Nigeria- and Ghana-trained teachers have been removed from the list of countries eligible for the United Kingdom’s direct Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) application route, with the UK Department for Education citing difficulties verifying work history references.
Gatekeepers News reports that the department said more than 70 percent of applications from teachers trained in Nigeria and Ghana contained employment references using public email services such as Gmail and Hotmail instead of official school email domains.
“Our data shows that more than 70% of applications from teachers in Ghana and Nigeria include work history references that use public email addresses, such as Gmail or Hotmail, rather than a school’s official email domain,” the department said.
It added that the practice meant assessors had to spend additional time and resources verifying information submitted by applicants.
“This means assessors spend additional time and resources trying to verify information provided in applications.”
The change took effect on September 9 and means teachers trained in Nigeria and Ghana can no longer use the direct “Apply for QTS in England” service.
QTS is the professional status required to teach in many schools in England.
Why Nigeria and Ghana were removed
The UK Department for Education said countries included in the direct QTS route must meet strict requirements designed to ensure that applicants’ qualifications and professional experience can be properly authenticated.
Among other requirements, a country must have a national regulator capable of confirming a teacher’s professional standing and providing authenticated references.
The department said about 90 percent of applications are assessed within 12 months.
India was also removed from the list because it does not have a national regulator capable of confirming teachers’ professional standing.
South Africa is now the only African country remaining on the list of countries eligible for the direct QTS service.
The UK department said the verification requirements were necessary to protect the integrity of the qualification.
“We must be confident that the information applicants provide is genuine. This helps ensure that overseas teachers awarded qualified teacher status have the skills and experience needed to teach in schools in England,” it said.
Teachers from countries no longer eligible for the direct route can explore alternative pathways to qualify to teach in England, the department added.
QTS application requirements
Teachers applying for QTS through the eligible-country route must have a valid passport and an undergraduate degree equivalent to a UK bachelor’s degree.
They must also be recognised as professional teachers in the country where they completed their teacher training and have completed all mandatory induction requirements for full teacher registration in that country.
Applicants are required to demonstrate that they can teach children aged between five and 16.
They must also have at least one school year, equivalent to nine months, of teaching experience in any country.
The experience must have been gained after the applicant became qualified to teach.
Applicants must provide references confirming their employment history, with the UK department requiring the referee’s email address to use the school’s official domain.
Nigeria and Ghana were added to the countries eligible for the direct QTS route in 2023, according to the UK teaching agency’s annual report.
