Study teaching

What do I need to study to become a teacher?

There are a range of qualifications that can make you eligible to register as a teacher. These are known as initial teacher education (ITE) programs. The two most common are:

An undergraduate teaching degree, often called a Bachelor of Education.
A Master of Teaching (sometimes known as an MTeach), for those who already have an undergraduate degree. A full-time Master of Teaching usually takes 2 years, but there are some accelerated courses that may allow you to graduate earlier.

Studying part-time is an option at many institutions, although this would extend your total number of years studying.

AITSL has published Accreditation Guidelines that all ITE courses must pass

This is to make sure all graduate teachers have the skills, knowledge and experience necessary to have a positive impact on student learning. Before you finalise your decision about your course, make sure it is approved in our Accredited teaching program list and if you are unsure, check with your local teacher regulatory authority.

Accredited teaching programs Check with your authority

There are some accredited programs that allow pre-service teachers to undertake all or part of their supervised teaching practice days working in a school. Currently most of these programs, such as Teach for Australia, are at the secondary level.

Some jurisdictions have invested additional funding into building the capacity of these employment-based programs, including extra scholarships. More information about programs can be found at the respective websites:

Alternatively, you could explore what scholarship options are available within your specific tertiary institution for course-based learning.

Yes – but it will depend on your prior learning and how recognition of prior learning (RPL) is recognised by each provider.

If you have a shortlist of providers, it is worth contacting each one regarding RPL. This can be helpful in making final decisions.

The Literacy and Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students (LANTITE) is a test designed to assess and ensure pre-service teachers have the required literacy and numeracy skills needed to be a teacher.

All students undertaking an undergraduate or postgraduate education or teaching qualification must meet the test standard prior to graduation. Some tertiary providers may also require you to complete the test as a requirement of entry.

All postgraduate programs require you to complete a minimum of 60 placement days across your degree, which equates to around 12 weeks of schooling. Some institutions may offer or require additional placement days beyond the 60. In a combined early childhood/primary or primary/secondary program, the placement days will usually be split across your teaching areas. Some universities will organise your placements for you, and others require you to find the schools yourself.

This will depend upon the tertiary institution. Some courses are held fully in-person, some are totally online and some are a combination.

When prioritising modes of study, you need to consider your current lifestyle, working needs and other factors. Once you have determined the best mode of study based on these factors, you can then narrow down the tertiary providers and programs you may want to apply for.

Mutual recognition allows teachers to have their registration recognised in all Australian jurisdictions (states and territories) as well as New Zealand. If you wish to hold current registration in more than one jurisdiction, you may need to pay an annual fee to maintain each registration.

If you are studying in a jurisdiction that is different to the one you might like to work in, we suggest reviewing the registration requirements in the relevant teacher regulatory authority in the jurisdiction you would be interested in working in. In NSW, registration is called accreditation.

There may be opportunities to work in a school outside of your studies, which can help you gain some further experience in the classroom. This may include work as an Teaching Assistant, providing support to the classroom teacher.

You can also check with your local teacher regulatory authority about the options of working in a teaching role while you complete your studies.

Secondary teaching

How can I choose my secondary teaching methods?

This advice is for pre-service teachers studying secondary teaching.

Secondary teachers are trained to teach specific subjects in a secondary school. These are known as their teaching methods.

People studying secondary teaching usually focus on one or two teaching methods, which is linked to their specialist areas from previous university studies. For example, if you wanted to teach chemistry, you would need to have previously studied chemistry subjects at a tertiary level.

It is important for teachers to teach into areas they are experts in to ensure they hold the relevant knowledge and theoretical understanding to pass onto students.

Choosing your teaching areas

There are two different ways that you can qualify for your teaching methods, either through:

studying a Bachelor in Education that integrates coursework for your teaching method(s), or
gaining a Master of Teaching and choosing teaching methods that align with your previous studies.

You’ll often need to select your teaching methods when applying.

Each tertiary institution then has subject content requirements that applicants must satisfy to be able to teach these different subjects. These requirements may vary depending on if the subject will be your major or additional/minor.

Not every tertiary provider offers every teaching method, so make sure to do your research to find out if your preferred institution offers the method you would like to teach.

Each provider will have different requirements, and you can contact them directly or look on their website for more information. As an example, the information pack from the University of New South Wales outlines the requirements of prior tertiary learning to undertake different teaching specialisations.

Each tertiary institution has their own requirements for approving teaching methods, often depending on the structure and courses undertaken in the student’s previous tertiary studies. As this process is unique and done on a case-by-case basis, we can’t offer any specific advice on which teaching methods you may be able to study. Instead, we asked some teachers to share their individual experience in applying for and being offered their teaching methods.

Case studies

Paul:

Paul studied a Bachelor of Business (Accounting) and applied to two universities for his Master of Teaching (Secondary). The first university offered him the following choices for teaching methods: Business Management, Legal Studies and 7–10 Business Studies. The second university offered these same teaching methods, with the addition of Economics and Accounting. He ended up selecting the second university, and chose the three teaching methods of Business Management, Accounting and 7–10 Business Studies.

Mary:

Mary studied a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Science in her undergraduate and also studied a Master of Theatre (Directing). She subsequently applied to 2 universities to study a Master of Teaching (Primary and Secondary). Within her application she specified the teaching methods she was interested in, with Drama as her number one preference. The first university, which offers 2 teaching methods in the dual degree, approved Drama and Studies of Society and Environment (SOSE) as her teaching methods. The other university, which has one teaching method in the dual degree, offered Geography. Mary enquired to the second university if she could change her teaching method to Drama, and this was approved by the university.