Master’s offer for 2024 trainees and ambassadors

This page was updated on 1 April 2025 to update the offer for 2024 trainees and ambassadors. 

The Teach First master’s degree is designed to build on your effectiveness and impact as a teacher and a leader.

Created by our partner universities, taking advantage of this opportunity will help you to develop your core teaching knowledge, formally reflect on your practice and instigate evidence-based change and innovation in your school and across society.  

This page explains the structure and details of the master’s degree at each university, financial arrangements, and the registration process. We’re dedicated to supporting the leadership needed to address the stubborn educational inequalities that exist.

Key points:

• This is a part-time, optional commitment that takes a minimum of one academic year to complete.
• It builds on the work you’ve already undertaken on the Training Programme to get your Professional Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) or PGCE for 2024.
• Your qualification gives you credits to transfer to a Master’s degree, the number of credits depends on the institution you choose and your level of qualification.
• All our university partners offer a 60-credit dissertation module, although the exact structure of the degree varies between them.

Scroll down to each individual university's course outlines for full details.

Our university partners

Our university partners are experts in education and leadership. Each university has independently designed a master’s degree specifically for Teach First ambassadors, and you can choose to study with any of them.

Some universities offer distance learning, which allows you to combine your studies with work or other commitments. All offer competitive fees.

See our 'Course outlines' below for the full list of partner universities.

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How much will it cost?

For the cost of each master’s degree, check the individual university course outlines. Fees will be paid directly to the university in line with their policies – Teach First is not involved in this process. 

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Terms and conditions

Admission to the master’s degree is at the sole discretion of the university provider and will be subject to you meeting the relevant entry criteria.

You’ll be solely responsible for completing all enrolment procedures required by your university, for meeting all deadlines relating to the master’s degree and for all other communications with your university.

Please note that the university you enrol with will have terms and conditions of their own, and you’ll need to comply with these. Teach First bears no liability to students or applicants with respect to the programmes outlined in this document. 

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How to apply

There are key requirements you’ll need to complete as part of any course. Please make sure you consider the opportunity carefully alongside any  other responsibilities and understand the financial commitments you’ll be making with your university.

The enrolment process is different for each university. Although the master’s degree is linked to Teach First, you’re applying to complete it with one of the universities listed in this document. The programme will be delivered solely by them.

The universities have a right to refuse your application, so please make sure you allow enough time to complete the registration or enrolment and follow each step carefully. The process may include some or all of the following:

• Completing a detailed application form.
• Providing proof of your PGDE (or PGCE for 2024 cohort) and degree qualification.
• Attending an induction. 

Once you’ve enrolled for a degree, you’ll be able to access both your chosen university’s on-site facilities and online library.

For more information on the masters’ degrees, please contact the individual university you’re looking to apply to.

I obtained a PGCE rather than a PGDE, can I apply?

For 2023 ambassadors to be eligible for the master’s degrees outlined below, you must have completed a PGDE from within the 2017 Training Programme cohort onwards. If you have a PGCE and would like to apply, we advise you to contact the university directly for more information.

2024 cohort onwards will be eligible for an extended masters programme as detailed below.  

Course outlines

Bath Spa University

MA Educational Leadership (Teach First)

Maximum transferable credits: 120

Course structure:

• Year 1 (joining with the PGCE) – two short research skills modules aimed at developing your skills as a researcher and a 30-credit work-based action inquiry into an area of interest to you.
• Year 2 (joining with the PGDE) – a 60-credit applied research project carried out in your context and demonstrating your leadership and research skills. 

Course delivery method: 

• The MA is taught online at weekends and in the evenings to fit around your teaching.
• Delivery will be via online lectures and group seminars with lots of time for discussion and questions.
• You will work 1:1 with a research supervisor, through email, Teams calls and the university VLE.
• The applied research project is broken into smaller parts so you can complete one assignment, receive feedback and build on this for the next one.

Cost: £2,995/year (£2,330 for those who completed their PGDE at Bath Spa University).

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Sheffield Hallam University

MA Leadership in Learning (Teach First)

Maximum transferable credits: 120

Course structure: 60-credit dissertation module

Course delivery method:

• This MA course is designed to build on your learning from your PGDE/PGCE with a focus on developing your expertise as a leader in education.  
• You will complete the following modules:
• Collaborative Learning and Development (30 credits)
• Extending Impact and Influencing Others (30 credits)
• Teach First Leadership Project (60 credits) 2023 ambassadors will only complete the Leadership Project see below for further information
• Teaching is a mixture of lectures and seminars currently both face to face and online. These will be timed to support the research project and take place at weekends and evenings to suit student need.
• Ongoing support with dissertation supervisor. 

Cost: £3,440

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For more detail on each course, please see below.

Bath Spa University

Master’s degree title: MA Educational Leadership (Teach First)

Course length: If you’re a Teach First PGCE graduate, you’ll study part-time over two years. If you’ve gained a Teach First PGDE, you’ll join the second year of the programme and study for one year. 

Maximum transferable credits: 120

Course structure: part-time study for one or two years  

Module leader: Joy Cornthwaite 

Contact telephone: +44 (0)1225 875 641 

Contact email: j.cornthwaite@bathspa.ac.uk 

Website: https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/courses/pg-educational-leadership-teach-first/

Course summary

This course is designed to develop your expertise as an educational leader, drawing on international research and informed by Teach First's values and mission.

Building on the Teach First PGDE or PGCE you've already completed, the MA in Educational Leadership offers the opportunity to study for a further 60 or 120 credits.  Studying alongside your peers in a supportive and flexible online community, you will further develop the skills and knowledge necessary to become an effective researcher, practitioner and leader within education. 

Course details

If joining with a PGCE in Year one of the programme, you will extend your knowledge and understanding of leadership in education and develop your skills as a researcher in educational settings. You’ll complete 60 credits across three modules, before progressing to your research project in the second year.

In Year two you’ll complete a 60-credit extended, applied research project. This will focus on an area of education theory, policy, or practice relating to leadership within your current context.

Applicants with a PGDE will just complete Year two of the course.

You'll be taught in several ways, including:

• Group seminars and presentations  
• Individual online supervision with your academic supervisor
• A range of online resources for guided self-study  
• School of Education post-graduate support seminar programme

Following the initial seminar, we will assign you a supervisor who is knowledgeable in the field of Education Leadership and Development.  This person will work 1:1 with you as you complete your studies.

Following tutorials, your supervisor will give you formative feedback on your progress and the next steps in your study.

The course also requires self-directed study and wide reading around your area of research.

This programme is open to all ambassadors who successfully completed the Teach First PGCE or PGDE, irrespective of where the Training Programme was completed. 

Finance

The course fee is £2,995 a year. This can be paid in instalments.

Bath Spa alumni qualify for a discounted price of £2,330.

Application and enrolment

• From Spring 2025: Apply using the course website. Alumni please contact Teachfirst@bathspa.ac.uk about the streamlined application process)
• From Spring 2025: Application reviewed by the university and offer sent.
• Late July/August 2025: If accepted, you'll receive enrolment details and enrol online.
• Late September 2025: Master's degree course begins.

We are also holding information sessions over the next few months that give trainees the opportunity to hear a little more about the programme and to ask any questions you may have.

For BSU trainees, details of these are available on Ultra.

For those from other universities, you can find out more about these sessions by emailing j.cornthwaite@bathspa.ac.uk.

Building on the Teach First PGDE or PGCE that you've already completed, it offers an extra 60 or 120 credits. This allows you to “top-up” your previous learning to earn a full MA. Master's degrees are recognised both nationally and internationally, and our graduates can take their expertise into a range of settings and locations.

Education offers individuals and communities the best chance to take control of their future. The MA in Educational Leadership at BSU draws on global research and Teach First's values. It encourages you to question, analyse, and evaluate the challenges that education providers face both locally and globally.

Leadership in education has many dimensions. You’ll already lead learning in your classroom. Through an extended research project, you'll interrogate leadership as a social construct and relate theory and research to your own context.

With this research, you could deliver changes in subject provision, extracurricular activities, departmental initiatives or organisational change. When you graduate, you’ll be able to demonstrate to current and future employers that you’re a teacher-researcher who can lead impactful change in education. 

Sheffield Hallam University

Master’s degree title: MA Leadership in Learning (Teach First)

Course length: 2 Years (1 year if you have a PGDE)

Maximum transferable credits: 60

Course structure: 2 x 30-credit modules, 1 x 60-credit dissertation module  

Programme Director: Sarah Boodt

Lead Administrator: Melissa McGregor

Contact telephone: 0114 225 5555

Contact email: sioeaa@shu.ac.uk

Website: www.shu.ac.uk 

Application forms

External candidates

Apply here

Current Sheffield Hallam University trainees

Contact Melissa McGregor for a progression form.

Course summary

For your Leadership Project, you will carry out an original piece of research related to your own professional and personal interest in leadership in learning and write this up as a 12,000 word dissertation. The module aims to deepen your understanding of research concepts, tools and applications within the context of developing your knowledge of leadership. By undertaking a largely autonomous, substantive research-based project, you will build on the skills and knowledge from the first two modules, as you develop your own research and leadership practice.  

In each of the two years of the course, you will attend university group seminars across three Saturdays and online twilight sessions in-between. The Saturday seminars are face-to-face and provide opportunities for you to network, discuss themes, share your research and receive tutor support. By applying your learning in these seminars, you will develop your research skills as well as an understanding, knowledge and values of leadership in education.  

Year 2:  

The seminars will support you to gradually build your research project. Seminars are timed to support the introduction and design of your project, mid-point review and pre-submission. During these seminars, you will be supported by the course leader and experts from the field. In addition to attending the seminars, you will be expected to engage in self-directed study and wide reading.

You will be allocated a supervisor, whose role it is to support you as you develop your project idea into a research proposal and apply for ethical approval. You should work with your supervisor to identify the ways in which you can best be supported. Throughout the course, you will be given formative feedback on your progress and feed forward for your next steps.

The course is open to all ambassadors who successfully completed the PGCE or PGDE, regardless of where you completed the Teach First Training Programme. If you have a PGDE, you will complete the 60-credit Leadership Project only.  

Finance

The fee for enrolment is £3,440.

Application and enrolment

• March 2025 onwards: Complete application process.  
• Within three weeks of application: Response sent and conditional offers made, enrolment/continuation information sent.  
• July 2025: Place confirmed following successful completion of PGDE.  
• September 2025: Course begins.   

Testimonials

I was able to research something that was directly relevant to my professional experience in the classroom…I found it incredibly energising to take a step back and be able to research and write about the professional issues you are otherwise caught up in on a day-to-day basis.

Katherine Ingham, Teach First ambassador 

My dissertation helped me understand the way my students saw the world and the impact I had on their understanding of themselves and those around them. It also helped me place myself within a much larger global community and understand how to reduce or eliminate patterns of behaviour and prejudices within myself.

Emma Sheppard, Teach First ambassador