PGCAP is for educators with a substantial teaching or student support role. Over two years, the programme will support you to apply research-informed principles and approaches to enhance your education practice. PGCAP is a 60 credit Level 7 PGCert, leading to Advance HE Fellowship and fulfils the probation requirements for new lecturers.
The design of the modules itself was a good model
PGCAP is a two-year part time programme. You will be enrolled in one 15-credit module per semester. Each 15 credit module is equivalent to approximately 150 hours of study time. In practice, most of our modules have one 90 minute live seminar or webinar per week of semester time. You will be expected to complete up to two hours of asynchronous learning each week as well as any additional independent research and reading you choose to do, and preparation of your assignments.
To qualify for the programme you will be expected to teach at least at FHEQ Level 4 (year 1 undergraduate) or equivalent, and to have planned teaching of at least ten hours during the programme. PGCAP is open to Queen Mary staff with substantial roles in teaching or student support (e.g. as module conveners), and those with responsibility for significant elements of a curriculum. Please note that eligibility will change from September 2025 entry to align with accreditation to the new Professional Standards Framework.
PGCAP is an online programme which is fully flexible so that participants can attend wherever they are based in the world. Most modules will offer webinars and student-paced online activities for you to complete in your own time. Some modules will also offer optional in-person sessions.
PGCAP is made up of four 15 credit modules:
You will study one module per semester, and they must be taken sequentially. More information on module content is available from the programme handbook.
All assessment on PGCAP is coursework based. Assessments are designed to be practical and authentic and in order to support you in developing your practice. Types of assessment (including formative and summative) on PGCAP include design and analysis of a session plan, a presentation on a learning resource, observation of your practice, a piece of curriculum design or redesign and an action research proposal.
Upon successful completion of PGCAP you will receive the academic award of PGCert as well as Advance HE Fellowship.
You are expected to attend, engage with and prepare as instructed for all scheduled topics on the modules you take. While we encourage you to attend all webinars, you won’t be penalised for not attending sessions if you’re unable to. If you are unable to attend the live session, then you will need to watch the recording and complete asynchronous activities. Failure to engage in at least 80% of a module’s teaching and learning activities (synchronous and asynchronous) may result in your de-registration from the programme. If you leave Queen Mary during the programme and have completed at least half of it, you will be able to continue to complete your programme with us. You may choose instead to use the credits already gained towards a similar qualification at your new institution.
View the programme timetable for the current academic year.
PGCAP is an internal professional development programme and there are no fees. The programme is only open to eligible Queen Mary educators.
Really helpful to hear from those working in different disciplines
PGCAP is a condition of probation for many new academic staff. If you do not already hold Advance HE Fellowship, your School or Institute may ask you to complete PGCAP as one of the conditions of your probation. It is for your Head of School/Director of Institute or nominated deputy to decide on whether PGCAP is required as part of the appointment process.
If you already hold Fellowship, or have completed a programme equivalent to PGCAP at another institution, you may be exempted from PGCAP.
PGCAP is recommended for educators with less than three years’ experience of full time teaching in Higher Education. If you have more extensive experience, then you may be able to apply for Advance HE Fellowship via the Teaching Recognition Programme. This should be agreed with your Head of School/Director of Institute or nominated deputy.
If you already hold Advance HE Associate Fellowship you can be exempt from the first half of PGCAP (equivalent to 30 credits Accredited Prior Experiential Learning). If you have completed parts of a similar programme to PGCAP at another institution then you can apply for Accreditation of Prior Learning in order to transfer in academic credit already gained. Please contact us (adp@qmul.ac.uk) to find out more.
Priority for PGCAP places is always given to new academic staff required to complete the programme during their probationary period. If you need to enrol please contact us (adp@qmul.ac.uk) as soon as possible to secure your place. You will need to complete our online application form to register for the programme.