To become a qualified teacher in any subject in Ireland you must be approved by the Teaching Council. The Teaching Council is the regulatory body for teachers in Ireland. It produces a code of professional conduct for teachers, which covers standards of teaching, knowledge, skill and competence.
Importantly for students hoping to become qualified teachers, the Teaching Council also keeps a register of qualified teachers.
Becoming a post-primary school teacher requires multiple degrees. Your primary degree must include at least one subject from the post-primary schools’ curriculum for the Leaving Certificate Programme. So if you want to be a PE teacher, your primary degree must include PE.
The primary degree is followed by a postgraduate qualification in education such as the Professional Masters in Education (PME).
Portobello Institute has a number of former students who have successfully applied to the PME at the University of Limerick to become qualified PE teachers. One of those students is Colm Dunne, who explains how Portobello helped him achieve his dream job:
“All my lecturers were exceptional. Their level of knowledge and the quality of their teaching made you feel like you were learning from the best. They broke everything down and were always on hand to help so that nobody was left behind.
It was so much more personal than any other course I have done.”
This is the ethos of education that Portobello Institute is built on. Making education accessible by valuing the individual and guiding them towards what they want while giving them what they need to get there separates us from those colleges where your lecturer doesn’t even know your name.
For students who want to teach PE later in life, they’ll not only develop the skill set necessary to do so but they will get to learn the benefits of learning in an intimate environment.
While Portobello has always made education accessible, it has recently upgraded the education that is on offer by partnering with Liverpool John Moores University to deliver the Bachelor of Arts (Hons) Physical Education degree.
LJMU’s presence through Portobello Institute will elevate the standard of sports education available in Ireland.
The Complete University Guide ranked LJMU as the 21st best college in the world for Sports Science students. QS Top Universities ranked LJMU as the 16th best college in the world for sports-related courses. CEO World ranked LJMU as the 10th best college in the world for sport science and sport management courses.
Portobello Institute Head of Sport Dr Susan Giblin will be central to the delivery of these degrees:
“We are incredibly excited to collaborate with Liverpool John Moores University School of Sport and Exercise Sciences to deliver applied programmes that equip our students for success in the real world.
LJMU School of Sport and Exercise Sciences is the highest ranked institute for sports undergraduate programme delivery in the UK and highly regarded on the world stage, both from an industry and research excellence perspective.”
For our prospective students looking to study Physical Education or Performance Analysis, this news will put them in greater standing for the future.
“Our two flagship partner programmes (BA PE and MSc Sports Performance Analysis) have a strong focus on student employability through industry-informed practical learning and work placement. We are looking forward to the opportunities that this partnership will provide for our sports department students and future graduates.”
With a prestigious awarding body such as LJMU and delivery modes that have proven effective, Portobello Institute’s future students will be even more likely to attain places in the master’s degrees that they prefer.
Portobello Institute values the one in everyone and understands that education is only a part of your life. We don’t want to take up all of your time and create stress for you. You should go to college to improve your life outside of college and after college.
We are training the sports professionals of the future. If you would like to work in sports in a professional capacity, you can find a course that will provide you with the requisite education to do so.
If you'd like to read more about the sports degrees and qualifications we carry, you can visit the department page here.
If you are interested in any of our sports courses or have any questions you can book a consultation call with our expert sports advisor Sharde Sebastian here, email sharde.sebastian@portobelloinstitute.com or call 01 892 0029.
Featured in this article:
Johanna Shaw has a 2:1 in BSc (Hons) in Sports and Exercise Science from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh. She completed an MPhil Studentship in Physical Activity for Health alongside an Exercise Development role. She then went onto a Tackling Inactivity in Students role funded by Sport England within a Further Education College in London before moving back to Dublin to Portobello Institute.
