How to become a physics teacher

You can train to teach physics in England with a degree in physics, engineering, maths or another subject with plenty of physics in it. Physics is a shortage subject, so trainees starting in 2026/27 can choose a £29,000 tax-free bursary or a £31,000 scholarship. After qualifying, you start on the teachers’ main pay range at £34,069 outside London from September 2026, and physics teachers are in demand across the country.

Funding in 2026/27

Funding	Amount	Notes
Bursary	£29,000	Postgraduate fee-funded courses
Scholarship	£31,000	Instead of the bursary, awarded through the Institute of Physics after its own selection
Undergraduate bursary	£9,000	Eligible physics QTS and opt-in degree courses
Grant to the school	Same as the bursary	Salaried School Direct and postgraduate teaching apprenticeships
Veterans’ bursary	£40,000	Eligible service leavers

You take either the bursary or the scholarship, not both. A scholarship comes with support from the awarding body, but there is a separate application and selection process with its own deadlines, so apply early. If you train on a salaried route, you are paid a salary and cannot get a bursary; the school receives the grant. Our teacher training bursaries guide explains eligibility.

Degrees that count

A physics degree is the obvious route. Engineering graduates are very commonly accepted, as are graduates in maths, astrophysics, materials science and some chemistry or computing degrees with a large physics element. Providers look at how much physics and maths your degree covered and may offer a subject knowledge enhancement (SKE) course to fill gaps before you start. Funding for SKE courses changes from year to year, so check the current terms on Get Into Teaching.

You also need GCSEs in English and maths at grade 4 (C) or above. Beyond that, providers set their own requirements, and most will want to see that you are confident with the maths.

Ways to train

The routes are a university PGCE, a SCITT, School Direct (fee-funded or salaried), a postgraduate teaching apprenticeship and Teach First. Salaried and apprenticeship places are available for physics in many areas, which suits career changers from engineering and industry who cannot go a year without a salary. Some providers offer physics with maths, which leads to a qualification in both and widens your job options.

After gaining QTS you complete statutory induction as an early career teacher, lasting the full-time equivalent of two school years. Maintained schools must provide it.

Teaching physics in a science department

Most physics teachers work in a combined science department. You teach physics to GCSE and A level, but in many schools you also teach biology and chemistry to key stage 3 classes and GCSE combined science groups. The science teacher profile covers that side of the job.

Practical work is part of every physics course. GCSE and A level specifications include required practicals, and you plan them with technicians who set up the equipment. Expect to explain the same idea in several ways: many pupils find physics abstract, and you make it concrete with demonstrations, models and worked examples. In schools short of physics specialists, a qualified physicist may be asked to teach most of the A level classes and to support non-specialist colleagues.

The maths load is heavier than in the other sciences. GCSE physics expects pupils to recall and rearrange equations, handle units and work with graphs, and many pupils who struggle with physics are really struggling with the maths inside it. Physics teachers spend a lot of time teaching those skills explicitly, often in step with the maths department so that pupils meet methods in the same way in both subjects.

What you earn

From 1 September 2026 the main pay range in maintained schools in England runs from £34,069 (M1) to £46,940 (M6) outside London, and from £41,729 to £54,131 in inner London. These rates follow the 3.5 per cent award in the draft 2026 pay and conditions document, which is expected to come into force around early November and be backdated. The upper pay range goes to £52,835 outside London. See teacher pay scales in England for all areas.

Academies set their own pay and some pay above the national ranges or offer extra allowances for shortage subjects. A subject lead or head of physics usually gets a TLR payment, with TLR2 worth £3,651 to £8,913 from September 2026. You pay into the Teachers’ Pension Scheme, at 7.4 per cent on a salary up to £36,198.99 and 8.9 per cent from £36,199. The take-home pay calculator shows what that leaves you after deductions.

If you trained or live overseas

Physics teachers trained abroad can apply for QTS in England if their qualifications are recognised, and schools can sponsor teachers on the Skilled Worker visa. For jobs on national pay scales in education, the salary must be at least £25,000 or the national pay scale rate, whichever is higher. Our guide to teaching on a Skilled Worker visa covers the details.

The bursaries above are for England only. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own routes into physics teaching and their own pay scales. The Scottish main grade is £43,383 to £54,453 from 1 August 2026, after a probation year at £36,159. Northern Ireland’s latest confirmed main scale, from September 2025, runs from £32,916 to £43,830, and in Wales the minister was consulting on a 3.5 per cent rise for 2026/27. Training applications in England go through the DfE’s Apply for teacher training service, and qualified posts are listed under teaching jobs.