Post Compulsory Education and Training (PCET) PGCE
Share your love of learning. Use your specialist subject knowledge every day. Help people discover new interests and careers.
Career ready
When you complete the PCET course, you will have a PGCE in Post Compulsory Education and Training that will qualify you to teach in the PCET sector.
Previous graduates of this course have gone on to employment within Further Education colleges, sixth form colleges, training organisations, charities, universities, prison education, and community and adult organisations.
After completing this ITE course, you can progress towards Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills (QTLS) status which is recommended for teaching in the Further Education and Skills sector. QTLS has legal equivalence to QTS and is recognised by some head teachers in schools. This qualification is completed through the Society for Education and Training (SET). Visit the SET website for further information on QTLS and to check your eligibility.
Teacher Training placement
Teaching placements are an essential part of the PGCE PCET degree. We will help to arrange a minimum of 100 hours of teaching practice placement in the further education and skills sector over the one-year course. Your teaching practice placement will provide you with valuable opportunities to work alongside experienced teachers and to learn how to design, deliver, assess, and evaluate teaching and learning in the sector. You will be supported and guided by a subject specialist mentor who will be allocated to you through the University of Sunderland’s Placement Office. Please note that you will be expected to pay for your own travel to and from placement. When you’re ready to start searching for a teaching job, you will already have a wide network of professional contacts who can help you find the right opportunities.
Enhanced Mentoring
The Enhanced Mentoring pathway is a bespoke Initial Teacher Training option accredited by the University of Sunderland. Training as part of this pathway gives you the opportunity to learn on the job from the very beginning. You will benefit from working and learning every day in a further education environment, gaining immediate insight into what teaching involves. The Enhanced Mentoring option as part of the PGCE PCET is a fee-paying route into teaching, delivered in-house at Durham Sixth Form or Hartlepool Sixth Form College, accredited by and in collaboration with the PCET team at the University of Sunderland.
This pathway option is delivered by qualified in-house staff who possess a high level of expertise. It allows you as a trainee teacher to immerse yourself in post-16 education. You will benefit from this vast knowledge and experience, demonstrated through the academic programme that has been devised to cover a broad range of training areas. These areas include an introduction to teaching and learning, embedding effective assessment, enrichment, and developing action research skills.
Teaching will be supported by contemporary academic writing and educational research to ensure you are provided with a thorough knowledge of current educational policy and practice.
Meet the students
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The subject specialism sessions have been really beneficial when it comes to shaping my teaching.
Adam Teasdale
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I feel confident going into my first teaching role and recommend the course to any future teachers.
Cate Jones
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Thanks to the support of my tutor, I continued with my studies and it’s the best decision I've made.
Courtney Newburn
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The modern feel of Sunderland was like a breath of fresh air.
Emily Manson
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The way my course was structured allowed me to build my confidence and shaped who I am as a teacher.
Kristina Halsall
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My time at Sunderland has let me develop further than I ever thought I could.
Liam Atkin
