PGCE Secondary with Music (with QTS)

Entry requirements

• Bachelors degree with Honours at 2:2 or above, or equivalent level.
• At least Grade C or the new Grade 4 in GCSE English and Mathematics.*

Equivalency Tests

We are able to accept approved third party equivalency tests in place of GCSEs. The current providers that have been approved are as follows, with details of the current discounts that are available. If you are intending to use another equivalency testing company, we recommend you contact our admissions team prior to doing so to ensure that they meet the entry criteria.

Equivalency Testing

• Why choose Equivalency Testing?
• Long standing company
• Excellent student support
• Secure testing
• Good and quick feedback
• Significant discount available for PGCE offer holders, please email cte.admissions@warwick.ac.uk for the code.

A Star Equivalency**

Why chose A Star Equivalency?

• Excellent student support
• A clear outline of required material in each exam

• Rolling programme of live online subject specific support sessions.
• An extensive range of free support material
• Practice papers and marking schemes
• Discounted from £165* to £139 (saving £26). Please contact cte.admissions@warwick.ac.uk for the discount code.

If you are intending to use another equivalency testing company, we recommend you contact our admissions team prior to doing so to ensure that they meet the entry criteria.

*The new grading system for those receiving their results for GCSE Maths and English was adopted in 2017. The grading system is now 9-1, with Grade 9 awarded to those students in the very top tier. Grade 4 is considered equivalent to the old Grade C.

**Special offer for the University of Warwick students. Maths exams are available in Foundation or Higher. English, Science and Biology are untiered

If students require further support, we offer a range of low-cost options.

Months of entry

September

Course content

Our Secondary PGCE Music course is designed for aspiring teachers who want to inspire, challenge, and support young people through musical engagement. The course is grounded in exploring the core themes of music education pedagogy, curriculum, assessment, and philosophy through a series of seminars, workshops, and tutorials that integrate theoretical foundations with practical applications.

This course will equip you with the skills, confidence, and understanding to teach music in a secondary school setting while reflecting critically on the role of music in wider society. You’ll explore diverse pedagogical approaches, work with a broad range of repertoire, and consider how music technology and performance can be applied to enrich learning in inclusive classroom settings. Through a balance of school placements and university-based study, you’ll develop competencies to plan, teach, and assess effectively across Key Stages 3–5. You’ll be supported to reflect on your own musical identity and how this informs your own practice, while gaining a robust understanding of curriculum design, pedagogical approaches, assessment procedures, and philosophical positions. With school placements alongside academic discourse, you’ll gain real-world classroom experience supported by expert mentors and tutors to support fostering creativity, curiosity, and musical independence in young people.

Course overview

Our Secondary Postgraduate Certificate in Education focuses on the 11-18 age range. Our course will develop you into a highly effective teacher, equipped with the values, skills and knowledge to become a successful school leader.

Our courses offer the best of both immersive, school-based training and regular teaching input from experts with subject specialist teaching experience. In addition, you can access the support and learning facilities of a world-class university.

On the course you will develop a secure subject knowledge base, and the ability to plan and teach in your subject so that all pupils learn and make good progress. You will learn how to assess and evaluate learning and develop your teaching to ensure progress for all pupils. You will also learn about the needs of pupils and how to adapt your teaching to strengthen inclusion in your teaching.

In partnership with regional schools, we will ensure that you have the skills and knowledge needed to forge a strong personal and professional identity, which you will continue to develop throughout your career. The Warwick Teacher Values, of Social Justice, Intellectual Curiosity and Creativity run through all our programmes.

What is a PGCE?

A Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) is usually a one-year teacher training course. It offers a mixture of academic and practical learning, and it's the first step for graduates in the development of a teaching career. At Warwick, our PGCE courses provide a recommendation for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS – a requirement to teach in the state school system as a Newly Qualified Teacher).