Education

Graduate Programs in Secondary Education

Requirements for entry into the Graduate Program:

Prospective students must have:

A) Earned a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution with a major (minimum of 30 semester hours).

B) Earned a cumulative GPA of 2.750 with a minimum of 3.00 in the major for admission to the MAT program. If seeking admission into the Transitions to Teaching program, earned a cumulative GPA of 2.750 with a GPA in the major of at least 2.750. An applicant with a cumulative GPA lower than the required level may enroll on a provisional basis. If the candidate earned grades below ”C-“ in courses required for an endorsement, s/he will be required to complete additional course work in the endorsement area.

C) Earned a bachelor’s degree within the past ten years. Students with degrees older than ten years may enter the program under the understanding that they will need to complete content area coursework in the endorsement area(s).

D) Met with the Evening, Weekend, and Graduate (EWG) advisor to complete an initial transcript analysis. The initial analysis may involve contact with the chairs of the education and the content area departments or their designees.

E) Approved by the MAT/TtoT Admissions Committee and the Teacher Education Committee before enrollment in Educ 501 Graduate Groundings in Education which is the first education class taken by graduate students seeking secondary education licensure.

F) Passed the Writing Skills Assessment administered through Simpson’s EWG and assessed by the Education Department.

G) Taken the C-BASE basic skills test with a score of 250 or higher. Candidates should at least attempt the C-BASE prior to or during enrollment in Educ 501 Graduate Groundings. They must pass the test by the end of Educ 501 in order to continue taking education classes.

H) Provided three letters of recommendation from separate sources. Recommending sources are employers, supervisors, college instructors, or clergy. Family and friends are not appropriate sources. These letters may address knowledge and work skills in the content area, suitability for the teaching profession, and/or character assessment and should include a contact phone number or e-mail address for the referral source.

Note: If a student allows more than two years to lapse in pursuing graduate coursework, the student must apply for re-admittance.

Note: In the case of MAT candidates, the Master’s Project must be completed and approved, within five years after student teaching, for a student to complete the MAT.

Program Completion Requirements for Graduate Students

A. Passed the C-BASE test (scores of 250 or higher in math, reading and writing/ English) prior to taking any education courses beyond Educ 501.

B. MAT candidates must receive a B- or higher, in each course taken at Simpson, to remain eligible for the master’s program.

C. Candidates must meet Simpson’s requirements for at least one endorsement program; candidates may meet minimum state standards for additional endorsements.

D. Met the PRAXIS II examination minimum score required for each endorsement area. Students must pass their respective PRAXIS II exam prior to being accepted into student teaching..

E. All students develop and maintain an electronic portfolio containing a set of artifacts indicating that they are competent in a variety of areas essential to successful teaching. All students must pass several e-Portfolio checkpoints.

F. All teacher candidates must pass a DCI/ FBI criminal background check.

Graduate Courses for the Professional Education Core:
Required: (Hours)

  • Educ 501 Graduate Groundings in Education (6)
  • Educ 509 The Learning Process Prerequisite: Educ 501 (3)
  • Educ 512 Education, Collaboration, and Differentiation for Students with Special Needs Prerequisites: Educ 114, 165, and 229 (3)
  • Educ 516 Secondary Education and Practicum Prerequisite: Educ 501 and 509 (3)
  • Educ 521 Human Relations in Teaching (3)
  • Educ 540s Content Specific Methods Prerequisite: Educ 501, 509, 516* (2)
  • Educ 588 Student Teaching (14-22)
  • Educ 589 Student Teaching Seminar (1)

* The Educ 540 classes must be taken after or concurrent with Educ 516.

Last Updated: 6/15/09