Become fully qualified to teach in just 12 weeks while working in your current school.

  • Gain recognition as a qualified teacher for the work you're already doing.
  • Enhance your career prospects and earning potential; as a qualified teacher, you become eligible for the qualified teachers' pay scale.
  • Join an accredited provider of Initial Teacher Education with over 75 years' experience of training teachers.

Are you currently employed in a school as an unqualified teacher? Do you have at least two years' experience planning, teaching and assessing whole classes of pupils?  If you answered yes to both of those questions, our 12-week Assessment Only Route to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) may be the course for you.  

We assess across the following age phases and subjects: 

  • Early Years and Primary (3-7 age phase) 
  • Primary (5-11 age phase) 
  • Primary (7-11 age phase) 
  • Middle (11-14 age phase)
  • Secondary (11 – 16): 
    • Art and Design  
    • Business Studies 
    • Computing 
    • Design and Technology 
    • Drama 
    • English 
    • Geography 
    • History 
    • Mathematics 
    • Modern Languages 
    • Music 
    • Physical Education  
    • Religious Education  
    • Science - Biology 
    • Science - Chemistry 
    • Science - Physics  

What is the Assessment Only Route to QTS?

This is a school-based route to Qualified Teacher Status for unqualified teachers who are currently working in a school in England. You'll need at least two years of experience of planning, teaching and assessing learning across a minimum of two schools, and two consecutive key stages. 

The school in which you currently work will give you a mentor, who you'll meet with regularly. We'll provide you with university tutors, who will quality-assure, moderate and support you in gaining your QTS certificate. A university tutor will also train and support your mentor to meet the requirements of their role.

As part of this route to QTS, we can also signpost you to bespoke training which is linked to specific areas of professional development that you identify with your mentor. 

What you'll learn

Overview

There's no formal training during the assessment only route to QTS. You'll continue your professional learning and development through reflection on your practice, supported by a school-based mentor. 

You're required to have a significant teaching role in a school/setting that's prepared to support you through the assessment period. 

You must be meeting the Teachers' Standards before starting the assessment period.

How will I be assessed?

With your mentor, you'll complete an initial assessment against the Teachers’ Standards to identify strengths and areas to develop. This will be used to start to create your electronic evidence portfolio, which will be formatively assessed during the assessment period.  

The portfolio might include: 

  • Written lesson observations of your teaching (completed by expert colleagues who hold QTS).
  • Professional dialogue in reviews of progress and targets. 
  • Witness statements (accounts of specific events and conversations which are pertinent to attainment of the Teachers' Standards).
  • Assessment reports, including a final written summative report of your progress and attainment. 
  • Records of professional development activities. 
  • Subject knowledge audits. 
  • A final claim supported by the collection of evidence submitted in the portfolio. 

Your teaching practice will be observed each week and you'll have a post-lesson observation discussion with your mentor. In these regular meetings, you'll:  

  • Assess and evaluate your teaching practice 
  • Identify strengths  
  • Set and review short-term targets. 

You'll meet with your mentor weekly to assess the quality of your electronic evidence portfolio to ensure it contains high quality evidence to demonstrate that you've met the Teachers’ Standards. 

Towards the end of the assessment period, a university tutor will visit you to quality-assure your evidence portfolio and assess, with your mentor, how your evidence demonstrates that you've fully met the Teachers’ Standards.  

Opportunities

Careers

The Assessment Only route culminates in Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). As a qualified teacher, you'll expand your employment options across the education sector, in all schools and settings. It can also enable you to apply for senior leadership roles in education. 

Fees

2025 entry
Student Annual tuition fee
UK full time £3,830

Additional course costs

You may need to pay additional course costs over and above your tuition fees, for example, for specialist equipment or trips and visits. Please check the course Programme Document (linked under the main image on this page) for details of any additional costs. You can also read our Additional Course Costs Policy for further information.

Funding opportunities

Please visit our Funding pages for an overview of the funding options that may be available, including scholarships and bursaries.

Interested in applying?

What we look for in potential students

We're looking for employed teachers who have yet to gain a teaching qualification. You'll be able to demonstrate that you meet the Teachers’ Standards and have an exceptional work ethic.

Academic requirements

You’ll need a first degree granted by a UK Higher Education institution, or equivalent qualification.

If you're applying for the secondary route, your degree must be relevant to the subject you're teaching.

We only accept candidates with GCSE passes at grade 4/C or above (or recognised equivalents) in English and Mathematics.

If you're applying for the Primary and Early Years routes, you must also have a GCSE pass at grade 4/C or above (or recognised equivalent) in a Science subject. 

Non-academic requirements

We'll ask your school to confirm that you've met the statutory requirements such as an enhanced DBS, Fitness to Teach and other appropriate checks, in-line with Keeping Children Safe in Education.

How do I apply?

There are two stages to complete when applying for the Assessment Only route to QTS: 

  • Stage 1: Eligibility check
  • Stage 2: Formal application

If you would like to apply please contact the Assessment Only Team: assessmentonly@bathspa.ac.uk. 

Assessment Only Team: assessmentonly@bathspa.ac.uk