Become a
physics teacher
Teaching physics is an exciting and rewarding career. Schools need more specialist physics teachers, so it's a great choice of subject.
You could inspire your pupils to consider rewarding careers from tackling climate change to artificial intelligence (AI).
Tax-free bursaries of £28,000 or scholarships of £30,000 are available for eligible trainee physics teachers.
Spark curiosity in physics
As a physics teacher, you’ll be engaging students in a wide range of experiments that can spark their interest.
What you'll be teaching
You'll teach the national curriculum(opens in new window), with opportunities to develop your pupils' ability to think like physicists and see physics as a solution to many challenges.
The themes you're likely to cover for 11 to 14 year olds (key stage 3) include:
Themes you’ll cover for 14 to 16 year olds (key stage 4):
Themes you’ll cover for 16 to 18 year olds (key stage 5):
Explore what teaching a physics lesson would be like(opens in new window).
It's inspiring getting 'wow, that's how it works' from pupils as they grasp a subject they thought was hard.
Check your qualifications
To train to teach in primary and secondary schools in England, you’ll need:
- GCSEs at grade 4 (C) or above in English and maths (and science if you want to teach primary)
- a bachelor’s degree in any subject
Physics teacher training courses have had successful applications from candidates with a range of degrees, including maths, geology, business studies and finance.
Non-UK citizens can find out more about training to teach in England.
If your training provider thinks you need to top up your physics knowledge, you might need to do a subject knowledge enhancement (SKE) course before you start your teacher training.
Find out more about the qualifications needed to train to teach.
Fund your teacher training
You can get a bursary or scholarship alongside a tuition fee and maintenance loan.
You may also be able to get extra funding support if you're:
- a parent or carer
- disabled
Non-UK citizens are eligible for bursaries and scholarships for physics teacher training courses.
You can find out more about fees and financial support available for non-UK citizens.
Paid internship
If you’re currently doing an undergraduate or master's degree and are interested in teaching physics, you could apply for a paid teaching internship.
The 3-week programme could help you to understand what it’s really like in the classroom and get feel for school life.
Engineers teach physics
If you're an engineer considering a career as a physics teacher, there's a teacher training course designed especially with your experience and skills in mind.
Find out about the engineers teach physics training programme.
Get free one-to-one support
An adviser with years of teaching experience can help you to become a physics teacher. Chat by phone, text, or email as little or often as you need.
Find out more about advisers