Charles Randall, PGCE Primary graduate who now works at a local primary school teaching year three

Having completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Plymouth, I knew that I would have access to great facilities such as the library and the teaching rooms. The staff are friendly and approachable, and I knew they would help me to achieve my teaching qualification.

I’ve found new confidence since completing my course; I’m better at communicating with others, and I’ve really improved at speaking in front of groups of people. I’ve gained an understanding of pedagogy and learnt a lot about the process of learning itself. I’ve also learned how to be a reflective practitioner, able to self-analyse the lessons that I teach and figure out how I could make them more effective to maximise learning.

During my PGCE, I found out how exciting and rewarding it can be when you realise that you’re responsible for sparking a child’s interest and enthusiasm for a topic. After teaching a science lesson, a child told me that they had asked for a scientific book from their grandparent for their birthday. My lesson inspired them to want to learn more about the moon, and they couldn’t wait to tell me all about it after the weekend! That was a key moment for me; I know I made the right choice in training to be a teacher at Plymouth.

In the future, I’d either like to follow the traditional path, beginning as a teacher and working to ascend through the ranks to become the head of a subject, a deputy, or perhaps even a head teacher. Alternatively, I may explore a career which utilises specific aspects of my undergraduate degree and work towards becoming a special educational needs coordinator or an educational psychologist.

Find out more about postgraduate study at the University of Plymouth here