How to add a secondary education subject to your existing primary education registration

If you hold Full Registration in primary education, you can gain Professional (Additional) Registration in a secondary education registration subject.

Eligibility

You will need to:

• hold Full Registration with GTC Scotland;
• show that you have met the appropriate academic requirements;
• be recommended for registration by a secondary school headteacher or deputy headteacher with current Full (General) Registration with GTC Scotland.

What subjects are available?

View the full list of Secondary teaching subject areas available for registration.

Application process

Step one – Check you have met the academic requirements

The academic requirements for registration in Secondary Education appear below:

• 80 Scottish Credit Qualifications Framework (SCQF) credit points in the Secondary teaching subject – some subjects have specific requirements
• at least 40 credit points must be SCQF level 7
• at least 40 credit points must be SCQF level 8

If you have completed at least 40 credit points at SCQF level 7, or above, you can still apply and will be considered for Provisional (Conditional) Registration. If successful, you will have three years to complete the remaining credit points required.

Evidence of academic study

When you apply, you will need to submit evidence of the academic study that you have completed that is relevant to the additional subject. You do not need to submit evidence of academic study that was not relevant to the additional subject.

We can only accept official documentation as evidence of academic study.

We do not require a copy of your initial teacher education qualification.

Relevant study was part of a degree or other degree-level programme

If your relevant study was part of a degree or other degree-level programme you must submit one of the following as evidence.

Degree certificate

If your degree was in an additional subject and this is clearly indicated by the degree title (only applies if the subject does not have specific entry requirements). An example of this would be if the additional subject is Mathematics and the degree certificate states Masters of Science in Mathematics.

Academic transcript(s)

If it is not clear from the degree title that this was relevant to the additional subject and/or if the additional subject has specific entry requirements. An example of this would be if the additional subject is English and the degree title is Bachelor of Arts in Combined Studies.

An academic transcript will show all the modules you studied within your degree (or other degree-level programme). If your degree was awarded in the UK/European Economic Area, we can accept a Diploma Supplement or Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR) document in place of a transcript.

Relevant study was stand-alone modules

If your relevant study was stand-alone modules (e.g. Open University), you are required to submit official confirmation of successful completion of module(s) – this will be issued by the awarding body and will confirm that you have successfully completed the module, the level of this module and the number of credit points awarded.

Both degrees and stand-alone modules

For both degrees and stand-alone modules, if it is not clear from the module titles that these are relevant to the additional subject you must also submit module descriptors. These will give details of the content of the modules. They are sometimes provided on the website of the awarding body. If not, you will need to request these from the awarding body.

Step two – Find an appropriate supporter

First, contact a secondary school headteacher or senior leader with current Full (General) Registration with GTC Scotland who is willing to act as your supporter and recommend you for registration in your chosen secondary education subject. If you are currently in employment as a primary teacher, this could be the headteacher of your school’s cluster secondary school.

Your supporter must only recommend you once they are satisfied you have met the Standard for Provisional Registration (SPR) in respect of secondary education in the specific subject area. To help them to reach this decision, you should both use the toolkit provided to identify any areas of the SPR which you have not yet fully met in respect to secondary education in the specific subject area.

Toolkit – Primary to Secondary

You should then agree and complete a Professional Learning (PL) plan to enable you to meet the SPR in these areas.

Step three – Submit an application for registration in the additional area of the register

You will need to submit evidence of your relevant academic study as well as the Recommendation for Provisional Registration form completed by the headteacher or deputy headteacher who is acting as your supporter.

Completed applications should be submitted to gtcs@gtcs.org.uk with the subject line “Professional (Additional) Registration Application”.

Application for Professional Registration

Recommendation for Provisional Registration

Step four – Application assessed by a Registration Case Officer

Your application will be assessed by a Registration Case Officer, and you will be issued with the decision on your application.

If you are successful, Provisional Registration in your new registration area will be added to your registration with GTC Scotland.

You will then need to meet the requirements for Full Registration before completing the Flexible Route document-based profile. To complete this profile, you must obtain a declaration from a headteacher or deputy headteacher who currently holds Full (General) Registration with GTC Scotland that you have met the Standard for Full Registration in respect of your additional area of registration. Full information about this is provided in the Probationer Teachers section of the website.

Flexible Route Profile for Professional (Additional) Registration

If you are awarded Provisional (Conditional) Registration you will not gain Full Registration until you have also met the academic condition on your registration.