Hdip chemistry

squitty

I'm going into the final year of my degree (nutritional sciences) in september and I want to pursue secondary teaching afterwards. Apparently I can teach biology, but I really want to teach chemistry. Anybody know how I might go about this??

Lord TSC

Do a Chemistry degree <_<

If your degree only allows you to teach Biology, then thats all it allows you to do. If you want to be able to do another subject, offcially you have to have a degree in it.

pathway33

Applicants must provide officially certified evidence of satisfactory achievement in primary degree studies (or equivalent) as outlined hereunder

The study of Chemistry as a major subject in the degree extending over at least three years and of the order of 30% at a minimum of that period

q Details of the degree course content to show that the knowledge and understanding required to teach Chemistry to the highest level in post-primary education has been acquired

q Details of degree course content where the studies involved modular or applied subject content or where studies were in a related subject area will require specific assessment to determine equivalence

q Details of course and practical work content completed during the degree programme together with teaching/tutorial times, list of experiments and practicals

q Explicit details of standards achieved in degree studies in Chemistry with at least an overall Pass result in the examinations in Chemistry

extract from www.teachingcouncil.ie

you wouldn't need to do a full degree. Just enough credits to fulfil the criteria above. Ring the teaching council. They may tell you to do credits with the open university

gaeilgebeo

YOU MUST HAVE A DEGREE IN THE SUBJECT YOU WANT TO TEACH!

pathway33

gaeilgebeo wrote: »

YOU MUST HAVE A DEGREE IN THE SUBJECT YOU WANT TO TEACH!

not according to the teaching council. You must have a degree, any degree, and then you can add on stand alone undergraduate modules which when they accumulate to 30% of a chemistry degree can qualify you to teach chemistry.

So the OP does not have to do a degree in chemistry. OP simply has to go to UCD or NUI Maynooth wherever and study as an occassional student. Lots of people are doing that now.

Be warned though OP, the teaching council will not give you a definite answer until you pass the exams and send in the module information. Good luck

oliviah

pathway33 wrote: »

not according to the teaching council. You must have a degree, any degree, and then you can add on stand alone undergraduate modules which when they accumulate to 30% of a chemistry degree can qualify you to teach chemistry.

So the OP does not have to do a degree in chemistry. OP simply has to go to UCD or NUI Maynooth wherever and study as an occassional student. Lots of people are doing that now.

Be warned though OP, the teaching council will not give you a definite answer until you pass the exams and send in the module information. Good luck

That's interesting. The teaching council told me I would have to complete the full degree of the extra subject I was thinking of studying, not 30% of the course.

pathway33

oliviah wrote: »

That's interesting. The teaching council told me I would have to complete the full degree of the extra subject I was thinking of studying, not 30% of the course.

I would certainly believe you Oliviah. It is not unknown for the teaching council to give different answers depending on who you speak to. All I know is that what I suggest above had been done and accepted where someone had a degree in another subject and went off and did 55 credits from 1st year to 3rd year university level to be able to teach a second subject. Now the subject concerned was Irish and since there seems to be a shortage of irish teachers, maybe this was a factor.

If OP does not want to risk this route the other option is to gain direct entry to the 3rd year of a degree listed by the teaching council as a qualification to teach chemistry. Then when he/she graduates he/she is automatically qualified once the pgde/pgce is done.

By the way the teaching council will be very reluctant to accept any modules at postgraduate level.

The open university have a degree in molecular sciences that gives you automatic qualification to teach chemistry. You will get exemptions too for your current degree.

When you are choosing you modules next month choose one that may get you exemtions from modules of a chemistry degree later.

You may find it easier to get exemptions in a course that qualifies the graduate to teach both biology and chemistry, for example UCC's degree in chemistry of pharmaceutical compounds or NUI Maynooth's degree in biotechnology or University of limericks's degree in environmental science

NUI Maynooth also have a bachelor of science in education which would mean you wouldn't have to do the PGDE. Graduates of this degree can generally teach 2 science subjects. University of limerick also have a bachelor of science education.

If you are really sure you want to teach chemistry, another option is to take a year out from your current degree and transfer to the 2nd year of a degree listed by the teaching council to teach chemistry, if you have sufficient cross-relevant modules. If it's a 3 year degree then you are only adding on an extra year.

My main point is under no circumstances should you start a new degree from first year. There are lots of options out there, some more riskier than others but I'm sure there is one for you if your heart is set on it. Best of luck

pathway33

oliviah wrote: »

That's interesting. The teaching council told me I would have to complete the full degree of the extra subject I was thinking of studying, not 30% of the course.

on the off chance that the extra subject you want is religion then at least last year the teaching council accepted st. patrick's college maynooth's 1-year part-time h.dip in theology (2 nights a week i think) as qualifying the graduate to teach religion. I think the rule was that the graduate already had to be a fully qualified teacher in a different subject but I stand to be corrected there.

marblesolutions

It is certainly possible I am recognised by the teaching council to teach both chemistry and biology.

Like you have already been told you may have to do additional modules to bring your Chemistry up to the 30% mark. It will all depend on your degree and subject content.

If it won't be to much extra work I would advise you to do it, jobs are scarse enough at the moment and many school require you have both Chemistry and Biology.

squitty

thanks pathway33, that's really helpful