Macquarie University, alongside a consortium of universities, has partnered with the NSW Department of Education, and participating schools to deliver the Mid-Career Transition to Teaching Program – a pathway supporting industry professionals to become secondary teachers.

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The NSW Department of Education scholarship program attracts highly skilled career professionals to areas of workforce supply shortages in Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics and Computing Technology.  It offers significant incentives, including a $30,000 training allowance, a part-time paid paraprofessional position, and a $30,000 bonus on completion of study. Participants also receive a permanent teaching position upon graduation. The program provides a flexible, supported transition into the teaching profession, with the aim of mitigating high turnover and teacher attrition – key issues currently facing sectors and schools.

Commencing in March 2022, the program received three times the number of applications than there were places, with 75 places allocated across Macquarie University, University of Sydney, Newcastle University and Charles Sturt University.

The MQ Mid-Career Transition to Teaching program (MCT) is an extension of the existing MQ Master of Teaching. It employs an innovative four-sector executive mentoring approach featuring a tailored program and individualised support from a Mentor Lead, who has significant teaching and leadership experience.

The MQ executive mentoring approach focuses on strong outcomes, stakeholder collaboration, streamlined processes and transition, early exposure and integration into the classroom, and support in transition and retention through career planning. Participants are provided access to exciting new platforms and knowledge systems throughout the course. These include the In-School Initial Teacher Education (INSITE) Network that will link MTeach students with academics, teachers, and school leaders through professional learning, an online resource site, mini-conferences, and regular dialogue. The aim is to foster quality mentoring throughout the course and strengthen student preparation for the transition into the profession.

Students in the MCT MTeach program:

• Work with an experienced Mentor Lead Engage with classroom teacher mentors and school leaders from their first semester
• Understand that they are part of the profession from the point of enrolment
• Receive wraparound mentoring support from key staff as they transition into the profession
• Engage with ongoing professional development and have lifelong access to a professional digital portfolio to document their learning
• Remain connected to their cohort through targeted Alumni events supporting early career teachers

Applications for the next cohort, commencing February 2023, are now open.

Mid-career changers bring wonderful experiences to their teaching, and it is so great to see our MCT students begin their study and then move confidently into classroom practice at the end of session one.

Dr Janet Dutton, Course Director Master of Teaching

I've been wanting to get into teaching as a career for many years … I've been working around it because I haven't been able to afford two years off without income to study the Master of Teaching. … For me, it was a … a means of getting there.

MQ MCT MTeach Participant

The Mentor Lead’s mentorship is just the next level, which is absolutely needed for anyone who is excited about and dedicated to changing their career to teaching.

MQ MCT MTeach Participant

For more information, visit the MQ Mid-Career Transition to Teaching site and the NSW Department of Education site.