The formation of the professional identity of future teachers before starting work in the profession is an important aspect of the formation of a quality teacher for the reason that students who have a stronger professional identity to be a teacher also have a greater desire to work in their profession, which contributes to greater investment in professional knowledge and less teacher withdrawal from work in profession after starting work (Hong, 2010). In this context, it is important to focus on students who are going to become teachers and to understand how their professional identity is formed, because they are the ones who will potentially work in the profession as a teacher after completing their studies. Given that the formation of professional identity among students is insufficiently researched in the national context, especially among future teachers, the goal of this research was to describe and understand the process of forming the professional identity of future teachers. The sample consisted of 11 participants in the last year of graduate studies who are taking one of the teaching courses at the Faculty of Philosophy in Rijeka. The results of the research indicate that for the formation of a professional identity, work experience in practice is important, especially positive experience related to the work of a teacher, and the importance of quality implementation of initial education is highlighted. It is concluded that study experiences and external influences play a major role in the formation of professional identity among students, where emphasis is placed on the importance and necessity of conducting practice as part of studies.