In Ireland, initial teacher education programmes for primary and post-primary teachers are facilitated through a range of consecutive and concurrent programmes.

There are five state-funded Colleges of Education which offer programmes of teacher education for primary teachers through a concurrent three-year course leading to a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) degree. Four of the colleges offer an 18-month Graduate Diploma in Education (GDE). The latter is also offered by a private college as an online, blended course.

For post-primary teachers, the concurrent route to a teaching qualification is offered for a wide range of programmes, typically those with practical, laboratory and workshop elements. The post-primary consecutive route is the one-year professional diploma in education (PDE) and entry requirements include a degree in at least one subject which meets the criteria for registration with The Teaching Council.

At further education level, a teacher education qualification will be a requirement from 2013, and new programmes are currently being designed to meet the particular needs of that sector.

All teacher education programmes in Ireland that lead to registration must have professional accreditation from the Teaching Council. A list of accredited programmes of teacher education is available here.

 Further details in relation to the review and accreditation of programmes is available here.

 Further details in relation to entry requirements is available here.