Qualified teacher status (QTS) is what you need to teach in most primary and secondary schools in England.
It is a confirmation that you have the right training and meet the standards required to be a teacher.
QTS is a teaching standard that is respected across the world. Having QTS means you can move around the country and teach in any state school.
How to get QTS
All postgraduate teacher training courses in England lead to QTS. You can see the different types of courses available by searching for postgraduate teacher training(opens in new window).
Entry requirements for QTS courses include having an undergraduate degree and GCSEs at level 4/grade C or above in Maths and English. You’ll also need a level 4/grade C or above in Science if you want to be a primary school teacher.
As well as offering QTS, many courses also offer a postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE) or postgraduate diploma in education (PGDE). Find out about PGCE and PGDE.
Assessment only route to QTS
It is possible to get QTS through an assessment only programme if you have the right teaching experience. You can usually do this if:
- you’ve already been employed as an unqualified teacher for a significant amount of time (for example, 2 years) and you’ve worked in more than one school
- you’re a qualified teacher who trained overseas(opens in new window)