The National Careers Service website states that you can “apply directly to work in further education if you have relevant experience, knowledge and skills in a technical or academic subject.” Many FE institutions will ask for a level 5 teaching qualification, however, so you should check what your preferred employer requires.
Should you find your dream job in FE only for the employer to require this qualification, you can potentially gain some teaching experience by offering to do some voluntary teaching, or shadow key professionals.
If you’re an experienced teacher with a degree but don’t have Qualified Teacher Status, you could consider an assessment. You can obtain QTS without having to do any further training, via assessment. This is known as the Assessment Only (AO) route. This allows you to demonstrate that you already meet all the standards for QTS, and is offered by numerous universities, colleges, SCITTs, and School Direct training providers in England.
Holding a degree and having substantial experience of working in a school, early years, or FE setting means that the AO option is a fast-track to gaining QTS without the need to undergo a teacher training programme.
The AO route involves a 12-week programme, offered by a number of universities, colleges, school-centred initial teacher training (SCITT) and School Direct training providers in England.
AoCJobs, part of the Association of Colleges, connects teachers and support staff with schools and colleges for online job opportunities.
