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This guidance is for:

• subject knowledge enhancement (SKE) providers
• initial teacher training (ITT) providers
• School Direct lead schools

If you鈥檙e an applicant to an ITT course, visit our .

You can use the subject knowledge enhancement: course directory to find a suitable provider.

Overview

As a School Direct lead school or an聽ITT聽provider, you may see applicants who have the potential to become outstanding teachers but need to increase their subject knowledge before the聽teachers鈥� standards聽can be met.聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别s can help you to feel confident that the applicant can obtain the minimum subject knowledge standard to be recruited.

The Department for Education (DfE) currently funds聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别s in 5 secondary subjects:

• chemistry
• computing
• languages
• mathematics
• physics

PE applicants can also access an 8-week聽SKE聽in an English Baccalaureate (EBacc) subject where an聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 is available and they meet the eligibility requirements.

Dual language SKE courses

Applicants who need to complete a dual language聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 should take:

• a short 8-week course in their main language
• a longer course of up to 28 weeks in the other language

Only applicants who have received a conditional offer in a languages聽ITT, which specifies the completion of a dual聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 as a condition of the offer, are eligible for a dual language聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别.

SKE eligibility

To be eligible to undertake a聽DfE-蹿耻苍诲别诲听SKE, all applicants need to:

• meet the eligibility requirements to train to teach in England
• accept a conditional offer which specifies the requirement to complete an聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别

Applicants are not eligible to complete a DfE-funded SKE course if they have been awarded a degree, postgraduate degree or joint degree in their chosen聽ITT聽subject within the previous 5 years.聽

DfE聽does not fund聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别s for individuals who have already obtained qualified teacher status (QTS).

Further SKE聽eligibility requirements for non-UK applicants

Applicants undertaking a face-to-face聽SKE聽need permission to study in the UK.

Candidates on an existing visa should check that their visa allows them to study. If they do not already have a visa or relevant permission, they will:

• need to apply for a visitor visa to undertake their聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别
• be restricted on the type of provider and duration of their course if聽the SKE聽is delivered face to face (maximum of 26 weeks)

If an applicant is undertaking an聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 online from inside or outside the UK, there are no restrictions on the type of provider and the maximum course duration remains at 28 weeks. No immigration permission is required for non-UK applicants studying online from outside the UK, but those already within the UK should ensure that they hold an appropriate visa.

SKE听产耻谤蝉补谤颈别蝉

All applicants may be eligible to receive an聽SKE聽bursary if:

• they have at least a bachelor鈥檚 degree 2:2 equivalent classification in their degree subject or have a master鈥檚 degree or PhD
• they are undertaking their聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 before starting聽ITT, or up to the point they start聽ITT聽if their聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 overlaps with聽ITT
• they are entitled to support under the student finance criteria

If a participant鈥檚听SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 overlaps with their聽ITT, they are not eligible for a bursary during this overlap.

Applicants cannot claim SKE听产耻谤蝉补谤颈别蝉 retrospectively after completing their聽ITT. Providers should stop an applicant鈥檚 SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 and聽bursary if they become aware of an applicant withdrawing from聽ITT聽before their聽SKE聽is complete.

SKE听产耻谤蝉补谤颈别蝉 for non-UK applicants

罢丑别听SKE聽bursary is only available to non-UK applicants who:

• meet the criteria in the previous section
• are undertaking a tuition fee-based聽ITT听肠辞耻谤蝉别 in England

This is dependent on their immigration or residency status.

Non-UK applicants who are funding a tuition fee-based physics or languages teacher training course in England are eligible for an聽SKE聽bursary. This is regardless of whether they are entitled or not to support under the student finance criteria. This also applies to School Direct salaried courses in physics and languages, up to the point they receive a School Direct salary.

How to know if an applicant needs SKE

The need for聽SKE聽is usually identified by a school or provider during the recruitment and selection process. This could be:

• when the applicant is undertaking school experience
• during discussions with the applicant before they apply
• from the application form
• during the applicant鈥檚 interview

Applicants may need more specific subject knowledge to begin an聽ITT听肠辞耻谤蝉别 if they have:

• a different but related degree to the subject they want to teach
• studied the subject at A level but not degree level
• an unrelated degree but relevant professional knowledge in the subject
• studied for a languages degree but need a second language at an acceptable level for teaching in schools
• a degree in the subject but have not used their degree knowledge for more than 5 years

Referring a participant for SKE

Applicants must have freedom of choice regarding their聽SKE聽provider and should use聽DfE鈥檚听subject knowledge enhancement: course directory to aid their choice.聽ITT聽providers may support participants but must not make it a condition of their聽ITT聽offer to undertake an聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 with a particular institution.

Once an applicant has chosen their聽SKE听肠辞耻谤蝉别 provider, their聽SKE聽provider will ask the聽ITT聽provider to complete a referral form to ensure a consistent approach to collecting applicant information. 罢丑别听SKE聽provider will then enrol the applicant onto a course and claim funding from聽DfE.

How SKE courses are provided

DfE-funded SKE courses are only provided by providers that have a framework agreement in place and are listed on the subject knowledge enhancement: course directory. They can vary in duration from an 8-week refresher or booster programme through to a 28-week programme, with a week equating to 25 learning hours.

All SKE courses must be completed before QTS is recommended.

SKE courses can be:

• completed before or alongside聽ITT听肠辞耻谤蝉别s (given the time commitments, we recommend starting and completing an SKE before starting ITT)
• undertaken on a part-time or full-time basis
• delivered online, through distance learning, face-to-face learning or through a mixture of these approaches
• delivered in condensed hours (for example, a 12-week SKE delivered across 10 weeks) 鈥� DfE would not expect a participant to complete more than 40 hours of study per week in any instance

Total bursary eligibility will decrease if the SKE course is either:

• delivered in condensed hours
• completed fully or partially in parallel with ITT

SKE funding

For all SKE courses in the 2024 to 2025 academic year:

• programme costs are funded at a unit fee up to 拢200 per week per participant
• subject to meeting the eligibility criteria, the participant bursary funding is 拢175 per week per participant

Contact us

If you have any further queries about SKEs after reading our guidance, contact us at: