Anonymous survey answerSurvey Nº 185

I received 106 rejections while trying to find supply work after my probation year, all within a two-week period.

106 rejections in two weeks after probation

Published 5 October 2026 · 1 min read

Employment situation: Temporary post
Sector: More than one sector

I received 106 rejections while trying to find supply work after my probation year, all within a two-week period. Receiving that many rejections in such a short time caused me extreme distress and anxiety.

Being invited onto a supply register after an unsuccessful permanent supply interview felt like progress, but it did not mean I had regular work or a clear route into a permanent post. I eventually secured a full-time fixed-term role, but its end date depends on the return of the teacher I’m covering. My experience has been that getting onto a register, getting a job and having any certainty about what comes next are three very different things.

This is answer 185 of the 269 written answers that teachers let us quote anonymously in the Scottish Teacher Employment Survey 2026. It answers the survey’s last question: what do the people who make decisions about teacher employment need to know?

We have corrected spelling, added paragraph breaks and removed details that could identify anyone. Words in square brackets are ours.

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