(Secondary) Geography PGCE

Top reasons to choose this course

• Train with an Ofsted ‘outstanding’ provider – study with a teacher training provider rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted for primary and secondary initial teacher education, and learn from an expert team with successful classroom experience.
• Gain Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) – complete a recognised route into teaching that leads to Qualified Teacher Status, the professional qualification required to teach in schools in England.
• Extensive school-based training – spend at least 120 days in schools, with training shared between the university and partner schools, and gain experience through placements in contrasting educational settings.
• Placement opportunities across diverse school settings – benefit from placements in large, small, urban and rural schools, helping you develop a broad understanding of secondary education.
• Develop your geography subject expertise – enhance your knowledge through a residential field trip, subject-specific activities and contributions from GIS experts, the Royal Meteorological Society, the Royal Geographical Society and the Geographical Association.
• Join a vibrant geography education community – engage in geographical debates, build your professional identity and become part of a supportive network of geography educators.
• Access specialist geography resources – use professional tools including the Ordnance Survey Digimap digital mapping system and learn how to incorporate technology into geography teaching.
• Enhance your learning through enrichment opportunities – attend external seminars, conferences and exhibitions, and gain opportunities to teach students aged 16–18.
• Learn in realistic teaching environments – train in subject classrooms that replicate those used in schools and make use of the Curriculum Centre’s specialist resources for student teachers.
• Outstanding support during and after your training – receive ongoing guidance from university tutors and school mentors throughout your placements, plus access to Brighton’s Early Career Teacher support programme after qualification.
• Excellent employment prospects – benefit from graduate employment rates that are consistently above the sector average and build valuable professional networks through placements and professional development opportunities.

Why Brighton is a great place to study secondary geography education

Brighton is an excellent place to train as a secondary geography teacher, combining high-quality teacher education with access to a rich variety of urban, coastal and rural environments. Less than an hour from central London, the city and surrounding region provide an ideal setting for exploring geographical issues and developing fieldwork skills.

Named one of the world's 50 best cities and the happiest city in the UK by Time Out, Brighton is known for its creativity, diversity and progressive outlook. From its unique coastal location and nearby South Downs National Park to its vibrant communities and cultural attractions, Brighton offers an inspiring environment in which to develop the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to engage young people with the world around them.

Course structure

This course offers a number of features that are of enormous benefit to graduates and their continuing professional development. These include: active involvement with fieldwork, both locally and in a residential context; opportunities for involvement with RGS/IBG and GA seminars, conferences and exhibitions; access to the OS digital map information system Digimap through university registration; and the use of iPads in the geography classroom.

Two-thirds of your year will be spent teaching under supervision in schools. Our tutors and mentors will advise and support you throughout each placement. You will receive comprehensive feedback during this time, enabling you to see what you are doing well and where you might need to improve.

The university works in partnership with schools and colleges to provide a high-quality programme of support, ensuring a sound relationship between theory and practice. You will benefit from undertaking two placements in two schools or colleges, with the opportunity to visit additional schools or colleges as part of the peer observation programme.

The school has excellent multimedia training materials, giving you the opportunity to develop your confidence and competence in the use of information and communications technology (ICT). Our multimedia suites are regularly updated to keep up with technological advancements in classroom teaching provision.

Areas of study

Course content is kept up to date with changes in local and national initiatives and legislation, so you will be confident that your working knowledge is based on current theory and practice.

The areas of study are made up of three strands.

The subject study/subject education strand builds upon your existing expertise in geography and provides you with the opportunity to develop skills, knowledge and understanding of geography in the secondary school context.

We’ll support you to use your geographical knowledge and understanding to inspire and motivate learners in the classroom. You’ll be provided with opportunities to engage in geographical debates and be part of a geographical community to help with your professional development and teacher identity.

The course focuses on developing pedagogical content knowledge supported by the university sessions and school-based training. You will develop your geographical knowledge through subject specific activities, such as a residential field trip, and through contributions from GIS experts and the Royal Meteorological office, The Royal Geographical Society (RGS) and the Geographical Association (GA).

The subject education module is specifically related to teaching the specialist subject in school, while the subject study module enables you to take your subject specialist studies to an increased depth.

The education and professional studies strand will give you a thorough understanding of the learning process itself, including an appreciation of individual differences. The study of the principles and practices of learning and teaching is through both school and university settings, allowing you to develop practical competencies, supported by analytical skills. By the end of the course you will:

• refine your understanding of pedagogy, including an appreciation of current and emerging educational theories and debate

• understand how to use and adapt a range of teaching, learning, management and assessment strategies in order to meet the varying needs of learners

• understand how the progress and wellbeing of learners is affected by a range of influences and know how to take account of the principles of equality, inclusion and diversity.

The school placements/professional practice strand is linked intrinsically to all key strands of the course and is designed to enable you to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to thrive as creative, informed and critical professionals.

You will engage in target setting and action planning, and reflect upon your learning in order to make improvements as you progress through the emerging, embedding and enhancing phases of trainee teacher development towards meeting the Teachers’ Standards and the award of Qualified Teacher Status at the end of the course.

School-based training

Ofsted identifies our approach to training in schools as a key strength of this course, with an excellent balance between university tuition and school-based training.

You will spend at least 120 days on school-based activities, with training shared between the university and the partner schools. 

Your school-based training will take place in two carefully selected schools and will include observing teachers, working with pupils, team and independent teaching, completing specific subject tasks and learning about school policy and effective practices.

You will also write lesson plans and evaluations for classes, carry out formative and summative assessment of pupils’ learning and performance, and maintain an e-portfolio which will be evaluated as part of your overall assessment.

Key aims:

• develop your professional attributes, skills, knowledge and understanding and help you gain confidence in your teaching ability
• provide a variety of practical and specific experiences that enable you to critically analyse your professional practice and take responsibility for your own professional development
• enable you to work collaboratively with colleagues in order to develop an understanding of the ways in which the attainment, development and wellbeing of all learners can be achieved with a unified support and teaching system
• provide opportunities for you to adopt a creative and constructively critical approach towards your practice, supported by appropriate reading and research

• make valuable contacts which will help when looking for your first teaching role.

Throughout your placements, university tutors and school mentors will support and assess your progress, providing regular feedback to guide your professional development.

You’ll be encouraged to critically review your work, set appropriately challenging targets, and work with your tutors to create an action plan that identifies your strengths, development needs and next steps, ensuring your practice continually evolves.

Organising your school-based training

We organise over 2,500 placements annually with our 600-plus partner schools and colleges, offering varied placement opportunities in large, small, urban and rural settings to give you a well-rounded experience. Placements are taken in our partnership region which covers the south-east of England and you can be located up to 90 mins away by public transport or a 35-mile radius if driving. Please see our travel policy for further information.

When you start your course, you will complete a placement information form and we’ll use this information to match you to a suitable placement – we work hard to ensure your placement gives you valuable and varied experiences in the area of you’re interested in. We will consider your previous experience, travelling distance, the age ranges you wish to teach and your current needs.

Once we have matched you with a placement, the Partnership Office team will confirm with the school or organisation as quickly as possible and contact you with the details.

We will ensure you are well prepared before you start and you will have all the support and guidance needed to make the most of these placement opportunities.

Meet the course leader

Sharon Reilly, programme leader

Sharon joined the University of Brighton in 2017 as a senior lecturer in geography education, teaching on both the Geography PGCE and apprenticeship route. She is practice learning lead for the PGCE secondary team and supports mentors and professional tutors, as well as the trainees to ensure they are successful during their PGCE.

Prior to joining the university Sharon had 20 years’ experience in several secondary schools as a head of geography, head of humanities, coordinator of vocational education and in lead pastoral roles.

She has worked with exam boards and developed geography exemplar material for other schools across the UK through work with QCA. She also held a responsibility as a mentor to trainee geography teachers in schools.

Sharon has a masters in education and her special interests are the development of teacher identity, how this is influenced by prior subject knowledge, pedagogy and prior experiences and how it supports trainee teachers to develop powerful geographical knowledge in the classroom. She has recently had two articles published about decolonising the geography curriculum and presented these ideas at a conference and in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) sessions with a local school.

Sharon is an active member of the geography hub which supports geography departments in Sussex to develop their curriculum, keep up to date with ideas and research and introduce new teaching models. She has recently presented ideas about incorporating adaptive teaching techniques as part of the hub.

Ofsted ‘outstanding’

Graded ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted for primary and secondary in our 2024 Initial Teacher Education inspection.

Ofsted commended us on many aspects of our courses, saying:

• Trainees shine at Brighton’s long-established and highly impressive teacher training programmes.
• The care and dedication shown by staff towards trainees is superb.
• Trainees are at the heart of everything. They are valued and expertly supported throughout the course.
• The curriculum skilfully equips trainees in safeguarding, behaviour management and supporting pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
• Trainees impress the placement settings they work in because of their professionalism and aptitude to apply what they have learned.

Facilities

Our facilities include a Curriculum Centre which contains specialist resources for trainee teachers including pupil-focused books for all National Curriculum subjects and teaching resources for early years, primary and secondary courses.

Our Falmer campus also houses specialist classrooms that replicate those used in schools so you’ll feel at home when you go on your school-based training and start your career.

Teaching facilities include:

• science labs
• art classrooms
• kiln room
• dark room
• design and technology workshop
• performance studio.

School Connect PGCE and School Direct Salaried

School Connect PGCE and School Direct Salaried are alternative routes to gaining Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). The University of Brighton works with a number of schools to deliver this programme across a range of secondary subjects as well as in the primary phase. 

To train as a teacher through the School Connect PGCE or the School Direct Salaried programme you need to apply directly to a school for a training place. Schools advertise their vacancies on the Department for Education’s ‘Find Postgraduate training courses’ website. 

Find out more about School Connect PGCE and School Direct Salaried.

Course fees

As a postgraduate trainee teacher there is a range of funding available which you could be eligible to receive while you are studying.

• Tax-free bursaries and scholarships – these depend on the subject you are training to teach and your highest relevant academic award. 

On our website you will find information about other funding, including:

• the student finance package from Student Finance England – tuition fee loans and maintenance loans
• Parents’ Learning Allowance
• Childcare Grant
• Care leavers’ bursary
• Disabled Students’ Allowance.

If you are not a UK citizen, you are unlikely to get help funding your training unless you have permission to live permanently in the UK.

The course fees shown here are what you will pay for the first year of your course if you start in the academic year 2026–27 and you are studying full-time (fee amount is subject to parliamentary approval). You pay fees in each year of your course. The fees you pay may increase each year.

Regulated fees

Fees for UK students on undergraduate and some postgraduate courses are set by the UK government. These are known as regulated fees. From academic year 2026–27, regulated fees will increase annually in line with forecast inflation.

Unregulated fees

Course fees for international students taking undergraduate courses and for most postgraduate courses are not regulated by the UK government. Unregulated fees may increase each year by up to 5% or the forecast Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation (whichever is higher).

Find out more

• Fees, bursaries, scholarships and government funding info for UK and international postgraduate students
• Student finance and budgeting while studying
• About the university’s fees by checking our student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf)

Campus where this course is taught

Accommodation

Local area

Maps

Support and wellbeing

Sport at Brighton