Routes to QTS — Initial Teacher Training

Most teachers gain QTS through approved Initial Teacher Training (ITT): a university-led PGCE, school-led routes (School Direct, SCITT), the salaried Postgraduate Teaching Apprenticeship, or the Assessment Only route for experienced unqualified teachers. The PGCE is an academic qualification distinct from QTS — most ITT awards both, but they are not the same thing. New teachers then complete a statutory ~2-year induction as an Early Career Teacher under the Early Career Framework (reforms ongoing).