Intro

Physical education teachers play a critical role in the lives of young people, inspiring them to adopt healthier lifestyles through sport and exercise. Sport helps them to develop important life skills like teamwork and sportsmanship, and to build self-confidence and self-esteem.

Our Physical Education degree leads to Qualified Teacher Status and focuses on the all-round experience and knowledge required to teach the National Curriculum for Physical Education.

We’re rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted and offer extensive sport facilities, varied placements, opportunities to gain additional NGB awards and work with children during inclusive festivals, team-building days and outdoor adventure activity sessions.

Key facts

Location Â鶹AV: Falmer

UCAS code X1C6

Full-time 3 years

Interviews for this course are taking place online

Qualified Teacher Status is awarded by the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA)

Application and interview advice sessions

What are my next steps?

You can also book your place on a campus tour.

Entry criteria

Entry requirements

A-levels or BTEC
Entry requirements are in the range of A-level BBB–BCC (120–104 UCAS Tariff points) or BTEC Extended Diploma DDM–DMM. You will be considered if your predicted grades fall within this range, but any offer will be made based on assessment at interview.

International Baccalaureate
30 points, including three subjects at Higher level.

Access to HE Diploma
Pass with 60 credits overall. At least 45 credits at level 3, with 24 credits at distinction and 21 credits at merit.

T-level
Merit in one of these T-levels. Other T-level subjects are not accepted.

  • Education and Early Years
  • Education and Childcare
  • Health
  • Healthcare Science
  • Science

GCSE (minimum grade C or grade 4)
At least five GCSEs including English language and maths.

If you don’t have the required GCSEs, an equivalency test demonstrates that you have achieved the same standard as a traditional GCSE grade C or level 4. At Â鶹AV, we accept equivalency tests from . If you have equivalency test results from another provider, contact us at ProfessionalCourseAdmission@brighton.ac.uk to see if we can accept them. We cannot accept Functional Skills for teaching courses.

Experience

While experience in a school is not a condition of entry for initial teacher education courses, we recommend that you take up opportunities to gain a realistic understanding of whether teaching is right for you. The Get Into Teaching offers opportunities across the country to book a day’s worth of experience.

Studied before or got relevant experience?
If you have suitable qualifications, credits from a previous university course or relevant professional experience these could count towards your course at Â鶹AV and you could start the course in year 2 or 3.

English language requirements
IELTS 6.0 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in each element. Find out more about the other English qualifications that we accept.

Other

  • All offers are subject to an occupational health check and Disclosure and Barring Service enhanced disclosure check.

  • We are committed to . As part of our selection and interview process, we will undertake additional checks to confirm the suitability of candidates.

Interviews

Successful applicants will be invited to attend an interview. These are currently being held online.

Contextual admissions

When you apply to Â鶹AV, we want to get to know the real you. Grades matter of course but we also value creativity, persistence, resourcefulness and big ideas. We know that some students face challenges beyond their control when it comes to meeting grade requirements. That’s why we look at every person who applies to Â鶹AV as an individual, and consider a many qualifications, achievements and experiences. Find out about our admissions policies.

You may also qualify for extra financial support from us through our Â鶹AV Boost cost of living package. Find out about the Â鶹AV Boost.

Graphic with the text 'Potential + possibility'

Course content

Top reasons to choose this course

  • Train to teach with an Ofsted ‘outstanding’ provider.
  • Sport courses at Â鶹AV have received the 3-star ‘Enhancing’ grade for quality from the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA).
  • School placements in each year of the degree.
  • Additional opportunities to work with school pupils throughout the degree.
  • Gain the experience and knowledge required to teach the National Curriculum for Physical Education.
  • Extensive on-site sport facilities.
  • Opportunities to take National Governing Body (NGB) awards.
  • 2nd in the UK for education courses in the Guardian University Guide 2025.
Women playing football

Course structure

Year 1 of your course is mainly university-based, with a short secondary school placement towards the end of the year. Years 2 and 3 offer a combination of practical school experience and university-based learning.

You can choose to take National Governing Body (NGB) awards and participate in sports competitions. We also offer an optional water sports module.

Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up to date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. When you have applied to us, we will inform you of any improvements or innovations to the curriculum through .

students having a lesson in the swimming pool

Year 1

In your first year of study you will focus on developing your knowledge and understanding of PE and PE teaching in a secondary school setting. This will include the study of contemporary issues in education, practice and policy. Practical modules align to the six activity areas of the National Curriculum for PE; adventurous activities, games, athletics, dance, gymnastics and swimming.

You will develop personal competence and confidence in each of these disciplines and learn how to apply pedagogic techniques to enable high-quality teaching that is innovative, safe and inclusive for all pupils. You will also spend two weeks on school-based training in one of our quality-assured partnership schools at the end of your first year.

Modules

  • Performance in Physical Education: OAA, Gymnastics and Swimming

    This module will develop your performance for physical education. You will study outdoor and adventurous activities (OAA), gymnastics and swimming. You will acquire the foundation knowledge, skill and understanding necessary for further study. You will develop an appreciation of the distinctive nature of each specific activity, engage with the relative creative and analytic principles, explore physical literacy and what it means to be physically educated.

  • Performance in Physical Education: Games, Dance and Athletics

    In this module you will develop your performance for physical education. You will study games, dance and track and field athletics, enabling you to acquire the foundation knowledge, skill and understanding necessary for further study at level 5 and 6. You will develop an appreciation of the distinctive nature of each specific activity, engage with the relative creative and analytic principles, and explore physical literacy and what it means to be physically educated.

  • Education Studies 1: Applied Pedagogy

    This module introduces you to the content and structure of the National Curriculum for Physical Education (NCPE) in relation to lesson planning. You will develop your lesson planning and pedagogical skills through practical experience of planning and evaluation, and gain an understanding of the theory and practice of formative assessment. You will also become familiar with the Professional Standards for Teachers: Qualified Teacher Status.

  • Learning and Teaching Through Games, Dance and Swimming

    This module will increase your understanding of the teaching and learning of games, dance and swimming-based activities to support the National Curriculum for Physical Education. You will study games, dance and swimming, with one third of the module time spent on each activity. This will enable you to gain the knowledge needed to develop related learning and teaching strategies before your school-based placements, whilst working on your own practical performance skills.

  • Learning and Teaching Through Athletics, Gymnastics and Adventurous Activities

    This module will increase your understanding of the teaching and learning of athletics, gymnastics and adventurous activities in supporting the National Curriculum for Physical Education. Within each activity you will focus on particular aspects of each activity: the teaching of running, throwing and jumping in athletics; teaching compositional gymnastics from a skills-based approach; and problem-solving, physical challenges, navigation and orienteering activities. You’ll develop practical knowledge and understanding through planning, performing and evaluating.

  • Physical Education Theory

    This module will develop your knowledge and understanding of the requirements of the national curriculum and selected aims of physical education (PE) specifically. You will explore historical and contemporary developments in PE, build your understanding of the place of PE within schools and reflect upon your own PE experiences. You will also develop the key skills needed for studying at undergraduate level.

  • Initial School Experience

    This module is your initial placement experience in a secondary school, where you will develop your understanding of the professional role of a physical education teacher. You’ll become familiar with school and departmental procedures relating to health and safety, class management and lesson planning. You will engage with your e-portfolio throughout the placement to reflect on your progress towards meeting the Teachers’ Standards (Department of Education, 2012).

students learning to play badminton

Year 2

You will spend 75 days on school-based training in the same secondary school as in year 1. You will work alongside an experienced mentor and university staff to develop and apply teaching methods consistent with the needs of your pupils and your professional role.

You will develop your subject knowledge further through optional module choices, discover how to create a positive teaching and learning environment and explore current discourse in PE.

Modules

Core modules

  • Intermediate Professional Semester

    During your Intermediate Professional Semester, you will spend 40% of placement time teaching secondary school pupils (supervised) and the rest furthering your professional development. This module provides opportunities for you to plan for Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4 across a range of physical activities. During the placement, you will be using your e-portfolio to reflect on your progress towards meeting the Teachers’ Standards.

  • Creating a Positive Teaching and Learning Environment

    This module will introduce you to aspects of behaviour management within a school context. You will examine factors influencing pupil behaviour and strategies that may be employed by the teacher/support staff to help a child approach schooling in a more positive way. Topics will include expectations in the classroom, school and national behaviour policies, pupil motivation, special categories of pupils with behaviour problems, and theoretical approaches and their practical application to classroom management.

Options*

  • Education Studies 2: Policy and Practice

    This module introduces behaviour management in a school context. You will examine various factors that influence pupil behaviour and strategies that may be used by the teacher and support staff to help the child approach the process of schooling more positively. 

  • Sport for Development and Peace

    On this module you will get involved with our partner NGO Football4Peace (F4P) by taking part in practical coaching sessions. Through your engagement with F4P you’ll explore some of the theoretical ideas that underpin how sport can be a tool for community development, social justice and peace. The module will enable you to apply principles of sport for development and peace in practical, fieldwork settings.

  • Primary Physical Education: Theory and practice of teaching KS1 and KS2 PE

    This module explores the teaching of primary PE, focusing on understanding child development and motor skill acquisition to plan and deliver appropriate physical activities. It will involve the application of theory to practical contexts and help you develop teaching methods and practice to ensure that learning in and through PE is maximised alongside addressing health, body awareness, development of positive attitudes and self-confidence.

  • Practical Performance

    Practical Performance will help you develop an understanding of the principles and concepts of two areas of practical study that you choose. The key areas of focus will include the development of individual techniques and skills as applied to theoretical principles of performance in your chosen areas. The module will include the evaluation of coaching/teaching methods and practice.

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability.

students being instructed on the all weather pitch

Final year

You will complete a research project that critically examines an area of educational interest based on reflections from your year 2 placement. You will learn how to teach accredited PE and dance as part of the 14-19 curriculum, and practical option modules will give you the flexibility to study and specialise in activity areas that interest you most.

You will also complete your final phase of school-based training with a 15-week placement at a contrasting secondary school. Throughout both formal placements you will work towards meeting the Teachers Standards for Qualified Teacher Status.

Modules

Core modules

  • Education Studies 3: Inclusive Practice

    Issues of inclusion and exclusion in education will be examined in this module to help you learn how to work with various groups of children to promote inclusive practice. You will look at education legislation relating to provision for children with a variety of needs and study adapted physical activities which may be used when teaching children who have physical, social and emotional needs and those who have English as an additional language.

  • Physical Education in the 14–16 curriculum

    This module identifies the principles underpinning the development of Physical Education (PE) curriculum design at Key Stage 4 and introduces the different academic and vocational routes available to you. It will expand your knowledge of the structure and content of 14-16 PE, including the understanding and delivery of key theoretical areas such as anatomy and physiology, biomechanics, psychology and contemporary Issues within accredited PE.

  • Final Professional Semester

    The Final Professional Semester will involve you spending 60% in a placement teaching (supervised) secondary school pupils and the rest in furthering your professional development. This provides opportunities for you to plan a range of physical activities for Key Stage 3, 4 and where possible Key Stage 5 accredited courses. You will be using your e-portfolio to reflect upon your continued progress towards meeting the Teachers’ Standards.

Options*

  • Physical Practical Activity 1

    You will focus on further developing your understanding of the techniques and skills required for effective performance during this module. You’ll analyse and evaluate coaching and teaching methods, and apply them to two different practical activities. The module includes student-led teaching and coaching sessions.

  • Primary Physical Education: Active Learning in the Primary Setting

    This module will enable you to reflect on your understanding of developmental physical education and become a reflective teacher and leader. You will develop research and planning skills to effect change within a primary school setting and learn how to lead, manage and advocate PE in primary schools to ensure the curriculum is appropriate to the school and the pupils.

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability.

students climbing ropes in the sports hall

School-based training 

School-based training forms an important element of your course, enabling you to gain confidence in your teaching ability, demonstrate and grow your knowledge and make valuable contacts which will help when seeking your first teaching role.

You will spend time in schools in your second, third and final year teaching and assessing Key Stage 3 and 4 pupils (under supervision) in a range of physical education activity areas, including where appropriate accredited courses.

You’ll be fully prepared leading up to your training and will be supported by the university and a school-based mentor throughout to ensure you can make the most of these opportunities.

In your first year, you will spend 10 days in a secondary school to become familiar with school and departmental procedures relating to health and safety, class management and lesson planning. You will teach a minimum of three lessons in this time.

In your second year, you will spend 75 days in a school and teach a 40% timetable, eight to 10 lessons, using the remaining time for preparing and evaluating lessons, researching specific activities, lesson observations and updating your e-portfolio with appropriate evidence of achieving the Teachers’ Standards with personal reflections. 

In your final year, you will spend another 75 days in a school setting teaching a 60% timetable which is between 10–13 lessons per week.

Where will my placement be?

Placements for the Physical Education BA(Hons) with QTS degree take place across our placement partnership region, which covers from Southampton to Kent, including some of Essex, Hertfordshire and Oxfordshire.

We have partnerships with over 600 schools and colleges which offer you opportunities in large, small, urban and rural settings, ensuring you will have a well-rounded experience. You will experience time in two contrasting schools during your course.

We’ll use information you provide to match you to a suitable placement and will consider your previous experience, current needs and travelling distance.

Placements in Â鶹AV are limited, so when matching you with a school we may consider the address you lived at when you applied to Â鶹AV (home address) as well as your term-time address.

If your home address is in our partnership region we are likely to place you in a school close to that address. You may choose to return home when on placement. If you choose to live at your home address when on placement, we will be able to support you with university halls accommodation when your placement ends and you return to university.

If your home address is outside our partnership region we will aim for your placement to be within 35 miles or a 90-minute commute by public transport of your term-time address. 

Facilities

As a Â鶹AV student you’ll use our extensive sport facilities at Falmer which include:

  • dance and spin studios
  • five outdoor grass football pitches
  • full-size floodlit synthetic turf pitch
  • floodlit non-slip netball and tennis courts
  • indoor swimming pool
  • large fitness suite
  • outdoor grass rugby pitch
  • sports hall with netball, volleyball, basketball and badminton courts, and cricket nets
  • strength and conditioning suite
  • tennis and badminton courts.

You’ll be able to see the facilities when you visit us and learn more by checking out our Falmer campus information.

You will also have access to our which contains more than 30,000 specialist resources for trainee teachers, including books, DVDs, games and an online catalogue.

Sports students teaching with coloured parachute

Ofsted ‘outstanding’

Graded ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted for primary and secondary in our 2024 .

Ofsted commended us on many aspects of our courses, saying:

  • Trainees shine at Â鶹AV’s long-established and highly impressive teacher training programmes.
  • The care and dedication shown by staff towards trainees is superb.
  • Trainees are at the heart of everything. They are valued and expertly supported throughout the course.
  • The curriculum skilfully equips trainees in safeguarding, behaviour management and supporting pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
  • Trainees impress the placement settings they work in because of their professionalism and aptitude to apply what they have learned.
Ofsted outstanding provider logo

Meet the team

Jonathan Binney, course leader

Jon introduced the innovative and nationally recognised Alternative Approaches to Physical Education, which has received both international and national praise for both the postgraduate and undergraduate provision. Jon has been asked to deliver at numerous conferences, most recently at the AfPE National ITE conference, regarding the delivery of this module and its impact upon the occupational socialisation of initial teacher trainees.

Jon also delivers all of the gymnastics first year modules, the teaching and learning through aquatic-based activities year 2 modules and the rugby year 3 modules whilst leading all of the non-traditional-based activities teaching and dance modules within the postgraduate PGCE training route.

Before working at the university, Jon gained Advanced Skills teacher status and was the lead Physical Education teacher within Â鶹AV & Hove. Jon also worked for both the Â鶹AV and University of Sussex, lecturing and tutoring on the undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Jon was also one of the university’s lead mentors, subject tutor and curriculum tutor and spent time visiting numerous trainees in variety of educational establishments from all over the world. Jon’s teaching in schools focused on all areas of Physical Education at Key Stage 3 and 4, teaching GCSE and BTEC examination work in dance and physical education.

Jon is the recipient of the university’s Excellence in Facilitating and Empowering Learning Award, nominated by the students, recognising his work within his academic areas. Further academic awards were received from the university’s Centre of Teaching and Learning and also from the Â鶹AV Students’ Union in their annual Excellence in Teaching Awards.

Jon’s main academic interests include the use and delivery of alternative activity areas within physical education, the effective use and implementation of ICT as a learning device and the effective teaching of swimming, both theory and practice.

Jon Binney

Other key members of the team

Sport at Â鶹AV

Sport Â鶹AV

Sport Â鶹AV brings together our sport and recreation services. As a Â鶹AV student you’ll have use of sport and fitness facilities across all our campuses and there are opportunities to play for fun, fitness or take part in serious competition. 

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Sports scholarships

Our sports scholarship scheme is designed to help students develop their full sporting potential to train and compete at the highest level. We offer scholarships for elite athletes, elite disabled athletes and talented sports performers.

Find out about sport scholarships.

Â鶹AV Cricket Academy

Develop your cricketing skills in the UK’s largest indoor cricket facility alongside studying for a degree. Whether you can already play or you’re new to the game offers the opportunity to train with top coaches in our world-class training environment. 

Find out about the Â鶹AV Cricket Academy.

Students throwing frisbees

More about this subject at Â鶹AV

Careers

Preparing for your teaching career  

This course leads to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), the professional qualification for teachers. QTS enables you to teach in schools in England and is also recognised in Wales once registered with The Education Workforce Council (EWC).

93% of graduates were in work or further study 15 months after this degree – Graduate Outcomes Survey.

You will graduate with the all-round experience and knowledge to teach the National Curriculum for Physical Education (NCPE) and have the skills to meet the Department for Education’s Teachers’ Standards in relation to key stages 3 and 4 (11–16 years).

The course will enable you to play a prominent and constructive role in the development of physical education, dance and sport for children and young people, both within the school and in partnership with other children’s services and agencies in the community. You will acquire a specialist understanding and competence in physical education.

University learning will be complemented with school-based training so that you graduate as a competent newly qualified teacher with insight into your own professional development.

You will gain plenty of practical hands-on experience in physical education and dance during your course.

Work-related experience  

In addition to your school-based training you will have the opportunity to take part in a number of activities to help in your development as a physical education teacher, preparing you to teach a more reflective curriculum based on individual needs and pupil activity choices in schools.

Examples of these activities are:

Inclusive festivals
As part of your induction programme you prepare a series of activities for pupils with moderate, profound and multiple learning difficulties. Activities will include boccia, new age kurling, goalball, parachute games and dance.

Gifted and talented days
You will organise gifted and talented days for school pupils, helping them to overcome the challenges of an adventurous nature. This includes activities in which success is judged on how efficiently and safely challenges are overcome.

Outdoor adventure days
You will facilitate a day of on-site outdoor and adventurous activities for pupils. You learn how to teach realistic and achievable on-site outdoor and adventurous activities to secondary school pupils without the need to take pupils off-site or use specialist equipment and facilities.

Active Student volunteer programmes
With the Active Student volunteer programme you provide out-of-school-hours activities for local primary school pupils. The activities include swimming, lifestyle activities, trampolining and gymnastics.

Orienteering festivals
As part of the Outdoor Education module you will arrange and manage an orienteering festival for pupils in a local park. You will learn how to facilitate and manage a large sporting event while at the same time gaining important professional experience of teaching orienteering skills and techniques to pupils.

Team-building days
You will organise team-building days for school pupils. Pupils will take part in a series of physical challenges and activities that promote communication skills, problem-solving and decision-making through trust games, orienteering and team-building.

Graduate destinations  

This physical education degree is ideal if you want to start a career as a physical education teacher. However, the knowledge and experience that you gain on the course will also prepare you for a variety of roles.

As well as teaching children and young people, our graduates have found success in such varied fields as sport and leisure development for young people, the armed forces, the police, management, coaching and doctoral research.

100% of our most recent graduates were in work six months after finishing this course (Source: Destinations of leavers from HE record).

PE trainee teacher with pupils

Further study 

This degree opens up a range of postgraduate study options.

At Â鶹AV, you could progress on to one of our sport and exercise postgraduate degrees or one of our other subject areas if you are looking to change course.

You could also apply for a research degree.

Supporting your employability 

Beyond your course, our Careers and Employability team are here to support you as you discover (and rediscover) your strengths and what matters to you. We are here for you throughout your university journey as you work towards a fulfilling and rewarding career.

  • Find part-time work that you can combine with your studies.
  • Find, or be, a mentor or get involved with our peer-to-peer support scheme.
  • Develop your business ideas through our entrepreneurial support network.
  • Get professional advice and support with career planning, CV writing and interview top tips.
  • Meet potential employers at our careers fairs.
  • Find rewarding volunteering opportunities to help you discover more about what makes you tick and build your CV.

Whatever your career needs, we are here to help. And that’s not just while you are a student – our support carries on after you’ve graduated.

Find out about careers and employability at Â鶹AV.

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Professional links

Sport courses at Â鶹AV have received the from the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA). 

We were one of the first institutions nationally selected to become a CIMSPA Higher Education Partner.

The partnership offers many benefits for students studying this course including substantially discounted CIMSPA student membership. Membership will improve your employability and includes free CPD e-learning, magazines and digital newsletters, networking opportunities and access to graduate work placement, volunteering, internships and job opportunities.

 

CIMSPA quality assured enhancing logo

Fees and costs

Course fees

UK (full-time)* 9,535 GBP

International (full-time) 18,108 GBP

The course fees shown here are what you will pay if you start your course in the academic year 2026–27 and you are studying full-time. You pay fees in each year of your course. The fees you pay may increase each year.

Regulated fees

Fees for UK students on undergraduate and some postgraduate courses are set by the UK government. These are known as regulated fees. The regulated fee for 2025–2026 is £9,535. The government has announced that regulated tuition fees will increase each year in line with forecast inflation from 2026–27 onwards. (Subject to parliamentary approval)

*The regulated fee for UK full-time students taking this course in the academic year 2026–27 will be published here when it is confirmed by the government.

Student Finance England loans for tuition fees and maintenance will also rise in line with inflation.

If you are studying part-time your fee will usually be calculated based on the number of modules that you take.

Unregulated fees

Course fees for international students taking undergraduate courses and for most postgraduate courses are not regulated by the UK government. Unregulated fees may increase each year by up to 5% or the forecast Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation (whichever is higher).

Find out more

What's included

Here you’ll find details of specific resources and services that are included in the tuition fee for our sport and exercise students. To help you to budget for your studies, there is also information on any additional costs that you may have to pay or can choose to pay in addition to your tuition fee.

Find out how tuition fees enable us to support all of our students with important services, facilities and resources across the university and check out our finance pages for info about fees, funding and scholarships along with advice on international and island fee-paying status.

You can chat with our enquiries team if you have a question or need more information.

What's included in your tuition fee

  • In sport courses, UK-based field trips are available in some option modules in the final year. You do not have to take these option modules to complete the degree programme. Where a field trip takes place, costs are covered but you are expected to make a contribution towards food. Typically this is £50.
  • For courses with healthcare-based placement settings, DBS checks and occupational health checks, where required, are included in the fees.
  • Course books, magazines and journals are available in the university libraries. You do not need to have your own copies. See the for an up-to-date list of key subject journals and databases.
  • You will have access to computers and necessary software on campus – and can borrow a laptop from us if yours is broken or you don’t have a computer at home. Specialist equipment is provided to cover essential learning.

Additional course costs

  • For sports courses which require a placement, you’ll be expected to pay for your living costs and travel. Physical Education (QTS teacher training) students can claim travel costs to their school placement.
  • You’ll need to budget for printing and stationery for personal study, and books if you decide to buy your own.   
  • In most cases coursework submissions are electronic but you may wish to print notes which would involve an extra cost.   
  • Many students choose to buy their own hardware, software and accessories. The amount spent will depend on your individual choices, but this expenditure is not essential to pass any of our courses.

Location and student life

Campus where this course is taught

Falmer campus

Set in the South Downs, our Falmer campus is around four miles from Â鶹AV city centre. Students based here study a range of subjects including education studies, teaching, sport and exercise, nursing and midwifery, allied health professions and medicine. Â鶹AV & Hove Albion’s Amex stadium and beautiful Stanmer Park are right next door.

Falmer campus has two halls of residence on site, as well as a library, restaurant and cafes.

The campus has extensive sport and leisure facilities including a fitness suite, swimming pool, outdoor grass football and rugby pitches, sports hall, tennis and badminton courts, and dance and spin studios.

Specialist learning facilities at Falmer include the curriculum centre used by teaching and education students, which houses over 30,000 teaching resources, clinical skills and simulation suites used by health students, and labs and a strength and conditioning suite used by sport students. We’ve recently redeveloped the Falmer campus – learn more about the many facilities our students have access to.

Cycle lanes link Falmer with our other campuses and the city centre. There are regular bus services to the city centre and other campuses. Falmer train station is right next to campus and a nine-minute journey to central Â鶹AV.

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Accommodation

We guarantee an offer of a place in halls of residence to all eligible students. So if you apply for halls by the deadline you are guaranteed a room in our halls of residence. Almost all (98%) of students starting their course with us in 2025 got their first or second room choice. 

Â鶹AV: Falmer

Halls of residence

We have self-catered halls on all our campuses, within minutes of your classes, and other options that are very nearby.

You can apply for any of our halls, but the options closest to Falmer are:

  • Paddock Field and Great Wilkins halls offer a range of rooms on our Falmer campus, minutes from your classes, and on the edge of the South Downs.
  • Varley Park is a popular, dedicated halls site, offering a mix of rooms and bathroom options at different prices. It is around two miles from Falmer campus and four miles from the city centre, and is easy to get to by bus.

Want to live independently?

We can help – find out more about private renting.

Outside views at Falmer accommodation

Outside views at Falmer accommodation

student outside the sport and health complex at Falmer

Extensive facilities at Falmer sports centre

Students dining at Westlain

Students dining at Westlain House

Local area

One of Time Out's 50 best cities in the world

“Â鶹AV has … all the important parts of a sprawling cosmopolitan metropolis (connections to London in under an hour, an array of properly excellent restaurants, energetic late-night spots) … with the easy-breezy beachy attitude to life that makes you feel welcome in an instant.”
Time Out’s 50 Best Cities in the World, 2025

About Â鶹AV

The Â鶹AV is at the heart of our city’s reputation as a welcoming, forward-thinking place which leads the way when it comes to the arts, music, sustainability and creative technology. Â鶹AV is home to a thriving creative community and a digital sector worth £1bn a year to the local economy – as much as tourism.

Many of the work-based learning opportunities offered on our courses, such as placements and guest lectures, are provided by businesses and organisations based in the city.

You can also get involved with city festivals and events such as the Â鶹AV Festival, the Fringe, Â鶹AV Digital Festival, Â鶹AV Science Festival, the London to Â鶹AV bike ride and the Great Escape festival of new music to name a few. Other annual highlights include Pride, the Â鶹AV Marathon and Burning the Clocks, which marks the winter solstice.

You’ll find that living in Â鶹AV enriches your learning experience, and by the end of your course you’ll still be finding new things to explore and inspire you.

It’s only 50 minutes by train from Â鶹AV to central London and there are daily direct trains to Bristol, Bedford, Cambridge, Gatwick Airport, Portsmouth and Southampton.

Map showing distance to London from Â鶹AV
Â鶹AV Beach sunset

Maps

Falmer campus

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Support and wellbeing

Your course team

Your personal academic tutor, course leader and other tutors are all there to help you with your personal and academic progress. You’ll also have a student support and guidance tutor (SSGT) who can help with everything from homesickness to managing stress and accommodation issues.

Your academic skills

Our Â鶹AV Student Skills Hub gives you extra support and resources to develop the skills you’ll need for university study, whatever your level of experience so far.

Your mental health and wellbeing

As well as being supported to succeed, we want you to feel good too. You’ll be part of a community that builds you up, with lots of ways to connect with one another, as well as having access to dedicated experts if you need them. Find out more about how we support your wellbeing.

Sport at Â鶹AV

Sport Â鶹AV

Sport Â鶹AV brings together our sport and recreation services. As a Â鶹AV student you'll have use of sport and fitness facilities across all our campuses and there are opportunities to play for fun, fitness or take part in serious competition. 

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Sports scholarships

Our sports scholarship scheme is designed to help students develop their full sporting potential to train and compete at the highest level. We offer scholarships for elite athletes, elite disabled athletes and talented sports performers.

Find out more about sport scholarships.

Â鶹AV Cricket Academy

Develop your cricketing skills in the UK’s largest indoor cricket facility alongside studying for a degree. Whether you can already play or you’re new to the game offers the opportunity to train with top coaches in our world-class training environment. 

Find out about the Â鶹AV Cricket Academy.

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Take a tour of sport facilities on our Falmer campus

Student views  

Emma Chapman

“I have always been passionate about sport and physical activity as well as enjoying working with children and young people, so this was the perfect course as it is tailored specifically to teaching young people to learn new sports with the potential to inspire them to take part in physical activity for the rest of their life.

“I feel that my course has prepared me to become a good teacher. I have learnt the most on teaching placement as this is great opportunity to get involved and learn on the job. The course includes two 15-week placements at a secondary school teaching PE. We are assessed mainly through practical assessments including teaching lessons and performing physical activity as well as a few essays.

“We get various opportunities to teach a range of lessons and we are provided feedback on each lesson to help us improve. I have developed communication skills by being required to communicate effectively and appropriately during lessons. I have learnt great leadership skills when required to lead a lesson.

“I feel supported by all lecturers, they are all approachable and most have experienced the pathways of university and teaching as we currently are, so we can relate to them personally and academically.”

Emma Chapman

Riley Chalfen

“I had my heart set on coming to Â鶹AV as soon as I started looking! One of the big influences was how highly my PE teacher recommended it – he studied himself at Â鶹AV and has been a big inspiration for me.

“When I first looked at my timetable and saw the wide range of sports and activities I would be doing during my lectures, I knew that this was the right choice for me. I have had so many opportunities to step out of my comfort zone and try things I have never done before such as mountain biking, raft building, dance and many more.

“My favourite thing about studying PE with QTS is how practical the majority of the lectures are. I would say in the first year around 70–80% of your lectures are in a practical environment, whether that’s on the Astro, in the sports hall, dance studio, gymnastics gym, swimming pool or athletics track. I have never been a huge fan of academic assessments and my course is tailored to that perfectly because all of my practical lectures get assessed through practical performance.

“PE with QTS fully prepares you for a career in teaching. During each academic year you will spend time in a school on placement learning through experience and eventually teaching yourself. Each lecture always gets linked back to a school environment; for example, in a rugby lecture you may pick up pointers from the way the lecturer is running the lesson that you can then use when you teach yourself.

“I am very excited for what the future holds. I can't wait to get into schools and start teaching.”

Riley Chalfen

Hannah King

“The transition from college to university was really smooth as the university provided so much information to me. Don’t panic as everyone will be in the same position as you.

“I settled in fine, helped by joining societies and getting to know the other students.

“The Â鶹AV is very inclusive and allows students to learn and succeed in their own individual way.

“I have met so many successful people in the field of physical education, such as the lecturers, and learning from them has been the highlight of my course so far.”

Hannah King

 Kelly Jarvis 

“My teachers at school always told me that if I wanted to go on and be a PE teacher I should go to the Â鶹AV. From the very first minute of visiting, I knew I wanted to go here.

“The course offers a diverse range of module options and opportunities outside of learning time – I went on a ski trip in year one and experienced OAA adventures and camping. I was also given the opportunity to coach and teach gymnastics, dance and trampolining outside of university time in local secondary schools and have gained lots of coaching qualifications such as rugby level 1 and trampolining levels 1 and 2. All of this helped when applying for jobs and coaching roles while studying as well as for when I graduate.

“The tutors were so supportive throughout my whole four years, whether for theoretical, practical or teaching knowledge. There was always someone to talk to if I had any concerns or worries. I was not just a number at a university studying a degree – I was an individual, someone they cared about and wanted to succeed.

“Gaining excellent subject knowledge and high-quality training in all areas of PE will allow me to be the best and most successful teacher I can be. Following graduation I am going to teach physical education and dance in a mixed state school back at home in Kent. I got the job before I had even graduated!

“This is the best thing I have ever done. Not only have I developed into a well-organised, skilful and ambitious teacher, I have grown as an individual. I have had the time of my life and if I could, I would do it all again.”

Kelly Jarvis

 Liam Turner

“Being able to say that you are a Â鶹AV QTS graduate is worth its weight in gold. Schools see Â鶹AV graduates as the cream of the crop and you have an upper hand even before they read the rest of your application.

“I have loved every single minute of my time at Â鶹AV – from the friends I made to the facilities, to the extra-curricular opportunities, to the lecturers whose support was above and beyond anything I expected it to be.

“The two long, block placements were a real selling point – they allowed me to get stuck into and make a difference in both of my placement schools. You teach on a 50% timetable and are observed every lesson by the normal class teacher, who will then provide you with feedback. Both schools had different challenges and set me up perfectly for when I start full-time employment at a mixed secondary academy after graduation.

“If being a PE teacher is what you want to do as a career, then 100% this is the course for you.”

Liam Turner

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Ask a question about this course

If you have a question about this course, our enquiries team will be happy to help.

Tel: 01273 644644

Statistics

Find out more about how the academic year and degree courses are organised and about learning and assessment activities you might get to grips with at Â鶹AV. More specific information about this course is detailed in the programme specification (linked below). You can find out also about the support we offer to help you adjust to university life.

Course and module descriptions on this page were accurate when first published and are the basis of the course. Detailed information on any changes we make to modules and learning and assessment activities will be sent to all students by email before registration so that you have all the information before you come to Â鶹AV.

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Course specification

Course specifications are the approved description of each course. They contain a breakdown of the content and structure of the course, learning outcomes and assessment. Course specs are updated following course changes.

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