GTTR for the the PCGE in the UK

Nervouspriest

Hi,

On the GTTR application for post grad's in the UK to do Secondary teaching it only allows you to list four courses that you want to get into, in order of preference. What if you don't get into any of the four courses, then what happens? Are you allowed apply to a few other places?

How competitive is it to get into Secondary teaching in the UK and how many places are generally on the post graduate programmes. Also how long do you have to wait around to know if you got into a course, waiting on anything generally kills me...as you don't know where you stand.

Sorry for all the questions!!

hazeler

Nervouspriest wrote: »

On the GTTR application for post grad's in the UK to do Secondary teaching it only allows you to list four courses that you want to get into, in order of preference. What if you don't get into any of the four courses, then what happens? Are you allowed apply to a few other places?

If you dont get any of the four you can apply for 4 more colleges that are still accepting applicants and you keep updating your choices until the time officially ends in August.

Nervouspriest wrote: »

How competitive is it to get into Secondary teaching in the UK and how many places are generally on the post graduate programmes.

This depends on where you apply to. Some colleges take over 100 others less, it all depends on where you apply and how they have been affected by the cutbacks.

Nervouspriest wrote: »

Also how long do you have to wait around to know if you got into a course, waiting on anything generally kills me...as you don't know where you stand.

Patience is a virtue. Especially when it comes to teaching and the GTTR. The wait is 28 days, after that you can call the college and ask them for your status. they are supposed to get back to you (via GTTR) in/by 28 days. If you are unsuccessful in your first choice, your application gets sent automatically to your second and the wait starts again.

all these questions are answered in more detail on the GTTR website, look for the handbooks.

Nervouspriest

Patience is a virtue. Especially when it comes to teaching and the GTTR. The wait is 28 days, after that you can call the college and ask them for your status. they are supposed to get back to you (via GTTR) in/by 28 days. If you are unsuccessful in your first choice, your application gets sent automatically to your second and the wait starts again.

This waiting is going to kill me. So it takes 28 days for them to get back to you, and then you are waiting for an Interview. If you don't get this you have to go through the same process, this sounds like a nightmare.

spurious

Wait til you try looking for a job, that's when the patience really kicks in.

You may well get one of your first four. Don't be worrying about what ifs at this stage.

Nervouspriest

spurious wrote: »

Wait til you try looking for a job, that's when the patience really kicks in.

You may well get one of your first four. Don't be worrying about what ifs at this stage.

Hi, what are the waiting times in general? It would be great if I could have a course sorted for September by the end of April.

Do you know from personal experience how long people where waiting to get on a course.

I worry a lot, just the way I am. Probably should take up yoga.

hazeler

Nervouspriest wrote: »

This waiting is going to kill me. So it takes 28 days for them to get back to you, and then you are waiting for an Interview. If you don't get this you have to go through the same process, this sounds like a nightmare.

you know within the 28 days if you have an interview and the 2-3 weeks after your interview they have to offer or reject you. it is a nightmare but its the same in Ireland. PAC is a 4 month wait, from closing date with no interview for secondary school teaching. all the PGDE in mary i , pats etc are about a 4 week wait or longer (anyone- correct if Im wrong) for interview date and the interview and the 2-3 weeks for offer or rejection. this is the process. this is what you do to become a teacher.

spurious wrote: »

You may well get one of your first four. Don't be worrying about what ifs at this stage.

I am well into the what if stage, applied to Edinburgh and the screwed me over with offering me an interview and the taking it off me as I am not currently domilciled in Scotland. Discrimination at its best, in battle at the moment with dean of admissions. as a consequence of their screw up all the rest of my choices were filled. Im on my second round of 4 at the moment...

I would love to have you positivity and be upbeat and excited but what ifs are well in play!!

Nervouspriest

If I get called for an Interview I should get it with my charm and good looks. I generally come across well in an Interview, i just hope my Personal Statement and my application is strong enough. Its a pity I couldn't send on a photo with the application.

I am applying to teach Business as thats what I did my degree in. Sending the application off tomorrow. Its been a pain in the ass, especially the Personal statement and the References. I didn't like the way the application was laid out. I don't know how they expected a reference off one of my University Lecturer's seeing as there was 300 or so of us in my Business class in Dcu.

I am just going to have to sit around and see if I get called for an Interview. Would be great if the process was quicker so I could try and do a bit of travelling.

One of you said your on your second round. You must be demented with the waiting. Not getting a place because of domicile is a disgrace. Sure you can apply to change your domicile, tell them you will do this to get a place on there course.

I didn't realise all the hassle to this I thought I would just send in my application and just be accepted wherever I wanted..this is obviously not the case.

hazeler

Nervouspriest wrote: »

If I get called for an Interview I should get it with my charm and good looks. I generally come across well in an Interview, i just hope my Personal Statement and my application is strong enough. Its a pity I couldn't send on a photo with the application.

are you actually for real??? if you get called for interview you should get the course on merit and your ability to teach. and these attributes only. no-one will care how pretty you think you are.

Nervouspriest wrote: »

I didn't realise all the hassle to this I thought I would just send in my application and just be accepted wherever I wanted..this is obviously not the case.

Why would you assume the teaching process was as simple as filling in an application?? and getting wherever you wanted... are you deluded??

you have no idea how hard and demoralising it is to be rejected by a college because you're not domilciled in that country and kept from something you know in your heart and soul you were meant to do. Teaching is not something you do to fill in the time, had you actually bothered to research the process you would have seen that all this "hassle" is part and parcel. Well done on realising that there is no way around it.

Understand that this is a real process, with real people having genuine fears and concerns about being accepted on a course.

Nervouspriest

Hazeler,

I didn't mean to come across like that, sometimes you should take what people say on boards.ie with a pinch of salt though....

It is a disgrace what happened to you in Edinburugh over domicile. That dosen't even make sense as Universitys should be encouraging a class of all different nationalities.

I am only sending the application onto my principal reference today....Hopefully I can get into a course on the firstround but even if I don't I will settle for anywhere. I am only concerned about getting the QTS after one year.

hazeler

Nervouspriest wrote: »

Hazeler,

I didn't mean to come across like that, sometimes you should take what people say on boards.ie with a pinch of salt though....

It is a disgrace what happened to you in Edinburugh over domicile. That dosen't even make sense as Universitys should be encouraging a class of all different nationalities.

I am only sending the application onto my principal reference today....Hopefully I can get into a course on the firstround but even if I don't I will settle for anywhere. I am only concerned about getting the QTS after one year.

I have been rejected from Irish Universities because I cant get my Irish above a B in interview. I have over 700 teaching hours clocked. I have references to beat the band. My concern is that I become a qualified teacher, no matter how long it takes. This is my first year aplying to the UK.

I have had my application in with the GTTR since day one of opening back in September 2009. I found out in October I had an interview with Edinburgh. I found out exactly 3 months later that they have taken that interview off me as they invoked a "University policy" where the amount of applicants versus the number of places ensures they only pick those with Scottish address. As a consequence of their time delay, in taking the interview from me, I had to pick 4 brand new Universities out of the ones that were left because my other choices were all full.

You'll forgive my annoyance with posts that need to be read with a "pinch of salt".

Good luck with your application.

e04bf099

Nervouspriest wrote: »

If I get called for an Interview I should get it with my charm and good looks. I generally come across well in an Interview, i just hope my Personal Statement and my application is strong enough. Its a pity I couldn't send on a photo with the application.

Oh yes, please rely on your charm and good looks. If more of my competition decides to do this I'll be a happy man in Lancashire next september:)

Nervouspriest

I take it you are applying to teach primary, or did you apply to two primary and two secondary on your application?

I can't get over what happened to you in Edinburgh. Can other courses not open up a place due to exceptional circumstances such as this? Do you know of any other Irish people who applied to Edinburgh and this happened, it would be good to know how they are getting on. Did you not try and find out in the three months what was happening with your Interview?

hazeler

Nervouspriest wrote: »

I take it you are applying to teach primary, or did you apply to two primary and two secondary on your application??

On my orginal I had two primary, two secondary. On the new round I have two primary one secondary.

Nervouspriest wrote: »

I can't get over what happened to you in Edinburgh. Can other courses not open up a place due to exceptional circumstances such as this? Do you know of any other Irish people who applied to Edinburgh and this happened, it would be good to know how they are getting on. Did you not try and find out in the three months what was happening with your Interview?

All the irish I've been in contact with online for Edinburgh got outright rejections back in early November. I was screwed over until January.

I logged 8 calls and sent 4 emails to my contact with admissions in that time period. The only one you were allowed to email or call with regard to your application is the contact I used. All the emails were ignored and one call was returned saying that due to the recession and cutbacks, I would have to wait and just be patient, admissions would be onto me with my interview date. Called every single day after the Christmas holidays at 9.05am, to get the same repeated speel, wait wait wait. The postgrad admissions head was on sick leave after Christmas for the next 6 weeks so nobody in their office actually knew what was happening!!! :eek:

12th of January I check my GTTR status and it comes up unsuccessful. I ring admissions with a WTF??? they say they can do nothing and I ask to speak with Dean of Admissions. She says she'll look into my case and 3 days later I get an email with spoof about cutbacks and university policies and they're sorry for any inconvinience they have caused but encourage me to apply next year.

I've logged a complaint with the college and am writing to the city council education board that governs the University. I can do nothing as its policy and red tape blah blah...

Im stuck with applying to 3 universities I never considered. Try not to be so flippant about this application process, you have no idea whats its like to go through this much. You have no idea how many people you offend.

just a tip- learn to punctuate and use the smilies too. It'll help "pinch of salt" posts in the long run.

Nervouspriest

That is very frustrating Hazeler.

You must be demented and very upset by the whole ordeal.

Best of luck in your application:) Hopefully it works out for you.

Titania

That is awful, Hazeler. Poor thing.

I'm in the middle of the application process at the moment. I sent in my application to the GTTR in early December. My first choice was full by the time my reference got in, and my second choice took five weeks to decide on interviews (due to Christmas and snow days). Thankfully they invited my for interview, so I'm heading over in two weeks for that.

It'll certainly take more than charm and looks though! I've been studying the National Curriculum, issues in education, set text, etc.

I have 400 hours of teaching experience, but most of that is EFL. Half and half teenagers and adults.

I'm so nervous, but I'm trying to stay focused.

I really hope you win your battle in Scotland, Hazeler. Will your application be sent to any other colleges in the mean time?

hazeler

Titania wrote: »

I really hope you win your battle in Scotland, Hazeler. Will your application be sent to any other colleges in the mean time?

My application is being processed at UWIC at the moment and I am very doubtful about Edinburgh. I am just so tired of waiting at this stage, its been 5 months...

But thanks titania, where did you apply to? and good luck with your interview, Im sure you'll be fine with all your experience... If you need any help with prep for questions or that, PM me, I'd be happy to help.

Titania

hazeler wrote: »

My application is being processed at UWIC at the moment and I am very doubtful about Edinburgh. I am just so tired of waiting at this stage, its been 5 months...

But thanks titania, where did you apply to? and good luck with your interview, Im sure you'll be fine with all your experience... If you need any help with prep for questions or that, PM me, I'd be happy to help.

That's a long time to be waiting.

My interview's with Goldsmiths. I had put King's first, but as I said before, they were full. Next on the list is Roehampton and then Brunel. Thing is though, if I get rejected by Goldsmiths after the interview, my application might only get to Roehampton in March... Way too late.

I'd really appreciate some question help! I've been told that it'll be a group interview and then an individual one, but all my letter said was that they'd discuss my application and personal statement. I'm guessing there'll be a lot more than that!

hazeler

Titania wrote: »

I'd really appreciate some question help! I've been told that it'll be a group interview and then an individual one, but all my letter said was that they'd discuss my application and personal statement. I'm guessing there'll be a lot more than that!

I just pm'd you with the personal interview... a group interview all I know is that you should never stay quiet. you should vocally agree or disagree and have your own opinion and be really vocal, without being arrogant or ignorant (obviously!) they want to see how you are in a group as you'll work with a group in schools... I think groups are great as you can bounce off other people and its not so intense as a personal interview.

It'll set you up to being interviewed on your own too because it'll get the "think teacher thoughts" going!!

Titania

hazeler wrote: »

I just pm'd you with the personal interview... a group interview all I know is that you should never stay quiet. you should vocally agree or disagree and have your own opinion and be really vocal, without being arrogant or ignorant (obviously!) they want to see how you are in a group as you'll work with a group in schools... I think groups are great as you can bounce off other people and its not so intense as a personal interview.

It'll set you up to being interviewed on your own too because it'll get the "think teacher thoughts" going!!

Thank you very much for PMing! And for your advice. Luckily, I'm not someone who's nervous about speaking in front of others. I've run EFL workshops and I've been teaching for a while. What I am nervous about is the subject matter. I've been reading up on UK eduction issues till they're coming out my ears!

hazeler

Titania wrote: »

Thank you very much for PMing! And for your advice. Luckily, I'm not someone who's nervous about speaking in front of others. I've run EFL workshops and I've been teaching for a while. What I am nervous about is the subject matter. I've been reading up on UK eduction issues till they're coming out my ears!

yeah EFL!! I ran summer workshops for teachers on teaching young learners EFL but most of my teaching experience is in resource... I know the feeling about reading up on issues, there are so many, where do you even begin!!

I just think if I can relate most of what I'm saying back to my experience of teaching then i'll be sorted. That I'm a teacher but know my limitations as I have little formal training and thats why I'm there, to qualify what I am already doing! and to make me a better teacher! but say that in a way that doesn't make you sound like a know-it-all!!