Dec 03, 2024  
2024-2025 Graduate Catalog 
    
2024-2025 Graduate Catalog

Initial Licensure in Middle/Secondary Education (Certificate)


Program Requirements


Complete a minimum of 28 credits from at least nine courses including two foundations core courses, two diversity core courses, four or five pedagogy core courses, and one practicum core course.

Fieldwork: Complete at least 30 hours of fieldwork in approved after school programs, approved educational camps, and/or classroom time.
Pre-practicum: Complete at least 100 hours in a classroom with English Language Learners for at least one full day a week or one period every day for a semester.
Practicum: Complete a full practicum of five days a week for 14 weeks (one full semester) of supervised student teaching.
Exams: Take the Communication and Literacy MTEL before starting the diversity core; pass both parts of the Communication and Literacy MTEL before starting the pedagogy core; take the Subject Area MTEL before starting the pedagogy core; pass the Subject Area MTEL before starting the practicum core; pass the Pre-Practicum Gateway Assessment (Unit Plan from EDC G 660 ) before starting the pedagogy core. Pass the Practicum Gateway Assessment (Teaching Video from Methods) before starting the practicum core.
Portfolio: Completion of a practicum portfolio.

Schools will require CORI/SORI (Criminal/Sex Offender Record Information) and finger-printing prior to fieldwork. Allow enough time for results.

Competency 1 of the state’s regulations for licensure covers the knowledge base that teachers must bring to the classroom. For middle/secondary teachers, this is one of the disciplines taught in high school (e.g., English, History, Political Science/ Philosophy, French, Spanish, Biology, Mathematics, Physics, etc.). Most commonly, middle/secondary teachers are licensed in the fields in which they hold their BA or BS.

UMass Boston only endorses students for an initial license in a subject area. For an additional license, students need to pass the two courses in their chosen concentration core, complete the applicable DESE requirements listed on their own, and apply to DESE directly after obtaining a content area initial license.

GPA: A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 is required.
Minimum grade: A grade of B or higher is required for all core courses.
Statute of limitations: Three years.

Course Requirements