About this course

Funding for subject knowledge enhancement courses in the 2021 to 2022 academic year is under review by the government. This means the course content described on this page may not reflect what we are able to offer.

If you’re interested in applying for a PGCE course and think you might need support with subject knowledge, please email ITTAdmissions@soton.ac.uk.

Prepare for a career teaching maths at secondary school and sixth form level.

This subject knowledge enhancement (SKE) course is ideal if you want to teach maths but did not complete a degree that included the subject, if you’re looking for a maths conversion course for teachers or a refresher in the curriculum for students aged 11 to 18.

This SKE maths course is personalised to your education needs and will get you ready to apply for your initial teacher training (ITT), working towards qualified teacher status (QTS).

Our subject knowledge enhancement (SKE) courses are for graduates who want to develop a greater depth of subject understanding before training for qualified teacher status. This intensive maths subject enhancement course will give you the necessary skills and subject knowledge to teach across the 11 to 18 age range.

After you pass, you’ll gain entry to our PGCE in Mathematics course beginning the following September to continue your training to be a maths teacher.

To be ready for the challenges of teacher training and the classroom, you need excellent subject knowledge and understanding. This subject knowledge enhancement course is ideal if your degree subject did not include the study of maths and you want to teach it. It is also a solid refresher on the age 11 to 18 maths curriculum to complete before your initial teacher training (ITT).

You’ll learn through a combination of face-to-face teaching, distance (online) learning and in-classroom practical exposure. You’ll be taught by highly experienced tutors, who specialise in secondary and sixth form mathematic education.

The Government funds this course for most eligible students, so you do not have to pay any fees. This bursary (funded by the Department for Education) can help towards your study. When you complete this course, you’ll be expected to go directly into an ITT course to work towards your QTS.

Course lead

The course lead is Lucy Hoyes. Lucy is a Senior Teaching Fellow within Southampton Education School. Lucy is an experienced maths teacher at secondary and post-16 and has also been Head of Mathematics. Lucy is passionate about mentoring and coaching teachers early in their career. Learn more by visiting Lucy’s staff profile.

Related pathways

Course location

This course is based at Highfield.

Awarding body

This qualification is awarded by the University of Southampton.

Entry requirements

You’ll need an:

undergraduate degree
GCSEs (minimum grade 4/C) in English language and maths
GCE A level in maths

Find the equivalent international qualifications for your country.

Got a question?

Please contact us if you're not sure you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.

Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000

Course structure

All of our SKE courses are made up of one module. This course is personalised to meet your, or a collective group of student’s, subject knowledge requirements. This length of this course is between 200 to 300 hours.

You’ll need to complete the course with sufficient subject and pedagogical (interactions between teachers, students, and the learning environment and tasks) knowledge to meet the Teachers’ Standard 3. This is required to prepare you for Initial Teacher Training (ITT) that leads to the QTS awarding.

The course is structured through taught sessions in the University and independent study tasks, including online learning. Taught sessions typically run for a full day. You’ll also have the opportunity to obtain school or college placements, so you can spend time in classrooms observing a mathematics lesson.

Want more detail? See all the modules in the course.

Modules

For entry in Academic Year 2021-22

You must study the following module:

Pre-ITT Subject Knowledge Enhancement

Learning and assessment

Learning

You’ll learn through face to face and distance (online) learning. To support your learning, we offer:

workshops
micro-teaching activities
independent research
access to teaching resources such as:
- publishes schemes
- worksheets
- calculators
- interactive whiteboards
- software packages

As part of this SKE Mathematics course, you’ll have the opportunity to spend time observing lessons in schools and colleges.

In the taught part of this course, you’ll learn through:

seminars
flipped learning
independent study
online learning

Assessment

We’ll assess you through:

portfolio of evidence
individual tutorials, to evaluate progress and set targets
open book tasks
written assignments

Each topic area is assessed through a completion of subject knowledge questions relating to the relevant area of mathematics. These are typically questions from past GCSE and Advanced level exam papers.

Academic Support

We’ll assign you a personal tutor, and you’ll have access to a senior tutor.

Careers

Students taking this programme will normally already have an offer of a place on any Initial Teacher Training (ITT) route that leads to QTS.

It is expected that students completing this programme will all progress to ITT. This will then lead on to a variety of career options, including:

teaching maths to age groups of:
- 11 to 16
- 11 to 18
- 16 and older
associated careers in education
working with young people

Careers services at Southampton

We're a top 20 UK university for employability (QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2020). Our Careers and Employability Service will support you throughout your time as a student and for up to 5 years after graduation. This support includes:

work experience schemes
CV/resume and interview skills workshops
networking events
careers fairs attended by top employers
a wealth of volunteering opportunities
study abroad and summer school opportunities

We have a thriving entrepreneurship culture. You'll be able to take advantage of:

our dedicated start-up incubator, Futureworlds
a wide variety of enterprise events run throughout the year
our partnership in the world’s number 1 business incubator, SETsquared

Fees, costs and funding

Tuition fees

What your fees pay for

Your tuition fee covers the full cost of tuition and any exams.

Find out how to pay your tuition fees.

Accommodation and living costs, such as travel and food, are not included in your tuition fees. Explore:

Funding your postgraduate studies

A variety of additional scholarships, grants and bursaries may be available to help you fund your master’s study, both from the University and from other organisations.

Funding for EU and international students

Find out about funding you could get as an international student.

How to apply

For a place on our SKE course, you need to apply for a PGCE course here at The University of Southampton or with a provider.

As part of your application, please indicate you want to complete a subject knowledge enhancement before starting your PGCE course, or after submitting your application an advisor may inform you that you need to complete a SKE course.

All PGCE applications are processed through UCAS. When you apply, you'll be taken to the UCAS website where you'll need to register an account with UCAS to submit an application. For information: there is a plan to move PGCE courses from applying through UCAS onto a DFE system.

Application deadlines

UK students

Applications must be received no later than 4 weeks before the start of the course. You must supply all supporting documentation at least 2 weeks before starting your course.

International students

We recommend you apply at least 6 weeks before the start of the course to ensure you're able to meet our requirements and apply for a visa in time.

We cannot guarantee students who do not meet these deadlines will be able to begin their course.

Application assessment fee

We’ll ask you to pay a £50 application assessment fee if you’re applying for any postgraduate taught course that starts in or after September 2021.

This is an extra one-off charge which is separate to your tuition fees. It covers the work and time it takes us to assess your application. You’ll be prompted to pay when you submit your application which won’t progress until you've paid.

If you're a current or former University of Southampton student, if you're applying for a Master of Research (MRes) degree, or if you're applying for a PGCE course via UCAS, you will not need to pay the fee. Find out if you’re exempt on our terms and conditions page.

Supporting information

When you apply you’ll need to submit a personal statement explaining why you want to take the course.

You’ll need to include information about:

your knowledge of the subject area
why you want to study a postgraduate qualification in this course
how you intend to use your qualification

You'll also need to send 2 academic references.

Please include the required paperwork showing your first degree and your IELTS English language test score (if you are a non-native English speaker) with your application. Without these, your application may be delayed.

Learn more about how to apply with our postgraduate application guide.

What happens after you apply

You'll be able to track your application through our online Applicant Record System.

We'll assess your application on the strength of your:

academic achievements
relevant professional experience
personal statement
academic references

We'll get back to you within 6 weeks with a decision about your application.

We'll invite shortlisted candidates to a selection day, which includes an interview. You'll get an email from the admissions tutor if you're invited to the selection day. This will include information on how to prepare and what to expect during the session.