This three-year BA degree course is designed for those working as teaching assistants in schools who wish to become primary or prep school teachers. To be a qualified teacher in England you have to have a degree and the most relevant degree to take is one in Education.

While the number of teachers in schools in England has remained steady over the past decade or so, the number of full-time equivalent TAs has more than trebled since 2000, from 79,000 to 262,800. Teaching assistants now comprise more than a quarter of the workforce in mainstream schools in England, rising to 35% in primary schools.

Our degree has many significant advantages:

1. It is designed to enable you to work in a paid job while taking the course.

2. The course is online and this enables you do the work and complete tasks at times you can manage. The course has been running in 2023 – so we know it works. The course materials are written by academics and leading primary school head teachers in England.

3. The course is excellent value. Every student will need to find out whether their employer is happy to pay, or whether they will take a student loan.

4. You will have your own University of Buckingham tutor who will support you throughout the course.

5. The degree course is integrated with your work because much of the study is based on you reflecting on your school and what happens there.

6. For students living in England, the BA can be followed by the 12-month Qualified Teacher Status course at the University of Buckingham which is free of charge (at the time of writing) because it is paid, through your employer, by the apprenticeship levy. QTS is needed to teach in many schools in England.

7. A typical teacher training course is only 10 months long, so adding a three-year degree to that will ensure you have a much higher level of knowledge.

Teaching assistants should not embark on this course unless they are determined and can find a good amount of time each week to do the necessary reading and writing.

Part-time teaching assistants are welcome.

Overseas applicants should know that the course content is about primary schools in England only. You will not be eligible for the apprenticeship-funded QTS course but can apply for the International QTS course for which there is a fee.