have their downsides. Deciding which path is right for you depends on personal factors as much as what these programmes offer. These preferences should weigh on your final decision.

Choose SCITT if...

you prefer practical learning
you want you want school-based training
you want to start building local networks

Choose another route if...

you need a salary now
you want more time at uni
you'd rather ease into classroom teaching

SCITT Training Entry Requirements

As noted in the timeline above, candidates who already have their 2:2 bachelor's degree qualify for access to SCITT opportunities. However, the list of must-haves is a bit longer than that. Here, we list typical entry requirements, and caution you to check with your preferred school for any additional ones.

🔬 GCSE Science: if you intend to teach at the primary level. Standard requirements for GCSE Maths and English apply.

📚 Subject knowledge: to teach a target subject at the secondary level, you must have demonstrated knowledge of that subject.

👮‍♀️ Health and safeguarding checks: enhanced DBS, Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) check; additional checks for any disqualifying information.

Besides these vital screenings, you will be subject to standard identity and right-to-work scrutiny any other job applicant submits to. Finally, vetting boards will scour your records for past teaching experience. It's not necessary to have any, but it might help advance your application.

How to Apply for SCITT Teacher Training

Once you settle on SCITT as the right path for your needs and goals, you need a roadmap to guide you to your optimal placement. Various websites present action steps; here, we condense them into a practical, at-a-glance checklist.

🔎 Research providers in your area or the area you plan to settle in. Make sure the school teaches your preferred subject(s).

📃 Course offering: does successful completion result in QTS or QTS plus PGCE?

✅ Entry requirements: these should be general, as listed above, though some programmes have extra requirements.

💰 Funding: how will you pay for your programme? Will the school offset some costs? Will you earn any money?

Once all those questions have been answered to your satisfaction, it's time to prepare your application package. You'll do so through an official teacher training application service like Get Into Teaching. Note that you'll submit a personal statement with your application, just as you would for any job you apply to.

What to expect after applying

✅ Once your application has been vetted, you'll be invited to interview.
🔍 You may undergo additional assessments or proving tasks before your final approval.
🧭 Complete any further suitability and/or safeguarding checks.

While you wait for your interview invitation, you might look into other aspects of your chosen SCITT programme. Knowing about its partner schools and Ofsted rating not only assures your choice, but it boosts your credibility and interest when discussing those topics during your interview.

You may also look into ways to fund your teacher training. Such may include scholarships, tax-free bursaries, or maintenance loans⁴. Should you teach a critical subject like physics, maths, or computing, you may qualify for scholarships or other disbursements.