Languages Teacher Training Scholarships FAQs

The Scholarship is available for those training to teach French, German or Spanish. To be eligible you need to secure a teacher training place by the end of September. Your training provider would specify whether you need one or two languages and to what level If you wish to apply to teach a language other than French, German or Spanish, you may still be eligible to apply for a bursary.

Please register at the Get Into Teaching website to receive direct support from an advisor. You can also look at the information online at the same website for the bursary scheme.

To be eligible for a scholarship, you should have at least a 2:1 degree or above. You can still apply if you have a 2:2, but you’ll need to provide evidence of significant relevant experience. If you obtained your qualifications overseas, you will need to provide a Statement of Compatibility (ENIC), please visit this link for more information on how to do this: https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/non-uk-teachers/train-to-teach-in-england-as-an-international-student 

Applications for the scholarship may be considered for those who have an Undergraduate, Masters or PhD degree in subjects other than French, German or Spanish, but they must demonstrate proficiency in the chosen language to enable teaching up to A Level standard. This will be assessed if the candidate is selected to attend an assessment.

Yes. We are looking for gifted and passionate future language teachers. As long as you fit the eligibility criteria you do not need to be a recent graduate to apply. Please also look at Subject Knowledge Enhancement courses to assess your language level.

Please note that we require your highest level of qualification. If your highest level of degree is a Bachelor’s degree, then it must to be with Honours. You must be able to prove that your qualification is the correct level and we request for more individual advice on how your qualifications overseas compare to qualifications overseas compare to qualifications from educational institutions in the UK, please also visit ENIC. We do not accept notary signed copies as we cannot verify these. If your teacher training course provider has accepted your qualification, please ask them for a letter of proof to upload with your application if required. If you have a degree from outside the UK you can also contact your training provider for clarification on your degree’s equivalency and your eligibility for a bursary and student finance.

Yes we welcome applicants from overseas, however please check your eligibility and QTS status. For more information please visit: https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/non-uk-teachers/train-to-teach-in-england-as-an-international-student 

We welcome applications from graduates who demonstrate a strong desire to teach and a passion for languages. You do not need to be a recent graduate to apply however, you will need to ensure that your language skills enable you to teach up to A Level standard. We advise you to talk to your training provider about this as they will have different requirements. You may need to undertake a Subject Knowledge Enhancement course. For more information please visit the Get Into Teaching website.

You must have secured a place on an eligible non-salaried, secondary, MFL (French, Spanish or German), leading to QTS, languages teacher training scheme in England for the 2025/26 academic year by September 2025.  

No, the Scholarship is available to trainee language teachers at secondary school level in England only.

There are a number of different routes into teaching. Please register on the Department for Education website Get Into Teaching where you will have access to direct support with getting into teaching and advice on applying for a Teacher Training Course.

Please take a look at the Get Into teaching website. The School Experience Programme (SEP) can be one way to gain valuable schools experience. Please register on the Department for Education website Get Into Teaching where you will also have access to direct support with getting into teaching.

You can apply at any time but we will be assessing your subject knowledge, so you may prefer to wait until you have completed or at least started your SKE course.

Candidates will be assessed at application stage and those shortlisted will be invited to attend a virtual interview. We advise that you visit a school for some school experience before you attend. The virtual interview consists of a presentation (partly in English and in the language you want to teach) and an interview. Candidates will be contacted regarding the interview if they are successful and will be given information on next steps.

We are looking for candidates who demonstrate a strong passion and skill for teaching languages up to A Level. Please consider including the following information in your application:

• Relevant skills, knowledge and experience
• Why you are passionate about language learning
• How you feel you can inspire others
• Your motivation to be a teacher
• Your experience of working with young people
• Your experience of teaching
• Your knowledge of the education sector and language learning in England
• Your intercultural experience; what experience have you had living and working abroad for example.

You will also need to meet the minimum standard criteria which you can find here as well as meeting the bursary requirements of the Department for Education. There will be a three stage process of: eligibility checks; assessment of your application leading to potential shortlisting; and an online interview on Microsoft Teams.

You will be able to apply once applications have opened in January 2025. There will be a link on our website to the application form. 

The deadline will be announced closer to application period. We strongly recommend you submit your application as soon as possible once applications open.

Please note that we anticipate a large volume of applications and cannot currently fix a date for when we will inform applicants if they have been successful. We aim to assess all applications within six weeks of the deadline, at which point we will inform all applicants of the outcome. 

You will need to provide a relevant reference for our assessment of your application. The British Council cannot chase references and you are responsible for ensuring that they submit their reference on time. Please ensure that you submit your reference before the deadline set in the application. If you fail to do this, unfortunately we will not be able assess your application.  If you have any questions, please contact directly us at: LanguagesTeacherTrainingScholarships@britishcouncil.org 

Yes. We have a limited number of Scholarships and we expect there to be tough competition. The Scholarships will be awarded to those who we think best meet or exceed the selection criteria and who perform well at assessment.

Those who are not successful in their Scholarship application can still continue with their Initial Teacher Training (ITT) course application and, if eligible, receive a training bursary from the DfE.

Please refer to the Get Into Teaching website for more information about Bursaries and Scholarships.

No, Scholarships of £28,000 are awarded in place of a bursary. Should you wish to find out more about bursaries, please visit the Get Into Teaching website. 

The scholarship will be paid by your training provider in equal monthly instalments from October to July, with additional payments in February and July, or in the final month of your course. Your initial teacher training provider will confirm your exact payment schedule.

Details on our complaints procedure can be found here.

Yes, if you are interested in becoming a teacher of Computing, Chemistry, Physics or Maths, please contact the relevant organisations to find out more about the Scholarship opportunities.