The part-time teaching course allowing people of all ages to pursue an exciting new career

When Julie Gordon was looking for a new challenge and a complete change from her career, she remembered hearing amazing things about Hopwood Hall College and University Centre.

Julie, from Oldham, was working in Process Engineering when she discovered that the college – which has campuses in Middleton and Rochdale, Greater Manchester – offers a great range of programmes in Education and Training.

These courses are perfect for people interested in training or retraining to teach in the post-16 and adult sectors. For Julie, it was the ideal route into an exciting new career teaching a subject that she was passionate about – maths for engineers.

Julie didn’t want to give up her day job until she was sure that teaching was the way to go. She enrolled on the Level 3 Award in Education and Training, which is a short introductory qualification for anyone who is thinking about training to teach.

This popular pathway is fully-funded through the Greater Manchester Skills Fund, with multiple start dates throughout the year at Hopwood Hall. The next programme begins on Tuesday, March 21 (with another to follow in September) and for a brand new cohort will be the start of a life-changing journey into a new profession.

The course offers fascinating insight into the world of education and, after completing it in 2021, Julie was thrilled with her decision to study at Hopwood. She quickly signed up for the next course, the Level 4 Certificate in Education and Training, and arranged a placement teaching maths in the college’s renowned Engineering department.

Julie was extremely impressed with the high quality of organisation, planning and teaching on the course and found that the tutors’ passion and enthusiasm for their subject was inspiring.

The course focused on developing practical classroom skills. Julie quickly discovered that every activity and approach from the sessions could be used in her own teaching. There were even strategies from the course and placement that she could apply in her own workplace.

In addition, excellent support with study skills, academic writing and subject specialist knowledge was also provided. As an added bonus, she was happy to discover that she had “super supportive peers” and the diversity of the class was an enriching experience.

 

 

Julia says: “You will learn so much from these courses. Speaking in front of my placement class was a barrier for me initially, but my confidence grew quickly week-by-week.

“Plan your study time well in order to achieve the assignment deadlines. If you are struggling, ask for help as soon as you can so to avoid a build-up of work. Brilliant support systems are available – if you need them, use them!”

Not only did Julie successfully complete the Level 4 course with flying colours, but she was delighted to receive a special award for the quality of her research and assignments at Hopwood’s annual graduation and awards ceremony.

Julie is now well on the way to achieving her dream – but she’s not finished yet! While still in employment, she’s getting valuable teaching experience while tutoring a group of learners studying Engineering at Hopwood. In addition, she has just signed up for the next course – the Level 5 Diploma in Education and Training. A full-time career in teaching is just around the corner!

*The Level 3 Award in Education and Training programme begins on Tuesday, March 21. The same programme – as well as the Level 4 and Level 5 pathways – also has start dates in September. For more information, visit HERE.