Introducing our Undergraduate Teaching Program

Applications for the 2026 cohort open on 6th January 2025 and close in May for the 4.5- year pathway and December for the 4-year pathway.

The candidate will need to:

1. Submit an expression of interest or attend an information session
2. Submit an online application
3. Attend a 1:1 interview

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for the Undergraduate Teaching Program, candidates must:

• Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident
• Be employed by a TFA eligible school in an education support role
• Have completed Year 12 or equivalent**

**Candidates who have not completed Year 12 or studied recently will need to complete UniBoost before they start. Please speak to one of our team for more information.

At Teach For Australia, our mission is to fight educational inequity by partnering with schools like yours to recruit and develop the next generation of teachers. We were the first to develop an accelerated pathway into teaching and have over 15-years experience in recruiting and training top teaching talent.

The program offers an alternative pathway into teaching, enabling you to employ someone who is already working at your school or within your community while they complete their Bachelor of Education Secondary.

Candidates spend the first two years in an education support role and the last two years as a teacher. We support them during this time with wrap-around support, mentoring and coaching, taking some of the pressure off you and your team.

Participants are selected to work exclusively in schools serving low-socioeconomic communities, working in the regions that need the most support.

“Teach For Australia has really had a massive impact on the entire culture of our school” Rob Duncan, Cranbourne West Secondary College.

You might already have a candidate in mind: someone who works in your school or community in a non-teaching role that is looking to take the next step.

We look for candidates who display the following skills and competencies:

• Motivation
• Learning potential
• Relationship building
• Communication
• Adaptability
• Strategic thinking

And who are willing to be enrolled in learning areas aligned to teaching shortages, such as:

• Maths/Science
• English/Humanities
• Health & PE/Science

Studies

Candidates undertake a Bachelor of Education Secondary full-time while working in the classroom at your placement school. To support their studies, they receive on-demand academic support and peer learning events across the four years.

Employment

Candidates will be employed at your placement school as education support staff at 0.8 for the first two years of the program, and then as a teacher on limited authority to teach (0.8) in the final two years. The 0.2 is allocated for study time.

Candidate development

TFA supports candidates throughout the program with:

• School based mentoring and coaching
• Intensive learning events, both virtual and in-person
• In-person events each term where you can connect with the wider TFA community

In eligible jurisdictions, candidates will receive a scholarship of $30,000 to cover their ongoing expenses during the early years of the program. Candidates who identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander will receive an additional scholarship of $30,000 to support them during the program.

Our Undergraduate Teaching Program is more than just a bachelor’s degree. You can be confident that TFA candidates have been through a trusted and thorough selection process and will receive excellent training and wrap-around support.

We understand the challenges schools face in recruiting, supporting and retaining early career teachers, and offer 1:1 support for candidates to ensure minimal strain on your already demanding workload.

For any inquiries please email schools@teachforaustralia.org.