Secondary Teaching

hgibbon

Hi,

This is my first post.

I studied civil, structural and environmental engineering at Trinity College Dublin. I graduated in 2009 with a 2:1 (high). I am eligible to teach maths and applied maths.

I am intereseted in applying for PGDE. I have no teaching experience and limited experience with kids (I was a member of the Order of Malta, and was responsible for under 16s for a number of years on and off).

I have been working as an engineer for 2 years. Does this count as professional experience when applying?

I would appreciate if someone would let me know if I'm wasting my time applying for the PGDE?

Would I be a successful candidate for Trinity? Or would my lack of experience with kids let me down? I am willing to apply everywhere.

Thanks in advance for all responses.

H

highly1111

You've nothing to lose. The NUI colleges are points based so your experience won't count there - best bet is to log into www.PAC.ie and check how many points you have and what the requirement was last year. Trinity is traditionally harder to get into but no harm in applying. It's not points based but very few get in on their first attempt.

Good luck

hgibbon

Thanks...

I was over on that site and there now offering points for professional experience (not teaching experience) ie relevant graduate experience in relation to a subject that you are hoping to teach.

I am currently working as an engineer so I was wondering would this be considered relevant to teaching maths? I'd get a point for every year. It probably would?! I've googled but can't find an answer..

hgibbon

I've spent ages reading threads on this and I'm really confused!!

I know my deegree is on the teaching council list to teach maths/applied maths but theres a cavat about making sure we have 30% maths content/54 credits.

So could anyone with an engineering degree from Trinity (BA, BAI 2009) let me know if we have 30% maths content/54 credits?! Or if they have sucessfully become a qualified teacher with the above degree?

Thank you!

Heather

mimmi

Contact the Careers Service at TCD as I know this has been a very live issue in the last year.

RE work experience for PAC - you only get points if your work experience is related to your qualifcation, so engineering degree with engineering experience is fine, but if you went and did TEFL for 2 years, that would not !!!

Rosita

highly1111 wrote: »

Trinity is traditionally harder to get into but no harm in applying. It's not points based but very few get in on their first attempt.

I think this is a highly debatable claim. If Trinity is harder to get into (than the NUI colleges) then presumably many of those who applied and failed to get in would have gotten into the NUI colleges instead (I imagine many apply to both) and would therefore not have a second attempt at Trinity?

Surely one of the reasons you get second-time applicants for Trinity is that insufficient grades are an absolute show-stopper with the NUI colleges - not necessarily so with Trinity. I think the two routes are different rather than harder/easier.

gubbie

I'm doing the Dip at the moment. I did Electrical Engineering in UCD and a guy in the class did Civil & Environmental in UCC. Neither of us are able to teach Maths or Applied Maths without further study. For example to get the teaching council to recognise us to teach Maths we have to do a 30 credits module with the open university in Maths.

I hope TCD is different!

rainbowtrout

gubbie wrote: »

I'm doing the Dip at the moment. I did Electrical Engineering in UCD and a guy in the class did Civil & Environmental in UCC. Neither of us are able to teach Maths or Applied Maths without further study. For example to get the teaching council to recognise us to teach Maths we have to do a 30 credits module with the open university in Maths.

I hope TCD is different!

What do you mean by 'I hope TCD is different'? It's the Teaching Council that set the standard for qualifications not the individual universities. You won't be able to register with the TC until you have completed the OU module. I'm surprised you were offered the PDGE without a maths qualification. Do you have another subject and got in with that instead?

Toto Wolfcastle

rainbowtrout wrote: »

What do you mean by 'I hope TCD is different'?

Presume they are hoping that the course is different, that it meets the TC requirements, unlike their course in UCD.

gubbie

rainbowtrout wrote: »

What do you mean by 'I hope TCD is different'? It's the Teaching Council that set the standard for qualifications not the individual universities. You won't be able to register with the TC until you have completed the OU module. I'm surprised you were offered the PDGE without a maths qualification. Do you have another subject and got in with that instead?

As in, I hope in Trinity that they thought about the possibility of people wanting to do teaching and so put more maths into the degree or put them in final year. I doubt it, but for the posters sake, I hope they did.

I do have other qualifications and work experience. At the end of the day though who knows how I got through. I didn't ring up and ask them.

For the record I'm not the first, nor the last engineer to be on the course. An engineering degree is a maths qualification, it's just not 100% of the maths qualification needed.

bimbar

Hi guys, could you tell me what Maths modules can be taken in Open University (or other institutions?) to cover Maths and Applied Maths. I did the BAI Engineering in Trinity
thanks

rainbowtrout

bimbar wrote: »

Hi guys, could you tell me what Maths modules can be taken in Open University (or other institutions?) to cover Maths and Applied Maths. I did the BAI Engineering in Trinity
thanks

You'll probably have to confirm that with the teaching council. No point anyone here telling you that you have to do X modules and then the TC coming along and saying you have to do Y.

For what it's worth, if you do modules MST121, MS221 and M208 with Open University and have maths in the first year of your degree which you obviously would then you will be qualified to teach maths. Don't know anything about Applied Maths but I would say the max for maths is 3 modules and possibly less.

cruizer101

Another option you might consider is the PGDE teaching qualification in UL. there is a specific one for maths which I got onto with my mechanical engineering degree from Trinity. The application process for this is a form and then an interview. Now as it turns out I dropped out of this onto another teaching course and I'm not sure will I be qualified to teach maths. As far as I can tell I won't be, not because of lack of maths in my degree but because of not doing maths teaching methods as part of my PGDE. The fact that the Trinity degree awards an ordinary level maths degree as well would make you think it would qualify, it should anyway. They used to offer the option to get an honors maths degree as well but for whatever reason stopped offering that without telling anyone.

Anyway here is the link might be one to consider: http://www2.ul.ie/web/WWW/Services/Research/Graduate_School/Prospective_Students/Graduate_Programmes/Taught_Programmes/Education_%26_Health_Sciences/Mathematics%20Teaching