(Secondary) Religious Studies PGCE

Course in brief

The University of Brighton is one of the UK's largest teacher training universities, rated ‘outstanding’ in our last Ofsted inspection.

This course leads to the award of Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) for the 11–16 age range which enables you to teach in schools in England and Wales. The course also offers enrichment opportunities to teach the 16–18 age phase.

Studying with us, you will have access to excellent resources and gain practical experience in two contrasting schools. We have partnerships with over 600 schools and colleges in the south east offering opportunities in large, small, urban and rural settings.

You will be mentored by a successful teaching team with an outstanding national reputation and comprehensive research profile that informs course content.

Religious education continues to occupy a lively, distinctive and often controversial place in education and we engage in this debate as part of the healthy growth of the subject. You will be required to work out your own answers and approaches to the exciting challenges in religious education in professional, reflective and practical ways as you take on the role of a religious education teacher.

You could be eligible for a bursary of £9,000 if you are looking to start this course in 2019.

How to apply for teacher training.

Key facts

Location Brighton: Falmer

UCAS Teacher Training code V6X1

Full-time 1 year

Before starting this course you will need to have passed the Professional Skills Tests; if you have not already completed these you are advised to take them as soon as possible.

Train to Teach Event

Come to a Train to Teach event on 28 November to learn more about this course.

Apply now with UCAS

Entry criteria

Entry requirements

The entry requirements listed here are our typical offer for this course if you wish to begin studying with us in 2018. They should be used as a general guide.

We operate a flexible admissions policy – this means that you could receive a lower conditional offer than the typical offer, informed by our assessment of your complementary non-academic achievements and experiences. For courses that require interview or portfolio review, this may also be considered in the level of any conditional offer that follows if your application is successful.

Degree and experience
Normally an honours degree, or equivalent qualification, in the subject specialism or a subject that is directly relevant.

GCSE (minimum grade C or grade 4)
At least English language and maths. In-house tests are available for candidates without qualifications in mathematics and English.

Professional Skills Tests 

You have to pass the professional skills tests in numeracy and literacy before you begin your teacher training. These tests are compulsory and it will not be possible to enter training without having successfully completed them. You are able to book these tests in advance. The Department for Education (DfE) strongly advises you to take the tests soon after you have submitted an application.

As of February 2018 new changes to these tests means that you can make unlimited attempts and the first three attempts are free of charge. The DfE has also removed the lock-out period that previously prevented you from re-taking tests for two years.

You do not need to have completed these tests prior to making an application or attending an interview however your offer will be subject to successful completion.

The University of Brighton recognises that these tests may present a challenge to some candidates and we recommend that you prepare before attempting them. Further resources to help you with the numeracy test can be found in the 'Course in detail' section below.

Find out more about the tests including how to register and prepare on the DfE website.

Experience

While experience in a school is not a condition of entry for initial teacher education courses we recommend that you take up opportunities to gain a realistic understanding of whether teaching is right for you. The Get Into Teaching School Experience Programme offers opportunities across the country to book a day’s worth of experience.

Other

All applicants are required to attend an interview in person either at the Falmer campus or in one of our partner schools.
All offers of places are subject to a satisfactory health check and a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) enhanced check.
Applicants from minority ethnic and other groups under-represented in the profession are particularly welcome.

For non-native speakers of English

IELTS 7.0 in all elements.

All offers of places are subject to a satisfactory health check and a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) enhanced check.

Course in detail

Course structure

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 where you are doing well and where you could 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.

You will be encouraged to approach your teaching strategies creatively, to aid the progress of your students and your own skills as an RE teacher. You will learn and practice a variety of teaching approaches and innovative classroom practices on this programme. Your learning will involve:

tutor and student-led seminars and presentations
practical workshops
group-work
drama and role play
media based activities; tutorials
sessions by visiting specialist lecturers
independent directed study
external national courses
active learning and a range of RE pedagogies.

You will have access to multimedia training materials, giving you the opportunity to develop your confidence and competence in the use of ICT. Our multimedia suites are regularly updated to keep up with technological advancements in classroom teaching provision. The Open Learning Centre and Falmer Library on campus contain a wealth of materials used in the teaching of Religious Education. This includes artefacts, music, images, film and text-books that you can draw upon to use in the classroom.

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We will support you in the development of your subject knowledge by:

the use of a subject audit
skills exchanges
subject knowledge enhancement days on Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism, Philosophy and Ethics and Sikhism
Islam micro-teaching
Hinduism interactive graduate presentations
visits to places of worship
advice on how to speak to people of faith
the maintaining of an ongoing subject knowledge folder.

Areas of study

A number of support systems are put in place before and during the course, to help students develop their subject knowledge in key curriculum areas. The subject knowledge required for Key Stages 3/4 includes the six major world faiths, religious philosophy and ethics, and secular philosophies and other religious traditions.

There are four strands to this course: subject study/subject education, education studies, school placements and professional development.

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 subject study/subject education strand builds upon your existing expertise in religious studies and provides you with the opportunity to develop skills, knowledge and understanding of religious studies in the secondary school context. You will consider the learning and teaching strategies that are relevant to the specialist subject.

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. You can earn 20 masters-level credits through the assessment for the subject study module.

The education 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 well-being of learners is affected by a range of influences and know how to take account of the principles of equality, inclusion and diversity.

Professional development is intrinsically linked to all key strands of the programme and is designed to enable you to evaluate critically and reflect upon your learning in order to make improvements. You will be expected to gather and justify evidence of your achievements on a regular basis and develop and implement improvement plans.

Students use an e-portfolio to record their achievements, and this is reviewed throughout the course. An action plan is used to support professional development during placements and makes up a significant part of the improvement planning process.

At the end of the course, the e-portfolio provides evidence that you have met the Teachers’ Standards for the award of Qualified Teacher Status.

School-based training

Ofsted identify 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 a minimum of 120 days on school-based activities, with your training shared between the university and the partner school.

Your school-based training will include observing teachers, working with individual pupils and groups of pupils, team teaching and independent teaching. Your training will also entail completing specific subject tasks and developing your knowledge of school policy and effective practices.

You will maintain a professional training portfolio and be supported to review your work critically and analytically as well as to set appropriately challenging targets. We will also develop an action plan with you to identify strengths, development needs and actions, so that your practice is continually developing.

Key aims of the school-based training:

advance the development of your professional attributes, skills, knowledge and understanding
provide 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 well-being of all learners can be achieved with a unified support and teaching system
provide opportunities that enable you to adopt a creative and constructively critical approach towards your practice, supported by appropriate reading and research.

During your school-based training, university tutors, school mentors and teachers will support you and take shared responsibility for your professional development.

Your progress will be observed and assessed throughout your placement by university and school staff, followed by feedback sessions to discuss your development. Your e-portfolio will also be evaluated as part of the overall assessment.

Organising your school-based training

Our Partnership Office will organise the school-based training for you. Each year we organise over 2,500 placements for our students. We work hard to ensure that you have placement opportunities that will give you valuable and varied experiences in the area of education in which you are interested.

How it works

We will ask you to complete a placement information form when you start your course, and will use this information to match you to a suitable placement. 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 team in the Partnership Office will confirm the placement as quickly as possible with the school or organisation. They will then contact you with the placement details. Almost all of our placements will be with partner schools or organisations in south-east England, most of them in East and West Sussex.

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Ofsted

In our most recent Initial Teacher Education inspection report, the University of Brighton's School of Education was graded 'outstanding'.

Ofsted identified some of our key strengths as:

the very high attainment of the majority of trainees
the expertly designed and diverse range of programmes that respond to trainees' backgrounds, needs and interests as well as to national priorities
the outstanding progress made by trainees as a result of training, which enables them to fulfil their potential
inspirational teaching, tutoring and mentoring that model the best teaching and give trainees the ambition to reach the highest standards
highly reflective trainees who demonstrate good subject knowledge and a breadth of understanding of how to teach
an excellent range of training experiences that effectively prepare trainees to teach in a diverse society
the excellent resources available to trainees
leadership that is dynamic in its approach to anticipating change and solving problems
a visionary approach to innovation and change.

Staff profile

Tom Newlands
Senior lecturer and route leader: Religious Studies (Secondary).

Prior to joining the University of Brighton in 2008 as a Senior Lecturer in Religious Studies Education, Tom had extensive experience in several secondary schools and a sixth form college as a Head of RE, PSHE and Humanities.

He is the subject leader for Religious Studies Education across the university, route leader for PGCE Religious Studies and programme leader for secondary postgraduate courses. He teaches on the BA(Hons) Primary Education with QTS and PGCE Secondary Religious Studies with QTS routes.

He has a Master’s in education and his special interests are experiential RE, pedagogies of RE, spiritual development in RE and philosophy for children. Presently he is completing doctoral research in the field of Religious Studies Education with a specific focus on autonomy, decision-making and pedagogy in the RE classroom. He is also a co-opted member of the Brighton and Hove Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE); contributes to publications and has led workshops for teachers in the field of Religious Education.

Skills Tests

Support for the skills tests

You have to pass the professional skills tests before you begin your teacher training. The University of Brighton recognises that these tests may present a challenge to some candidates and hope these support materials will help you to be fully prepared before attempting them.

Department for Education Practise Materials – You will find a range of support materials on this official site, including online tests.

Passing the Numeracy Skills Test – Book by Mark Patmore, including one practice test . Published February 2018. ISBN-13: 978-1526419231

How to Pass the QTS Numeracy and Literacy Skills Tests: Essential Practice for the Qualified Teacher Status Skills Tests - Book by Chris John Tyreman. Published July 2016. ISBN-13: 978-0749478292

School Direct

School Direct is an alternative route to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and the University of Brighton is working 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 Direct programme you need to apply directly to a school for a School Direct training place, with schools advertising their vacancies on the UCAS Teacher Training website. The University of Brighton supports School Direct through providing training and assessment opportunities at the request of participating schools.

Find out more about School Direct and view vacancies.

Study Here

Why choose teaching at the University of Brighton?

We are rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted for initial teacher training
Our graduates benefit from excellent employment rates that are consistently above the sector average
We have 600 partner schools and colleges, offering varied placement opportunities to our students
We work closely with local authorities, schools, colleges and educational organisations ensuring that our students are kept up to date with the changing world of education
Our tutors are experts in their area of research and have published numerous academic publications
We offer several routes into teaching with the opportunity to engage in professional development after graduating
Enjoy outstanding facilities including dedicated studios, laboratories, the latest classroom technologies and more than 30,000 specialist resources for trainee teachers
We have a dedicated team to help you after you qualify, through our NQT support programme
We’re one of the UKs largest teacher training universities, educating teachers and leaders for over 100 years

Features

We offer a range of course features to enhance your learning experience:

Facilities
You will be taught in dedicated classroom spaces to model a school environment as well as have access to over 30,000 specialist teaching resources in our curriculum centre. We have a strong collection of RE resources that includes artefacts, books, games, music, posters and other teaching materials.

Field trips
You will have opportunities throughout the course to visit a number of local places of worship from a range of faiths to support your subject knowledge development. Previous visits have been made to churches, mosques, synagogues and Buddhist centres. Read more about our field trips on the School of Education Blog.

Guest speakers
You will have the opportunity to expand your personal subject expertise through curriculum workshops led by visiting lectures. Previous trainee teachers have taken part in workshops delivered by an A-level teacher and ex-trainee on active learning in key stage 5 Religious Studies / Philosophy teaching. We also have visits from organisations such as The Holocaust Educational Trust who lead a workshop on teaching The Holocaust in RE. Sue Phillips, who has a national reputation for her ‘theatre of learning’ approach to RE, also contributes to the programme.

Subject knowledge enhancement days
You will attend full day workshops on Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism to support your development of the subject knowledge needed for key stage 3 RE and key stage 4 RS teaching. Also, you will attend a half-day workshop on humanism and non-religious worldviews which have a great part to play in the modern RE curriculum that aims to be inclusive of all faiths and none.

PGCE open evening
As part of your final assessment you will develop your subject knowledge further by creating a visual display with other trainee teachers. This will be celebrated with subject tutors, school mentors, family and friends at the PGCE open evening. The annual event provides an opportunity for you to share and gain ideas, as well as be inspired about future classroom teaching.

Careers and employability

Graduates of the course are equipped with the skills and knowledge to become confident and competent secondary-school teachers.

As well as gaining a PGCE, you will be assessed against the national Teachers’ Standards in order to be recommended for the award of Qualified Teacher Status.

Most students gain employment in schools across the UK very soon after they have completed the course and achieved the teaching qualifications.

If you demonstrate a high level of understanding you may be eligible for masters-level credits.

If you are considering whether a career in teaching is for you, and you are a UK resident, the Department for Education’s School Experience Programme (SEP) offers 1 to 10 days’ classroom experience in a secondary school. For details, please check www.education.gov.uk.

The teachers we train are:

highly committed to their pupils’ learning and ambitious in what they want to help them achieve
inquisitive, critically reflective and motivated to keep learning and improving their own practice
quick to adapt to different learning contexts and confident to challenge inequalities
an asset to the profession, willing to share their knowledge and experience and to collaborate with others
well-prepared for the realities of teaching, with the confidence, resilience and skills to be innovative, to take risks and be creative.

Fees and funding

Your fees

UK/EU (full-time) 9,250 GBP

International (full-time) 14,040 GBP

Bursaries and funding

Generous, tax-free funding is available to the best graduates training in a range of subjects. You could get up to £28,000 tax-free while you train, either as a bursary or prestigious scholarship. Early-career payments are also on offer for those choosing mathematics.Your eligibility for financial support, and the amount you can expect to receive, will depend on the subject you choose to teach and your degree classification or highest relevant academic qualification.

In addition, a small number of discretionary bursaries may be awarded to trainees who we identify as having outstanding potential, and who fall within the bottom and middle tier for core bursary payment purposes.

You don’t need to apply for a bursary – if you are enrolled on a non-salaried postgraduate course and meet the eligibility criteria, you will begin receiving payments automatically by your chosen teacher training provider. You will receive more information on the arrangements and how this is distributed prior to the start of your course.

Find out more about funding.

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2018–19.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK/EU students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full- or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

What's included in the fee?

When costs such as health or DBS checks, or use of specialist materials are incurred as a mandatory requirement of the course they are included in your tuition fee.

You may incur additional costs depending on the optional modules or activities you choose. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. Before you apply check with the school that provides your course using the contact details in the Find out more tab (at the end of this page) for advice about what is included and what optional costs you could face so you can budget accordingly.

See our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as further information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Location and living here

Location

About Brighton

Forward-thinking and welcoming, the city of Brighton & Hove is a community of creative and diverse people who share values like sustainability and inclusivity – just like its university.

Miles of pebble beaches, hundreds of bars, restaurants and clubs, a packed calendar of culture, music and sport and great independent and high street shopping attract visitors from all over the world. By the end of your course you’ll still be finding new things to enjoy about the city.

The Brighton Festival, England’s largest arts festival, takes place every May – as does the Great Escape Europe’s leading industry showcase for new music, 300 bands perform over three days at venues across the city. Major events celebrate Pride, digital culture, cinema, photography, food and the winter solstice. Our own Brighton Graduate show is a highlight, turning the university into the largest exhibition space in the south east as we celebrate the outstanding creativity of our students.

As a student here you’ll have a unique opportunity to experience what the city has to offer. Volunteering and placement opportunities enable you to play your part in the events, organisations and communities that make Brighton such a compelling place to be.

Campus where this course is taught

Falmer campus

Surrounded by the South Downs National Park and just five miles from the centre of Brighton, our Falmer campus has benefited from over £60million of investment over the past 10 years. 7,000 students are based here, studying subjects including English, education, social science, nursing and medicine.

Recent developments include the Falmer Sports Centre – with its fitness suites and sports hall – and the innovative Checkland Building, which has natural ventilation systems and an insulating green roof.

Falmer has also recently installed more than 600 solar panels, which reduce the campus’s carbon emissions by more than 80 tonnes. The renovation has made us one of the top universities in the UK for on-site renewable energy production.

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Accommodation

Brighton: Falmer

We have halls of residence across the city in Grand Parade, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

Eligible students can apply for any of these options. Find out if you are eligible…
You’ll be prioritised for accommodation in the halls that are linked to your teaching base, subject to availability.
Falmer campus is linked to halls on the Falmer campus and Varley Park.
- Varley Park offers a mix of rooms and catering options. Varley Park is less than a mile from Falmer and four miles from the city centre. Public transport in the city is excellent, and there’s a shuttle bus between our Brighton campuses during term time.
- Paddock Field and Great Wilkins halls are on campus and offer a range of room types and catering options.

We also offer Unihomes and Unilets, student houses that we let out to our students on behalf of private landlords. This option offers the most choice and flexibility and can work particularly well when you’re balancing learning with placements and other commitments.

There’s plenty of support if you choose private rented accommodation. We manage our own studenthomes database of properties. And we run our housemates service over the summer for students, new and returning, looking for a place to live.

Find out more on our accommodation webpages.

Hillside hall of residence at Varley Park

Varley Park accommodation near to the Falmer campus

Student in our Moulsecoomb Place hall of residence

Maps

Accommodation

University building

Falmer campus

Find out more

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Ask a question about this course

Read our application advice for postgraduate teacher training. The DfE has also produced useful two helpful short films on the benefits of university-led training and what to know when applying for teacher training.

If you have a question about this course, our enquiries team will be happy to help.

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Student Views

Mark Schvetz

When I graduated from my degree in anthropology I had no idea what I wanted to do as a career, but I had always been fascinated by the rituals, practices and traditions of different cultures, and how they form a part of their social lives.

After various different jobs in call centres, bars, care work and as a SEN teaching assistant I realised that I wanted to nurture ideas and debate and support critical thinking - something that could be achieved as a mainstream teacher.

Religious studies was the closest subject which fitted within my area of interest and I choose the University of Brighton as it was local to where I was living and I knew it was a good university - this was certainly reflected in the passion and commitment from all the staff.

The highlights of this course for me was the lively discussions and debates that the PGCE group had on a huge range of topics and issues relating to RE and society which were really stimulating.

School-based training offered an opportunity to try out so many teaching strategies which has helped me invaluably in my career. I am now second in charge of religious studies at a fantastic school in Brighton, within a highly reputable department. I am really lucky for the experience the course gave me.

Grace Austick

My passion for RE comes from studying the subject at A level, I really enjoyed the content and felt inspired by my teachers.

I realised that I wanted to go into teaching at secondary level whilst studying the Education BA (Hons) at the University of Brighton where I focused on the important role RE plays in a students' life as part of my research project.

The (Secondary) Religious Studies PGCE seemed a fitting route to follow my degree and I was drawn by the level of support that was available at interview from the course leader and his wealth of knowledge about the subject.

The course leader really listened to what I wanted to achieve during my training and the course was tailored to my needs. This was reflected in both phases of my school-based training where I had amazing support from the mentors and university tutors. Without this level of support I feel my PGCE would have been very different.

Studying this course provided me with the skills to be able to teach at GCSE and A level in my first year of teaching as a newly qualified teacher (NQT). The university continues to support me with my career progression and now in my second year of teaching I am head of RE for Key Stage 4.

This course helped to boost my confidence and really has defined my career which I love!

Hannah Kinchin-Frost

"I studied at Brighton for my undergraduate degree so knew the university and city well. I had also read that the university was one of the best in the country for teacher training, so choosing to further my study here was an easy choice.

"The Religious Studies PGCE course was great. I particularly enjoyed the discussions we had during seminars about our subject content reaffirming my passion in philosophy and world religions. In addition to this, I really enjoyed visiting places of worship in Brighton and Hove and being given the opportunity to speak with people from local religious communities.

"The support network within the course was amazing. My subject tutor was very approachable and had lots of experience to pass on. I felt that he really understood the strengths and interests of each individual and matched us perfectly to placement schools he knew would make us into excellent teachers.

"On placement I received lots of support which helped me build my confidence quickly. I relished the opportunity to see such varied teaching methods on my placements and the experience definitely reinforced the type of teacher I wanted to be which I am grateful for.

"Since graduating I have returned to one of my placement schools working as a Leader of Life Skills for Key Stage 3. I am also responsible for supporting my team with regular and effective CPD opportunities.

For anyone looking to study teaching at Brighton I would say do it! It is hard work at times but the end result is so rewarding.You will make some great friends who you will be able to share experiences with and support each other along the way."