Anyone attending university for teaching? Please help!

Hello all,

I really want to go the University of Brighton to pursue a certificate in teaching. However, I need to volunteer in a UK primary school for 2 weeks in order to apply. Is there anyone here who knows how I could find a school? I've tried contacting a few, but nothing yet.

Any help is much appreciated!

Also, if I get my UK teaching certificate, does this at least allow me to work there for a little bit, if not permanently?

I think if you are American you would need a visa to volunteer for that as it qualifies as work, even though you are not being paid, I believe.

Are you currently studying somewhere? If so, where and in what subject area and at what level? It would be helpful if you told us a little more about yourself. 

Maybe BUNAC could help you achieve this? http://www.bunac.org/usa/

Information about teaching in the UK: http://www.prospects.ac.uk/cms/ShowPage/Home_page/Education/Teacher_training/getting_started/p!eefXpbL

Courses: http://www.prospects.ac.uk/cms/ShowPage/Home_page/Find_courses_and_research_gs/p!eefXfmd?action=search&2waynocompress=1&keyword=&filter=subject%2F2028&x=29&y=19

Also something to think about is, usually you have to be CRB checked even to volunteer in a school I believe. At least it's done that way in all of my local area schools.    I'm sure someone with more knowledge will know more.

And CRB checks can take weeks / months: http://www.crb.homeoffice.gov.uk/

All the CRB checks I have had have taken 2-3 months.  However, I was allowed to supply teach in a school before the CRB check came through, so you never know.  It might have been because I have a US teaching qualification already though.

mapleleafgirl: You are right, I should have provided more details!

I am a recent graduate of the University of New Hampshire. I have a BA in psychology and my associate's in English. I studied for one semester at Regent's College in London, and I fell in love with the people and the culture.

Usually, things we do in high school are not relevant, but I did have a semester-long internship with my local elementary school as a teacher's assistant during my senior year.

Leisa, I am a substitute teacher in New Hampshire. What kind of qualification do you have? Maybe substituting won't be enough. :/ But I did have to pass a criminal background check.

And I found a school, I just have to find out if I need a visa. I couldn't find anything about volunteering on the website.

Thank you all for your help!

You can't just come to the UK and volunteer, no work means no work paid or unpaid.   

Hello all,

I really want to go the University of Brighton to pursue a certificate in teaching. However, I need to volunteer in a UK primary school for 2 weeks in order to apply. Is there anyone here who knows how I could find a school? I've tried contacting a few, but nothing yet.

If you want to do a PGCE at University of Brighton and you need to do some volunteering to apply, I'd contact the university and see if volunteering in a US based school will meet their criteria. Otherwise, I'd look to see if you are eligible for BUNAC or other visa, as appropriate, because you need a visa to work here , paid or unpaid.

Keep in mind that being a UK qualified teacher will not necessarily mean that you could get a visa to stay in the UK and work. There are very limited areas of job shortages for teachers in the UK and you might also find that the UK teaching qualification is not transferable to the US.

Best of luck!