Recruitment Process
Applicants who meet our entry requirements will be invited to an Assessment Day interview at either Haybridge SCITT or with our Lead Partner Schools. Prior to the interview, candidates will be provided with information to support their preparations. You will have a tour of the SCITT with an opportunity to meet and speak to current trainees, teachers and students, you will carry out a presentation on a topic that will be given to you prior to your interview, complete a subject knowledge assessment and then an individual interview will be conducted with a SCITT Leader.
Candidates are assessed throughout the day based on judgements against a range of assessment criteria. Candidates are normally informed of decisions within 48 hours on DfE Apply. Candidates will be assessed for their:
- Relevant subject knowledge and interest and enthusiasm for teaching the Secondary age range.
- Understanding of the role and expectations of a Secondary teacher · Commitment to supporting learners, including in areas of challenging social context
- Enthusiasm, energy and resilience and ability to work with others in teams.
Candidates must meet all of the Department for Education requirements for Initial Teacher Training, which means being medically fit to teach and successfully completing an enhanced disclosure via the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
Prior to starting the course, candidates must provide certified certificates/statements of results of GCSEs (or equivalence) in English and Mathematics. Degree certificates will also be needed once achieved.
In the first instance, please contact us for an informal discussion about your plans to train to teach. We can then offer you a half-day tailored to your requirements:
- To discuss what we can offer during your training year
- To spend time in the school environment observing teachers and students
- To help set up a ‘school experience’ week
- To ask all those questions that may influence your decision
Applications are checked by schools in the Haybridge SCITT to make sure that necessary selection criteria are met before shortlisting is undertaken. We request two references – one of which must be an academic reference from your university. We are interested in references from your university, employers, and teaching staff from the school where you completed your ‘school experience’.
We will then organise interviews as necessary with the final decision on offers being made by the school.
2023/24 Selection Process
We offer an intensive training year which demands your full-time commitment. Our rigorous interview and selection process will help us decide whether you should train with us, and also help you decide if teaching is the career for you.
Subject Interview
This will focus on your subject knowledge together with your ability to engage and inspire.
Teaching Activity
Applicants will undertake a short teaching activity. You will be asked to prepare a topic and discuss how you would deliver this to a group of students . This will evaluate your ability to facilitate students’ interaction with you and each other.
Presentation
You will be required to undertake a 10-minute presentation on “How to be an outstanding teacher”.
Formal Interview
This interview will be with members of the Central SCITT Team. The interview will evaluate your rationale for wanting to become a teacher and your suitability to carry out the role.
Written Task and Mathematics Task
In accordance with the DfE guidelines we will need to ensure that you have the necessary skills in Mathematics and English to become a teacher by the end of your training year.
You will be expected to demonstrate competence in range of subjects throughout your course:
- Speaking, listening and communicating are fundamental to a teacher’s role. Teachers should use standard English grammar, clear pronunciation and vocabulary relevant to the situation to convey instructions, questions, information, concepts and ideas with clarity. Teachers should read fluently and with good understanding.
- Writing by teachers will be seen by colleagues, pupils and parents and, as such, it is important that a teacher’s writing reflects the high standards of accuracy their professional role demands. They should write clearly, accurately, legibly and coherently using correct spelling and punctuation.
- Teachers should use data and graphs to interpret information, identify patterns and trends and draw appropriate conclusions. They need to interpret pupil data and understand statistics and graphs in the news, academic reports and relevant papers.
- Teachers should be able to complete Mathematical calculations fluently with whole numbers, fractions, decimals and percentages. They should be able to solve mathematical problems using a variety of methods and approaches including estimating and rounding, sense checking answers, breaking down problems into simpler steps and explaining and justifying answers using appropriate language.
Trainees and students are responsible for securing the required fundamental English and Mathematics skills. Haybridge SCITT will support both trainees and students in this process and it is the SCITT’s duty to ensure the trainee can demonstrate competence.
The process for assessing your skills will start at the interview stage and it is important that you begin to develop your confidence and competence in these skills prior to the start of the course.
