How to Travel to the UK with Visa Sponsorship via the Teacher Training Program: Apply for Teacher Training

UK Teacher Training Program is open to everyone irrespective of your location. Everybody including international applicants outside the UK are eligible for this Teacher Training program. For most of the courses, you do not need to already have a teacher qualification to get a Visa Sponsorship to be trained here in the UK and also be paid while you are on the teachers training program. All you need is your Secondary School/ WAEC/ NECO/ GCE qualifications.

All requirements are listed below. Goodluck with your application.

Use this service to apply for a teacher training course to teach in a state primary or secondary school, or in further education.

This service is for teacher training courses in England. Learn more about:

• teacher training in Scotland
• teacher training in Wales
• teacher training in Northern Ireland

You’ll need to sign in to use this service. If you do not already have sign in details, you’ll be able to create them. You can save your application and come back to it at any time.

Before you start

You need to:

• find a course to apply for
• check if you can get funding
• check what qualifications you need
• check if you need a visa if you’re from outside the UK and Ireland

When you get offered a place on a course, you’ll also need to:

• confirm you have the health and physical capacity to start training
• get a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) certificate if you’re teaching students under 18
• apply for a visa if you need one

Primary and secondary postgraduate teacher training qualifications

You need the following or equivalents:

• a degree
• grade 4 (C) or above in English and maths GCSEs
• grade 4 (C) or above in GCSE science if you want to teach primary

If you do not have GCSE grade 4 (C), you’ll need to show that you can meet an equivalent level. The training provider may ask you to take an equivalence test or show other evidence of your ability.

Teacher degree apprenticeships

You do not need to have a degree to do a teacher degree apprenticeship.

You need the following or equivalents:

• grade 4 (C) or above in English and maths GCSEs
• grade 4 (C) or above in GCSE science if you want to teach primary
• A levels – the number and the grades you need are set by your university

You also need to be:

• a resident of England for the last 3 years or more
• aged 16 years or over

Further education postgraduate teacher training qualifications

Training providers usually prefer you to have:

• a degree, or relevant vocational or technical qualification
• grade 4 (C) or above in English and maths GCSEs (or equivalent)

If you studied overseas

You can get a certificate known as a statement of comparability that shows how your qualifications compare to UK ones. Some training providers may ask to see this as part of your application. 

You can apply for a certificate from UK ENIC (the UK agency that recognises international qualifications and skills). There is a cost for the certificate and it takes 15 working days to arrive.

Get advice and support

You can visit Get Into Teaching, the Department for Education’s free support and advice service.

A specialist adviser will help you prepare your application and advise you on funding options (including loans and tax-free bursaries and scholarships). You can also book school experience and access teaching events.

If you’re disabled or have a health condition

Email becomingateacher@digital.education.gov.uk if you need extra support with your application.

Find out how training providers can support you if you’re disabled. They may be able to make adjustments for the interview stages of the application and throughout the course.