This article examines how the university-based teacher educator is conceptualised as a category of academic worker at the institutional level in England. The findings reveal that it was common for universities to conceptualise the teacher educator as an effective classroom practitioner demonstrating strong personal qualities of enthusiasm and resilience. Furthermore, training and delivery described teaching, often relating directly to how teaching and teacher education were described in policy and professional discourse. The findings also show that the institutions shared a commitment to teacher educators’ credibility with the profession, usually demonstrated through significant professional experience.