Molly completed her T Level in Education and Early years with the Assisting Teaching Specialism in 2025 with an incredibly successful placement leading to her securing a paid position and progressing onto a Level 5 apprenticeship in Standard Specialist Teaching Assistant.
The placement was one of my favourite parts because it gave me the opportunity to experience a real working environment. I could take what I had learnt in college and use it in a real setting, while also learning new things on the job. I was able to gain confidence, develop my skills and see what working in education was actually like. I enjoyed my placement so much that they offered me a job at the end of it, which was an amazing opportunity.
Molly Allison, T Level Education and Early years with the Assisting Teaching Specialism Alumnus
Yes, I’ve always wanted to be a teacher and have known for a long time that working with children and going into education was what I wanted to do. I think I properly realised it was what I wanted when I watched Matilda and saw Miss Honey. I remember thinking that I wanted to be the teacher that a child could come to at any time and feel safe and supported.
I wanted to do something that was practical as well as academic. I liked the idea of being able to learn in college but then actually put what I was learning into practice while on placement. As I already knew I wanted to work in childcare and education, the T Level seemed like the perfect course for me because I could gain real experience while also studying.
I really enjoyed the course. Everything was taught thoroughly, and the staff were so friendly and always made sure we understood the content. It wasn’t just sitting and writing all the time either. We did practical lessons, creative activities, presentations, research tasks and even made our own displays around college. There were lots of different ways of learning, which kept the course interesting.
I really enjoyed the whole nature of the course and the relationships we built with the staff. They were so lovely and it never really felt like they were just our teachers. They built genuine relationships with us and there was a mutual level of respect. I’ll always remember Maggie asking us every lesson, “What’s for tea tonight?”. Little things like that made college feel like a really welcoming place.
The placement was one of my favourite parts because it gave me the opportunity to experience a real working environment. I could take what I had learnt in college and use it in a real setting, while also learning new things on the job. I was able to gain confidence, develop my skills and see what working in education was actually like. I enjoyed my placement so much that they offered me a job at the end of it, which was an amazing opportunity.
I’m currently completing my Level 5 Specialist Teaching Assistant qualification, specialising in Social and Emotional Wellbeing. I’m able to build on everything I learnt during my T Level and continue developing my knowledge and experience within education.
The T Level gave me the experience and confidence to go into the real working world. My placement allowed me to learn new things, take on new opportunities and see education from different perspectives. It also gave me a much better understanding of what working in a school is actually like, which has really helped me with my Level 5 course.
My goal is to become a primary school teacher. I’ve always wanted to be a teacher, and I want to be the kind of teacher that children know they can come to whenever they need someone. I want to make children feel safe, supported and listened to, just like Miss Honey did for Matilda. Watching Matilda when I was younger and seeing the relationship Miss Honey had with her pupils really made me realise that was the kind of teacher I wanted to become.
