A record number of students are training to become science and mathematics teachers at Aberdeen University.
A total of 59 students starting the university’s Professional Graduate Diploma in Education are enrolled in science and maths subjects, compared to 33 in the previous academic year.
The increase has partly been attributed to the Transition into Education Scheme (TiES) initiative, which aims to retrain redundant oil and gas workers as secondary school teachers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects.
The new scheme is a partnership between Aberdeen University, Aberdeenshire Council and the Scottish Government.
Joanne McCloskey, from Aberdeen, previously worked as a process engineer in the oil and gas industry and has signed up to teach science with chemistry.
She said: “I’ve wanted to be a teacher for a long time, and was going to apply for teacher training, regardless of being made redundant.
“I have done a lot of teaching and mentoring as a process engineer, and really enjoyed it.”
Laura Dear’s e marks a return to the university where she graduated with an engineering degree in the 1990s.
Ms Dear, from Aberdeen, is one of 23 new students training to become Maths teachers, and she added: “I took a different path by moving into subsea engineering, but I am glad to be back here at Aberdeen University and I am relishing the new challenge.”
Helen Martin, a maths lecturer who teaches the new students, said: “One of the really positive things about our new intake is that there is such a broad mix of people from different and interesting backgrounds, from former oil workers to ex-police officers.”
