Choosing subjects can be a bit confusing for students, especially when they’re getting different advice from teachers, parents and friends. Some teachers might know a student’s strengths pretty well, while others might only see how they perform in one particular subject.

Do teachers generally have a good idea of which subjects would suit a student, or does it mostly come down to personal interests and what they want to do after school?

Just the title!

Hi Team!

I’m applying for a MTeach internship in QLD. Looking at either the career change internship program (state) or the all points to teaching program (catholic). Both look pretty similar, other than starting out in a state vs catholic school.

Has anybody done either one or have some insights what the difference between the two are further down the track? Planning on doing secondary math and science.

Just not 100% on the difference in the contracts between the 2. Leave, salaries, non contact times etc.

Thank you!

Applying for masters of secondary teaching in mathematics, which uni should I go for as an international student? QUT or Griffith. Mathematics as my major with a digital technology minor as my two specialization.

What are the pros and cons of each uni and how's the job market right now in Australia for secondary mathematics teachers?

I work as a youth mentor and often hear from my students one of two outcomes when it comes to bullying incidents: fight back and get in trouble or do nothing and hope the teacher takes their side, only for the offence to go unnoticed by teachers. What can a student realistically do, in the class room or the schoolyard, to protect themselves without needing an adult to step in and mishandle the situation?

Edit: I am thinking of bored students who entertain themselves by harassing other students. What does a student do when it’s their turn?

Hello,

I’m a UK-trained FE History and Politics teacher with around five years’ experience, exploring my options for teacher registration and permanent residency in Australia.

Qualifications and experience:

• BA History + MA Modern History
• PGCE in Education and Training (UCLan) and QTLS status
• Five years teaching A-level History, Politics, Criminology and Public Services to 16–18-year-olds
• At least 150 hours of documented supervised teaching practice

I’m currently completing a Master of Teaching (Secondary) at Victoria University in Melbourne. VIT hasn’t accepted my UK qualifications for registration, so I’m exploring recognition of prior learning (RPL), including whether my previous teaching practice could count towards Australian placement requirements. I’ve completed the first year and 15 placement days.

I’m also interested in whether my background could meet AITSL’s skills assessment requirements for secondary teaching.

Migration-wise, I arrived on a Working Holiday visa before switching to a Student visa, expiring August 2027. Given my age, I’ll be a few months too old for the new 485 graduate visa age limit, so I’m investigating potential 189, 190 or 491 pathways.

Has anyone with a similar UK background navigated VIT registration, obtained an AITSL skills assessment, or found a viable skilled migration pathway without employer sponsorship?

I’d appreciate any advice or personal experiences. Thanks!

Hey all!

I am enrolled in a Master's of Teaching (Secondary) and I am confused whether I am required to complete the LANTITE test.

I have a Bachelor's Degree in NSW from Macquarie Uni. I also have a Diploma and an Associate Degree, both from recognised institutions in NSW.

Am I still required to complete the LANTITE test? And if so, do I need to complete it before starting the uni semester or later on?

Thanks in advance! :)

Hello everyone,

Just a bit of a background - I have a Certificate III in Individual Support and have worked with people with disabilities for 8 years; both as a support worker and in management.

I recently left my job as a manager and am back doing support work for the time being. During my "break", I've finally decided to take the leap and apply to go back to Tafe and study Education Support, as I really want to work with kids. But, I'm not sure if I should apply for cert III or IV.

Through my research, I have found the following.

Cert III:

- Teaches basic education support

- Minimum requirement

- Standard pay

- 6 months study

Cert IV:

- More job opportunities

- POTENTIALLY higher pay

- Apparently more desirable to most employers?

- Specialises in disabilities, i.e. autism, as well as behaviour support - more individualised?

- 1 year study

Since I already have experience with disabilities, NDIS, behaviour support plans, etc. can I get away doing the certificate III? Or do most employers now prefer certificate IV?

I will be doing this under free tafe, so I need to make sure I pick the right one. I only have one shot.

Would really appreciate your advice, as I want this so much, and I want to do it right!

Thank you in advance!

Hi everyone,

I’m currently studying a Master of Teaching (Secondary) at an Australian university. I’ve recently returned to my studies after taking about a year off for maternity leave.

I’ve already passed the LANTITE Numeracy test, but unfortunately, I didn’t pass Literacy on my first attempt.

I’m now preparing to retake Literacy in Window 4, but I’m feeling really anxious because my university requires students to pass both tests before progressing to their second year. If I don’t pass this time, I’ll have to suspend my studies for a year.

I’m trying my best to prepare while also looking after my young baby, but the thought of having to put my studies on hold again after just returning from maternity leave is really stressful.

I’m wondering if anyone has been in a similar situation. Has your university ever granted an exception or allowed you to continue studying while waiting to pass LANTITE?

I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences or any advice you might have.

Thank you so much!

Im 17, and ive been out of school, (because of my parents) for several years. Im going to try and enroll myself in school for next year, so i can do the QCE/ATAR and fix my education. I was reading through the enrollment stuff, and all of it is super simple, but it says I would need to attach previous school reports, which i dont have. I have tried calling this school before, and their front desk people weren't very helpful. What can/should I do? Thank you in advance

This came up in a conversation with some friends and now I’m genuinely curious.
Do teachers actually end up having favourite students, even if they obviously wouldn’t say it to the class? Not necessarily in a weird way, just students they naturally get along with more or enjoy teaching.
Do you notice yourself doing this?

Curious if there are any teachers who hated school growing up but found teaching in their hearts as they grew older?

Hi everyone,

I’m currently getting towards the end of my first year in a Bachelor of Education (K-12) through UNE (mature-aged student, if it matters). I have been doing it primarily online anyway due to work commitments and I don’t mind learning that way. I am planning on moving to Melbourne at the end of this year. I have a few questions as I am so lost on how to handle this.

Would it be better to change to a university based in Melbourne or stick with my current one? I’m worried about how credit points would transfer and whether I’d be basically put back at square one.

If I did continue studying at UNE (NSW-based uni), would it be difficult to get placements in Victorian schools? I am happy to reach out to schools myself to organise placements but worried about potential prohibitive bureaucracy.

Has anyone else been in this situation, or studied online at a uni based in a different state while living in Victoria?

Any stories, advice or testimonies are very much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Throughout high school, me and my friends always thought about how cool it would be to write a story. It felt like every year in every term we just did persuasive writing I hated this so much, I got so bored of hearing the same structure repeated to me over and over with the same persuasive techniques. I know there was literature as well but I was told not to do it because my English scores were bad. They were bad cause what I've been told to do was so lame to me, that I never cared to put any effort into and focus on more important subjects.

Why don't schools have units where writing a story is the assessment it would've made me actually enjoy the subject.

I feel like I've missed out on something special, especially cause I love stories.

Hi teachers and future teachers!

I am a career changer (turning 39 next year) with a humanities degree and honours who is looking for advice from anyone who's done an M Teach in NSW.

Where I'm at:

• I have a CSP offer for UOW's Master of Teaching (Primary), starting Autumn 2027. It's an in-person degree 2-3 days a week.
• I've recently applied to UNSW and UTS (offering the degree again from Sem 1 2027), and I'm finishing a USYD application soon. Outcome will come soon.
• I volunteer at a Sydney primary school once a week.
• I have “no prior maths” (went to high school overseas), so I'm doing an online bridging maths course through a Queensland uni. USYD recommended it and said it would likely approve as meeting the math requirement. UOW won't credit it, so I'd do their internal maths subject in my first session. I'm fine with UTS and UNSW not accepting the bridging maths course, as long as I can complete their maths requirement in semester 1 or before starting in February/March.

My dilemma

• My partner really wants to leave Sydney and doesn't work full time every week.
• I've just been offered a better-paying casual job in Sydney with at least one shift a week, which would suit study. I need to pay bills, and I don't drive.

Considering what’s going…

1. If you moved to Wollongong for UOW, how did you find casual work, and is one weekly Sydney shift doable without a car?
2. Is staying in Sydney for UTS/UNSW/USYD worth it, or is the CSP offer at UOW the safer choice?
3. Does any NSW M Teach (Primary) offer a maths specialisation or strong maths electives? I'd love to lean into maths and PE (I am very into fitness).

Thank you so much!

Hi everybody!! I'm doing my bachelor's in education (in South Asia) focusing on early education to 8th grade and, since the pay in my country for teachers is terrible, I was hoping to move to Australia as a teacher. I know we have to get certified by the teaching board there, but I was wondering how hard it is to get a visa sponsorship. If anybody has any experience or advice regarding this, it is very much appreciated!! Thank you!!!

Hello teachers! I was just wondering, when marking practice exams for year 12's who are due to sit their real exams in a couple of weeks, are you deliberately critical/harsh in your marking? Thank you for reading.

Good morning!

As per the post title, I’m contemplating a switch into secondary teaching.

A few quick hits on me:

1. Early 30s, male, bachelor degree in humanities with double major (history and Italian) and a minor in English lit

2. Cambridge CELTA and around 4 years’ experience teaching EALD to adults (some 17 year olds, but mostly people in their early 20s)

3. NSW Central Coast

I loved teaching English (at least the in the classroom bit) but it had rubbish job security and low pay. I’ve dealt with nonsense from school admin before so I know my way around that to an extent. I’ve also done some volunteering where I taught migrant kids Italian in Italy and loved that.

I loathe corporate life and I want to do something that uses my interests and which doesn’t actively make the world worse.

I think my biggest concerns around shifting into secondary teaching are student behaviour, dealing with parents, and keeping a manageable workload / avoiding burnout. I’m autistic + adhd (yes, diagnosed by medical professionals) so having school holidays be a time to recharge and reset sounds appealing.

Any advice? Any warnings? Any tips? Tell me everything!

I see a lot of discussion about teachers needing better work-life boundaries, and I agree with the principle. But I think there’s a practical problem that gets overlooked.

If you have assessments to mark, reports to write, parent emails to answer and lessons to prepare, setting a firm finishing time doesn't magically make the workload disappear.

At the same time, constantly working at night and on weekends shouldn't be treated as proof that someone is a dedicated teacher.

I’m curious where experienced teachers draw the line. Do you prioritise certain tasks, reuse more resources, accept that some things won't be perfect, or have you worked in schools where the workload genuinely fits within paid hours?

I was very much hoping to be offered a contract by the time I got to term 4. Sadly this didn't come to fruition and I'm unsure of what I'll do over the holidays, I've signed up to deliver uber eats but I worry that won't be very much income. What are you all doing over the summer holidays to make ends meet?

This is specifically about highschool but primary kids can hit too, But if a student aggressively moves towards a teacher or assaults them, what are the repercussions of defending yourself??

Cause my grandad was saying a teacher of his punched a student in the face and took him down after being threatened with a knife and I was wondering how that sorta shit would fly now??

Thanks for the weird question hahah.

Had a nice little moment with one of my teachers today. A few months ago I mentioned that I was thinking about going into a particular career, and today they randomly asked if I was still thinking about it.

I honestly didn't expect them to remember, especially with how many students they deal with. It was only a small thing but it actually made my day a bit.

Do teachers generally remember little things students tell them, or was I just lucky with this one?

Hi everyone! 👋

I just wanted to pop up with a quick thank you to everyone who has already taken part in my research on primary school teacher experiences of student self-harm and suicide. I really appreciate you taking the time, and your responses are already making a real difference to the project.

I'm still looking for a few more participants.

If that's you (or you know someone who fits the bill), please use the QR code/link on the poster.

🔗 https://unsw.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8C8Pa2vtHOuzvT0

👉 It only takes about 15 minutes, and you could win one of 10 x $50 vouchers.

Every response genuinely helps. Feel free to share this with anyone in your network who might be a good fit — and thank you again to everyone who's already contributed! 💛