Just one year in to offering A Levels, Milton Keynes College is having to double the number of students it will take in September because of huge demand for courses.
Last September, around seventy students signed up, but this autumn that number will rise to 150, and already well over 600 have applied.
The curriculum is also being massively expanded, with biology, chemistry, applied science (a new qualification), history, politics, economics, and criminology all added to the available courses, along with Further maths for those especially good at the subject. There’ll also be the option to take core maths; equivalent to half an A Level it will be especially helpful for students aiming to study science at university but who don’t want to enrol for the full maths course. As a result, the College is looking to recruit several new teachers, and they want to hear from recent graduates keen to enter the profession, who could save themselves thousands of pounds on training. The right candidate would be given full teacher training as part of their contract with no tuition fees.
Executive Head of Sixth Form, Marc Hulbert says, “We’ve been so pleased with how popular our A Level courses are, and we’re delighted with the work the students are putting in. We’re definitely expanding teacher numbers for sociology, psychology, law, criminology, maths and computer science, and while experienced staff would be brilliant, we also think recent graduates will have a great deal to offer as their knowledge of their subjects will be bang up-to-date. Most important of all is for applicants to be enthusiastic, good communicators, passionate about their subject and about working with young people.”
Teachers in training won't spend as much time in the classroom as their colleagues, as they’ll need to have the opportunity to work on their own learning and development. They’ll receive plenty of support, including an experienced individual mentor, all on a full teacher’s salary.
The College also wants to hear from people can deliver other academic subjects, such as geography, philosophy or film studies. Marc says, “We’re already looking ahead at growing our portfolio of subjects and those are all disciplines that we hope to add in eighteen months’ time. Next year, we’ll offer seventeen subjects, and that will increase to about twenty-seven from September 2026.”
Anyone interested in becoming a teacher at the College is invited to the next A Level Recruitment Event on Saturday 26th April between 10am and 12pm at the South Central Institute of Technology in Bletchley. At the event, prospective teachers can discover more about our expanding A-Level program, learn about available roles, and see how we can support them in gaining their teaching qualification. Find out more and register for the event here A Level Staff Recruitment - MK College. Alternatively, get in touch by contacting: recruitment@mkcollege.ac.uk
Image caption: A Level teacher Tom Beach and students (from left to right), Holly Couchman, Jehiel Nelson and Iyinoluwagbemi Akinyemi
