For many language teachers, teaching wasn't their main career. We’ve supported people in their transition from a number of careers into teaching, and offer a fantastic route into the profession.
We have many students enrol on our course from the following professions and more:
- Translators.
- Foreign Language Assistants (FLAs) in European schools.
- Teaching Assistants with language skills.
- Journalists.
- International aid/development.
- Logistics and distribution.
- Marketing and public relations.
- Travel and tourism professional.
- Academic researcher.
Every year more and more people consider changing careers and explore teaching as an option – making the switch is often much easier than people realise.
- Check your qualifications.
- Figure out your finance.
- Consider getting experience in a school.
- Find the right route into teaching.
- Apply.
Further information and guidance on changing your career to become a teacher is available at Now Teach and Transition to Teach.
Made up your mind on a career change? It’s time to apply.
Applications usually open in October and are open all year or until the course is full. It’s simple to apply, here’s the process:
- Register with APPLY
- Search and select the National Modern Languages SCITT.
- Choose your hub location.
- Complete your application.
Considering changing career into teaching? Here’s how you do it.
1. Check your qualifications
To get into teaching you need a degree, and to get into languages teaching you (usually) need a language degree. There are exceptions to this rule – if you can show your proficiency in a specific language through other means, you can often train to be a modern language teacher without a languages degree.
2. Figure out your finance
As a career changer, you need to consider your finances before committing to a course, you will need to fund the tuition fees and provide for your living costs.
There is some support available. You can register direct with Student Finance England at www.gov.uk/student-finance-register-login and check out our fees and funding page, or get in touch if you’d like more information.
3. Consider getting experience in a school
We talk to people about teaching all the time, as a result we’ve become pretty good at detailing what being a languages teacher is like. There’s still no substitute for first hand experience however.
If you think you want to become a languages teacher, our best piece of advice would be to try to get some experience in a classroom as a volunteer to witness first hand what it’s like. The Government’s Get into Teaching website can help you with this.
If you decide that it’s for you – you could have an exciting and fulfilling career in front of you.
4. Find the right route into teaching
You have a few options for getting into teaching as a career changer. Your best course of action is to search for teacher training providers in your local area.
If you’re looking to become a languages teacher however, we believe we offer the best route into teaching for you. (We might be a little biased.)
We have a network of placement schools and teaching hubs across the UK, and offer a hands on route to qualified teacher status. Find out more about our SCITT course here.
5. Apply
Made up your mind on a career change? It’s time to apply.
Applications usually open in October and are open all year or until the Hub course is full. It’s simple to apply, here’s the process:
- Register with APPLY
- Search and select the National Modern Languages SCITT
- Choose your Hub location
- Complete your application
Still undecided? Here are six reasons to change career to teaching modern languages.
We keep in touch with our students to ensure they are settling into their new careers, and to support them whenever they need us. When we check in the usual feedback is that they’re feeling far more fulfilled in their career than they ever have before.
Here are some more reasons to change career to teaching MFL:
Generous annual leave.
Although you get the school holidays as leave, there’s planning, marking and much more to be completed outside of term time but you do get to spend the school holidays away from school and it’s more than you would get in a lot of professions.
Teachers are in demand.
There’s a high employability rate among trainee teachers, and languages teachers are a specialist role, meaning that employment opportunities are always around.
You might be pleasantly surprised at the salaries.
Most of our trainees who are changing career are surprised at the starting salaries for teachers, and the potential to develop and progress.
Every day is different.
There’s so much variety in the job and a lot of potential for creativity.
You're joining hundreds of others.
Lots of people choose teaching as their ‘second’ career, and our trainees find lots of like-minded people with similar life experiences training with them. Each cohort we train becomes like a family, who support each other through their training and their careers.
You have access to experienced teachers for support.
Our team have worked in this field for a number of years and can share their extensive knowledge and expertise with you.
