text: how can i become a special needs teacher? qualifications needed - im training to be a youth worker @ mo but now wanna be a teacher 4 special needs you'll need to have qualified teacher status to teach full time in any uk school, which usually means doing a university degree in any subject you want (including education) and then doing a pgce. some universities will offer pgce courses with a specialism in special needs teaching.  however, if you're already working in a special needs environment, you may be able just to do the qts part as day release or an evening class in addition to 'on the job' training.  have a look at the websites below for more info, and speak to teachers at a local special needs school to find out how they got their training too.