Pre-service teachers who commenced a teacher education course from 2019 onwards
If you started your initial teacher education course from 2019 onwards, here's how to get approval to teach with the NSW Department of Education.
If you started your course from 2019 onwards, and want to join the largest education system in Australia, here's how to get approval to teach with the NSW Department of Education.
Your application for approval to teach is an essential step to commencing your teaching career in NSW public schools.
As a pre-service teacher you can apply for approval to teach via our online application system when you have been granted conditional accreditation from the New South Wales Education Standards Authority (NESA). If you are granted interim approval to teach, you will be eligible to teach on a casual or temporary basis while outstanding course requirements are completed.
To be granted conditional accreditation from NESA you:
- are in your final year of an accredited undergraduate or graduate entry teaching degree*, or
- have completed a non-teaching three-year bachelor degree covering discipline knowledge in the area in which you will be employed to teach, and have an offer of employment as a teacher in a NSW school**.
* You can seek conditional accreditation from NESA as an undergraduate student provided you have completed 75% of your undergraduate teaching degree (typically, this would be in the final 12 months of your degree) if you have received an offer of casual or temporary employment within a NSW public school. Note: you will be requested to provide evidence of this offer when applying for conditional accreditation with NESA. This could be in the form of an email to you from the school principal or an email from the school principal to the teacher approvals team at the department.
** Note: the NSW Department of Education will not provide an interim casual teaching approval to Masters of Teaching students who have not yet completed the first six months of their Masters of Teaching program.
Pre-service teachers studying at NSW and ACT universities, La Trobe University, and Griffith University are eligible to apply under the Graduate Recruitment Program. The department also encourages final-year students from universities across Australia who are eligible, to apply for and gain approval to teach in NSW public schools.
High-achieving graduates who are identified through the approval to teach application process as having the requisite knowledge, skills, experiences and attributes to be outstanding teachers will be identified by the department for priority appointment to a permanent teaching position in a NSW public school.
For all graduates, it is best to be proactive in seeking employment with the department by subscribing to the Teach NSW JobFeed e-newsletter, to be notified of new permanent and temporary positions.
Approval to teach application requirements
Following the Minister’s announcement on 3 September 2018 regarding the Teacher Success Profile (TSP) and new standards for graduating teachers, the approval to teach process underwent change to ensure all students have access to high-quality teachers.
Changes included enhancements to the online application process to streamline the submission of applications and supporting documentation as well as new requirements that all new applicants need to meet to be granted approval to teach in NSW public schools.
Your application for approval to teach will consider:
- academic attainment in your university studies
- the ability to demonstrate (during completed practicums) the knowledge and critical experiences inherent to teacher success, as reflected by an assessment of practicum reports
- the outcome of your online teacher suitability assessments, measuring cognitive skills and emotional intelligence*
- participation in an online interview to demonstrate your knowledge, critical experiences, skills and capabilities for teaching in NSW public schools.
* The department’s provider for the online teacher suitability assessments measuring cognitive skills and emotional intelligence is Testgrid.
The results of the teacher suitability assessments and online interview will be considered to determine your suitability for teaching in NSW public schools.
Your pathway to employment
1. Get ready to apply for approval to teach
Before you begin your application you will need to:
- obtain a NSW Working with Children Check (WWCC) for paid employment from the Office of the Children’s Guardian and
- apply for and gain accreditation as a teacher in NSW through the NSW Education Standards Authority. You will be emailed an accreditation letter which includes your accreditation number status and the list of subjects you have been accredited to teach.
In the online application you will be asked to provide your personal information, select the areas or schools where you would prefer to work and upload the mandatory documentation required. You may not have all of your professional experience/practicum reports and academic transcripts but will need to upload what you have completed to date.
You can also indicate your interest in teaching in schools with a high proportion of Aboriginal student enrolments as part of the GRP Aboriginal Initiative.
You can now submit your application. Once your application for approval to teach has been successfully submitted you will be sent an email acknowledging receipt.
Your application will be assessed by the department and will progress in line with requirements for graduates seeking approval to teach in NSW public schools to:
- demonstrate academic achievement across your program of study
- provide evidence of completed and successful professional experience/practicum reports attesting to readiness for success in the classroom
- complete teacher suitability assessments, measuring cognitive skills and emotional intelligence
- undertake an online interview to demonstrate your knowledge, critical experiences, skills and capabilities for teaching in NSW public schools.
You will receive an email once your application has been assessed and validated. Included are details of the subjects you are accredited in and the next steps you will need to complete.
At this point, you can retrieve your application and have the option to request interim approval to teach. Interim approval has the benefit of enabling you to work as a casual or temporary teacher before completing your studies. If you have requested interim approval and have met the requirements to be a high-quality teacher, you will receive your interim approval to teach. You do not have to wait until your application has been assessed and validated. Interim approvals can be issued prior to the completion of your final practicum.
You will now proceed to the teacher suitability assessment stage.
It is now time to undertake the online teacher suitability assessments and online interview to demonstrate your capabilities to be a high-quality teacher in NSW public schools. All graduates will also be required to provide their final transcript and final professional experience/practicum report prior to gaining full approval to teach. You will be notified via email of the outcome of your application for approval to teach.
It is a great idea to subscribe to JobFeed to receive a weekly list of available permanent and temporary jobs to start your teaching career in NSW public schools.
Read the FAQs
Get answers to your questions about the approval to teach process.