Primary Education with Qualified Teacher Status (3-7)

You will benefit from a strong emphasis on training for the early years phase, while also developing additional skills to help you transform the lives of all pupils. You will study a programme with social justice at its core and focus on supporting pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), students from disadvantaged backgrounds and supporting students with their mental health. This course has a clear route into teaching and you will leave as a qualified teacher of Early Years and KS1.

Balance theory and practice

You will learn both in university and school settings to develop your skills and confidence in the classroom.  This programme is designed to prepare you for work in schools and ensure that you are equipped to stay in the profession but also gives you opportunities to explore education beyond the classroom and to consider other careers working with children and families. 

Inspiring placements

You’ll undertake practical school placements of between 6 – 10 weeks every year in a variety of school settings from EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage) through to the end of Key Stage 1. These placements allow you to put the theory you learn on the course into practice in schools. Your placements are arranged by the us and you will be supported by our academic teams both on and off placement. 

Please note that our modules are subject to change - we review the content of our courses regularly, making changes where necessary to improve your experience and graduate prospects.

You will learn through lectures, workshops, seminars, tutorials. You'll be taught by influential researchers and published authors whose work is helping to shape the future of the teaching profession.

The Kirtley building, home to the Institute of Education and Skills, provides specialist learning spaces where you will have access to a range of primary education resources. Our outdoor learning space is a small woodland close to the Kedleston Road campus where you can learn about the value of outdoor learning including Forest Schools. Our students have access to a wide range of resources through the library. This includes a significant collection of digitised books and recent published research. 

You will have school-based as well as university-based training - as stipulated by the Teacher Regulation Agency.  You’ll also have the opportunity to broaden your experiences through museum visits, overseas school trips, and visits to special educational needs and early years settings.

Social justice lies at the heart of our course and you will be encouraged to give something back to the local community.

How you're assessed

You’ll be assessed through essays, personal reflections, presentations, posters, reports, and audits. There is an assessed school placement every year.

Our newly qualified teachers are highly regarded within the education sector and our employability statistics speak for themselves - 94% in work or doing further study 15 months after the course (HESA Graduate Outcomes survey). Many of our graduates go on to secure jobs at schools where they undertook their placements.

When you graduate, you could choose to continue studying with us by taking our MA Education course, which will help you to explore the wider impact of education and increase your confidence as a practitioner. The MA Education is especially valuable if you have set your sights on more senior roles such as head teacher or deputy head teacher.

As a newly qualified teacher, you can also benefit from the University’s continuing support as you take your career forward. We offer a range of resources, subject updates, events, conferences and development opportunities to ease your transition into professional practice.

Contextual offers may apply to students who meet certain criteria.

• A reference is required in support of your application. If applying via UCAS then this must be submitted from a professional email address. This can be from a school/College or previous employer. If applicants are applying directly then this must be supplied as a PDF on official letterhead and must be signed and dated.
• All qualifications will need to be certified from the awarding boards. Copies can be accepted but all relevant qualifications will need to verified in person either at interview or at enrolment or a set date that will be confirmed once enrolment has been completed.
• Photographic ID is also required and must be verified in person either at interview or enrolment. We can accept Passports/Driving License/Provisional Driving License.
• A personal statement is mandatory for these courses and must indicate why you wish to study the course in detail and must be specific to education.

Additional entry requirements

• Interview: Yes
• An Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service certificate cleared by the University is required for this course. We will contact you with information on how to complete this once you have applied
• A Prohibition List check will automatically be carried out after Firm acceptance of an offer has been received
• An Occupational Health Assessment and Clearance by the University is required for this course. We will contact you with information on how to complete this when required

Further information about our fees and support you may be entitled to

Additional information about your studies

Teaching hours

Like most universities, we operate extended teaching hours at the University of Derby, so contact time with your lecturers and tutors could be anytime between 9am and 9pm. Your timetable will usually be available on the website 24 hours after enrolment on to your course.

Course updates

The information provided on this page is correct at the time of publication but course content, costs and other individual course details do change from time to time and are updated as often as possible, so please do check these pages again when making your final decision to apply for a course. Any updated course details will also be confirmed to you at application, enrolment and in your offer letter.

If you are thinking about transferring onto this course (into the second year for example), you should contact the programme leader for the relevant course information as modules may vary from those shown on this page.