Teacher shortages have persisted in Iceland for several decades. Concurrently, increased emphasis on strengthening education quality led to the 2008 reform, which extended teacher education from a three-year bachelor’s degree to a five-year master’s degree programme. Although this reform aimed to enhance professional preparation, it was followed by a decline in the number of graduates (Jóhannsdóttir & Björnsdóttir, 2018). From 1998 to 2007, an average of 16.8% of teachers lacked formal teacher education. Although this proportion declined in the following decade, it has risen again since 2020, now exceeding 18%. Comparable trends have been observed in other European countries, where teacher shortages and educational reforms often result in fluctuations in the number of qualified graduates.

Teacher shortages in Iceland are linked to both a limited supply of qualified graduates and the high number of certified teachers who do not enter or remain in school teaching (Eyjólfsson & Jónsson, 2017). Policy responses have primarily emphasised expanding distance education within teacher education programmes (Jóhannsdóttir & Björnsdóttir, 2020). These alternative pathways tend to attract older students than traditional on-campus programmes. This is reflected in European statistics showing that the average age of teacher education graduates in Iceland is considerably higher than in most other European countries (Hauschildt et al., 2018). Older students are more likely to combine studies with paid employment and family responsibilities, which may limit their ability to fully engage with academic and practicum requirements (Jóhannsdóttir & Björnsdóttir, 2022).

In 2019, further measures were introduced to increase enrolment and graduation rates and to strengthen the link between teacher education and professional practice (Sigurðsson et al., 2023). One such measure allows students to undertake a paid internship during the final year of their master’s programme while simultaneously attending on-campus courses designed to ensure coherence and progression in learning (Wiese et al., 2024). Students may earn 30 ECTS credits while working as teachers in a position formally defined as having 50% employment. The internship aims to enhance professional readiness, support the transition into teaching and contribute to teacher retention (Stjórnarráðið, n.d.).

While this arrangement aligns with research emphasising the importance of integrating theory and practice in teacher education (Darling-Hammond et al., 2005; Hammerness, 2014), it has coincided with notable changes in student pathways into teaching. The number of students enrolled in the integrated five-year compulsory school teacher education programme has declined. In contrast, the share of students entering teacher education after completing a prior bachelor’s degree increased from 11% to 42% between 2014 and 2020 (Jóhannsdóttir & Björnsdóttir, 2021). As a result, many students entering paid internships have completed relatively little formal teacher education before assuming teaching responsibilities, compared with students in integrated programmes.

Recent data further suggest that, despite the internship being designed as part-time employment, many student teachers work full time during their final year of study (Gísladóttir et. al., 2023). This raise concerns that student teachers—particularly older students with family responsibilities—may experience substantial pressure as they combine full-time teaching, academic coursework and caregiving obligations.

This study draws on research on work–family balance and competing time demands in higher education. It utilises survey data from Icelandic master’s-level student teachers to examine how work and family responsibilities influence experiences during paid internships. The study investigates whether decisions to undertake full-time teaching are primarily student-driven or shaped by expectations from employing schools facing teacher shortages. It also examines whether experiences differ across student groups based on family responsibilities and programme type, such as enrolment in an integrated five-year programme or entry following a prior bachelor’s degree.

Data were collected using a structured online questionnaire administered to all master’s-level student teachers in compulsory education at the University of Iceland and the University of Akureyri. The study follows a two-wave design, with the first wave conducted in spring 2025 and the second planned for spring 2026. A total of 268 responses were obtained in the first wave, with a comparable response rate anticipated for the second. The questionnaire captures key background variables, including weekly employment hours, caregiving responsibilities and other personal commitments, as well as perceived negative impacts of paid work and family obligations on students’ studies. Programme-related variables include the enrolment pathway (integrated five-year teacher education programme versus a two-year programme following a baccalaureate degree) and the importance of distance-learning availability in the decision to enrol in teacher education. Internship-related variables were collected from final-year students and included internship type (paid or unpaid) and workload (part time or full time). The 2026 cohort, will further explore whether full-time paid internships were undertaken by personal choice or influenced by expectations from employing schools. The analysis employs descriptive statistics to map patterns of work and family obligations among student teachers and comparative analyses to examine differences in internship experiences across student groups based on programme pathway, family responsibilities and employment intensity. Where appropriate, differences between groups are tested using inferential statistical methods.

It is expected that the current research will demonstrate that paid internships, while intended to strengthen the transition from teacher education to professional practice, are experienced unevenly across student groups. Preliminary analyses indicate that a majority of student teachers work beyond the intended 50% employment level during their paid internship. Additionally, 47% of respondents reported having two or more children, and 40% were aged 35 or older. These findings suggest that a substantial proportion of student teachers combine intensive work demands with significant family responsibilities. For many students the combination of full-time teaching, academic coursework and family obligations is likely to create considerable pressure and limit opportunities for meaningful engagement with teacher education. Such pressures may increase the risk of withdrawal from teacher education and negatively affect the quality of professional preparation, with potential consequences for teaching and learning in compulsory schools. Students enrolled in integrated five-year teacher education programmes are expected to report lower levels of work-related pressure during the paid internship compared to those entering teacher education after a prior bachelor’s degree. Also, that decisions to undertake full-time teaching during the internship are not solely individual choices but are also influenced by expectations from employing schools facing ongoing teacher shortages. These findings are relevant within the European context, where teacher shortages and high attrition rates from both teacher education programmes and the teaching profession have been documented in several countries (Elstad, 2023). Overall, the study underscores tensions between policy efforts to address teacher shortages through paid internships and the conditions necessary for high-quality teacher preparation. While paid internships may facilitate recruitment into teacher education and address short-term staffing needs, they may also impose excessive demands on student teachers and compromise professional learning, resulting in what Darling-Hammond (2006) describes as ‘watered-down preparation’, which ultimately undermines teacher quality.

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