PGCE Funding

You want to do a PGCE then and get into teaching, but you’re unsure about how to fund it? Well, once you've decided you're going to be a PGCE student and found out how much a PGCE costs, did you know that PGCE funding is often easier to come by than for any other course? Thanks to the need for high quality teachers, there are a lot of potential sources of funding, from the government, to independent societies. The best thing to do is to apply for as many as are relevant, because none of them should exclude eligibility for the others.

Funding for PGCE

So, just what PGCE funding is out there? For a start, PGCE students are eligible for student loans and maintenance grants, just like undergraduate students are. As with undergraduates, these are split into a few sections.

Tuition fee loan

The tuition fee loan which covers the full cost of course fees of up to £9,250. When you start your non-salaried teacher training, you won’t have to pay the cost of tuition fees up front, instead apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover the full cost of your course, which is paid directly to your training provider from Student Finance England. These Tuition Fee Loans aren't means tested, so regardless of your household income you should be able to claim the full amount for your course fees. This loan will have to be paid back once you are earning over £25,000 per year. Please see the UK government website for more information.

Maintenance loan

A Maintenance Loan of up to £11,672 is available for living costs. All eligible teacher trainees will qualify for at least the minimum loan amount for their living costs, regardless of household income. If you’re on a full-time teacher training course and live in London the minimum Maintenance Loan amount will be £5,812, and outside of London it will be £4,168 or £3,314 if you're living at home.

Teacher training bursaries & scholarships

To qualify for a tax-free bursary or scholarship you'll need to have a first, 2:1, 2:2, PhD or masters degree to be eligible for a bursary or scholarship. The amounts available vary due to a few factors like the grade achieved on your first degree (minimum of 2.2), and the subject you’re planning to teach. It also varies on where you are studying – for the purposes of this article, we’ll use the figures from England, but bear in mind they are slightly lower in Wales.

If you are eligible and are specialising in secondary education with a desirable subject such as a Science, Classics or Languages these bursaries and scholarships could be up to £26,000. If you are a parent or/and have a disability these bursaries could be even higher. Bursaries of up to £6,000 are available for primary school teacher trainers. Check out the UK government website for more information. Find out more about teaching bursaries and PGCE funding.

Apply for one of our x5 bursaries worth £2,000

We've launched our new Postgrad Solutions Study Bursaries for 2024. Full-time, part-time, online and blended-learning students eligible. 2024 & 2025 January start dates students welcome. Study postgraduate courses in any subject taught anywhere worldwide.

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PGCE university funding options

Whilst these are the two major ways to get funding for PGCE courses, they are not the only two options available. Sometimes, universities will have scholarships, bursaries, or similar, available to applicants of certain courses, so it’s worth checking wherever you apply for whether there are additional options available.

PGCE charity funding options

Additionally, there is the option of looking at charities. There are plenty of charities offering funding, and many of them are specifically offering it to potential teachers. It may be a little harder to find, but often there will be charities dedicated to particular subjects, goals or certain areas of school catchment. Sometimes they’re even sorted by which school you yourself attended. Having a look through all of these options should reveal quite a few that you’re eligible for, and the best thing to do is to start writing to the individual charities and enquiring about eligibility. And check out some of our more ingenious ideas! So that’s funding for PGCE courses. As you can see, there’s a wide range of options available to you, and as long as you take the time to apply to any sources of funding open to you it should be no issue affording the course.

Postgrad Solutions Study Bursaries

Don't forget that once you have been accepted into a PGCE program you are eligible to apply for one of our Postgrad Solutions Study Bursaries worth £2,000 towards your tuition fees. You can find out more here.

Our PGCE bursary winner & funding opportunity

Georgia Flint is a 22-year-old British student studying a School Direct Primary PGCE at the University of Winchester. Georgia is really enjoying studying her PGCE and can't wait to be a qualified teacher with her own class of students. She was shocked and delighted when she found out she had been awarded a Postgrad Solutions Study Bursary, explaining, “I am not sure why but I was so surprised to be selected. It’s a really good feeling!” Being awarded a Postgrad Solutions Study Bursary has alleviated Georgia's funding stress, enabling her to focus on her studies.

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