Become a teacher

Candidates who receive an expression of interest (EOI) email, have 48 hours to express their interest in the vacancy if they so choose. This is simply done by selecting the 'apply/yes/submit option' on the email and/or SMS. It is highly recommended that the applicant researches the school prior to expressing interest in the role.

If you are the successful applicant from an expression of interest, you will receive a phone call (or voicemail message if applicable and possible) and an email from School Recruitment offering you the role. You will then have 24 business hours from the time you receive that call and/or email to respond by a return email to School Recruitment. You must discuss the role with the principal. If you are unable to get into contact with the principal, you can email schoolrecruitment@det.nsw.edu.au to advise them of the difficulty and a resolution will be confirmed.

If you decline the offer, your priority date will be reset to the date you declined the offer. If you don’t respond to the offer email within the 24 business hour timeframe, this is classed as an automatic decline and the priority date will be reset (if possible).

If you accept the position, congratulations! You have obtained permanent employment with the NSW Department of Education and will receive onboarding documents to complete. Your permanent appointment will be subject to the successful completion of your studies.

If a graduate is the successful applicant from an EOI, they will receive a phone call and an email from School Recruitment offering them the role. The graduate will have 24 business hours from the time they receive that call and/or email to discuss the role with the principal and then respond by return email to School Recruitment. Please note it is essential that successful applicants discuss their offer with the principal. Once the graduate accepts the position, they will receive onboarding documents to complete.

If an applicant declines the offer, their priority date will be reset (if possible to do so). If the graduate fails to respond to the offer email within the 24 business hour timeframe, this is classed as an automatic decline and again their priority date will be reset.

Before you start your approval to teach application, you will need a NSW Working with Children Check (WWCC) clearance for paid employment from the NSW Office of the Children’s GuardianExternal link. You will also need to apply for and gain accreditation from the NSW Education Standards AuthorityExternal link (NESA).

Visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for information relating to those applying from other states or territories.

Now you are ready to apply for 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.

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. You may not have all of your professional experience/practicum reports and academic transcripts, so simply upload what you have completed to date.

When completing this step, it is important to select only the locations where you are willing to accept an offer of ongoing employment. Consider your location preferences carefully to avoid being matched to a school in a location that is not suitable for you. On the other hand, the greater number of locations you indicate a willingness to accept temporary or permanent employment within, the greater your employment prospects in NSW public schools. Please consider this step carefully and provide accurate information.

It is now time to submit your online application. You will receive an email acknowledging receipt and outlining next steps.

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
• undertake an online interview to demonstrate your knowledge, critical experiences, skills and capabilities for teaching in NSW public schools.

This is the exciting stage where many doors may open to your teaching career in NSW public schools.

Interim approval has the great benefit of enabling you to apply to work as a casual or temporary teacher and make vital early connections with schools before completing your studies.

Importantly, it is also the point at which conditional offers of permanent employment may be made to those new graduates who best match the department's current requirements for vacant permanent teaching positions, across teaching specialisations and locations.

If you apply for the GRP and your profile closely matches the department's current needs, you may receive conditional offers of temporary or permanent employment well in advance of completing your studies.

You will automatically receive an email advising of your interim approval to teach once your application has been assessed and validated and relevant screening checks have been finalised. Included are details of the subjects in which you are accredited and the next steps you will need to undertake.

Remember, you can receive your interim approval to teach prior to completion of your final professional experience and academic studies.

Whether or not you receive an early offer of employment, you will need to progress to your full approval to teach.

With your full approval to teach, you will continue to apply for jobs, including those advertised for recruitment by merit selection, and will be ready to accept offers for temporary and permanent appointment.

You will complete your online teacher suitability assessments and online interview to demonstrate your capabilities to be a high-quality teacher in NSW public schools. All graduates are also 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 full approval to teach, including details of the subjects you are approved to teach in NSW public schools.

To read more about the teacher suitability assessment process, please view the Frequently Asked Questions.

With an interim approval to teach, and the ability to commence casual or temporary employment, it is recommended you download the app ClassCoverExternal link. It is free to use, you simply upload your details to gain direct access to over 1,400 public schools across NSW.

To begin using ClassCover,External link you will first need to create a profile on the ClassCover websiteExternal link and then download the app. From there you can upload your mandatory documentation, share your availability and manage location preferences. One of the great things about this is that once you are booked for a casual day, schools who use the app can see that you’re booked and will only contact you about days you’ve listed yourself as being available.

You will then need to contact your preferred NSW public schools directly to let them know that you are available for casual work and request to be added to their ClassCoverExternal link network.

Subscribe to JobFeed to receive a weekly email update of available permanent and temporary jobs, then start applying for temporary and permanent jobs in NSW public schools.

When applying for a temporary or permanent teaching position in a NSW public school, you may be required to prepare a written application. Merit selection application guidelines for classroom teachers, executives and principals have been designed to provide clarity to applicants and selection panels

To assist you in preparing an application aligned with the merit selection guidelines, the NSW Department of Education has developed a number of video guides.

School principals welcome contact from new graduates with approval to teach. You are encouraged to make contact with your preferred schools right across NSW.