Preparing for your on-campus interview

What do I need to do before my interview?

• Familiarise yourself with the course for which you have applied.
• Prepare for the group task.
• Familiarise yourself with the Teachers' Standards (TS).
• Watch the Transforming Lives – the Institute of Education video.
• Familiarise yourself with the Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance.
• Read the Institute of Education's interview top tips.
• Be aware of the current issues facing teaching (particularly in relation to your subject specialism if you have applied for a Subject Specialism Pathway) – for example, browse Tes, The Guardian's education section, or BBC's Family and Education pages.
• Familiarise yourself with the Primary National Curriculum in England.

Do I need to bring any documents to my interview?

Yes, please refer to the documents you will need to bring to your interview.

The interview process

The interview session will include a document check, a group task, a written task, and an individual interview. 

Arrival, registration, and document check

The interview session will take place on the London Road campus at the University of Reading. An email confirming the details of your interview session, including where you will need to go for registration when you arrive at the London Road campus, will be sent to you a few days before the date of your interview. 

Please check the documents you will need to bring to your interview.

Welcome talk, introduction, and tour

A member of the BA Primary Education (QTS) Team will deliver a presentation outlining the programme, and you will also have the opportunity to join a tour of the London Road campus. 

Group task

The group task is designed to evaluate your ability to collaborate with others, articulate your ideas clearly, and listen actively to your peers.

Before attending your interview, please watch the Primary Interviews: Clean Up! story video where course tutors read the book, Clean Up!, which is written by Nathan Bryon and illustrated by Dapo Adeola.  

After watching the video, we ask that you:

• Consider how you would use the book Clean up! to support a learning activity/develop children’s learning in a primary setting.
• Be prepared to share and discuss your activity with your group, including why you have chosen the activity and your role in the children’s learning.
• If you have applied for the BA Primary Education General Pathway course, please choose a subject which is, or subjects which are, taught in the primary national curriculum and relate your discussions in the group task to your chosen subject(s). Please be prepared to explain how you would teach a lesson based on your chosen subject(s) and to discuss how you might use your chosen subject(s) to develop cross curriculum learning.
• If you have applied for a BA Primary Education with Subject Specialism Pathway course (BA Primary Education with Art, BA Primary Education with English, BA Primary Education with Mathematics, or BA Primary Education with Music), please relate your discussions in the group task to your subject specialism. Please be prepared to explain how you would teach a lesson based on your subject specialism and to discuss how you might use your subject specialism to develop cross curriculum learning.
• Please also demonstrate that you have thought about the way that the activity, either planned or observed, will support learning.

You may bring along notes to share. If there is anything else you wish to share in relation to the group task, you are welcome to do so during your individual interview.

Written task

The title for the written task will be provided on the day of your interview. You will be given time to plan, and the following will be reviewed:

• legibility of your handwriting
• spelling, punctuation, and grammar
• your ability to plan and compose ideas in a written format.

Please let us know if any adjustments are needed for you to access the written task.

Individual interviews

Your individual interview is expected to last for approximately 30 minutes and you will be asked questions relating to the following topics:

• your motivations for becoming a teacher
• your passion and any experience of teaching (with a focus on your subject specialism if you have applied for a Subject Specialism Pathway)
• your own values and ethics, and how these will inform your teaching
• your understanding of teaching and learning in the classroom
• behaviour management and effective learning environments
• how you will prepare yourself for the course and career
• how you will manage the challenges of the course and profession
• pathway specific questions if you have applied for a Subject Specialism Pathway (BA Primary Education with Art, BA Primary Education with English, BA Primary Education with Mathematics, or BA Primary Education with Music), including your knowledge of the curriculum and what inclusion means to you

• safeguarding and child protection - we recommend that you read the summary of the Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance to prepare for this. The full guidance is also available in an alternative format.

There will be an opportunity for you to ask questions at the end of your individual interview and to share anything else you may wish to from the group task.

Who will interview me?

Your individual interview will be conducted by one of the programme tutors from the Institute of Education. During your interview, a second interviewer may also be present either in person or online. The second interviewer may be a colleague from one of our partner schools or from the University.

Please note that we may share relevant background information from your application form with our partner school or university colleagues, but this will not include any sensitive data that you provided as part of your application.

Questions?

Please email the Admissions Support Team if you have any questions.

We are fully committed to Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in our admissions and interview processes. If you would like to request any specific requirements or adjustments around accessibility for your interview, please email the Admissions Support Team. Please rest assured that requesting reasonable adjustments or having specific requirements will not affect the outcome of the interview or our decision on whether you are offered a place on the course.

Subject Spotlight Webinar: Primary Education – How to prepare for your interview

The Academic Programme Director for our BA Primary Education (QTS) courses, Laura Purser, provides an insight into the interview process for our BA Primary Education (QTS) courses at the University of Reading.   

Topics covered by this webinar include:

• how to prepare for your interview
• things to be aware of for your interview
• top tips for the best interview process.

View the webinar recording.