Applying to the Careers Leader programme
This section provides information about how to join our Careers Leader programme.
Browse below to find the information you need. We'll update this page throughout the year.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How do I enrol?
Places are now open for our 2023/2024 Careers Leader programme. If you’re interested in joining next year’s cohort, we recommend you speak to your headteacher (or an appointed senior leader who oversees professional development in your school). They’ll need to get in touch with us here. After we’ve spoken with your headteacher or a senior leader, we’ll then enrol you onto the programme. If you have any questions, please raise them here and we’ll be in touch.
- Who is eligible?
The Careers Leader programme is aimed at middle or senior school leaders who are responsible for their school's careers provision. It's open to any middle or senior leader – not just those who have trained with us previously.
To be eligible for our programme, you must work for a secondary school in England. Teach First works with schools facing the toughest challenges, so we prioritise places for schools that need extra support. To identify schools that will benefit most, we use the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) and Achieving Excellence Areas (AEA), a measure that recognises parts of the country where children consistently underperform.
We have some flexibility in the schools we work with, so if you’re unsure, please get in touch with our team.
- Do I need any specific qualifications to join the programme?
There are no specific qualifications that are needed to join the programme. What is important is that you’re responsible for your school’s careers provision and are the assigned careers leader.
- What are the eligibility requirements?
As an education charity, our programme is aimed at secondary schools where not enough young people progress to further education or employment.
Our criteria is agreed with the Department for Education (DfE) and used to identify schools that will benefit most from working from us. We use the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) and Pupil Premium (PP) information for each school to guide us.
This focuses on schools that are ranked in the top 70% most deprived areas (based on IDACI) and where the proportion of pupils eligible for pupil premium is in the top 50% of all state-funded schools. We’ll also look at rates of participation in higher education, prioritising schools with a high proportion of students from areas with low progression to university.
We understand that there is no set criteria which perfectly catches the many forms deprivation can take. If you’re unsure, please enquire with our team.- Using the Teach First portal
Information on using the Teach First portal can be found here.