University of Pittsburgh School of Education

School of Education

Dr. Pingel at Computer
 

Teacher Preparation

Looking to continue your education or earn Act 48 credit?

Please see our Continuing Education, Professional Development, or Act 48 sections. You may also be interested in our resources for educators.

Ranked 31st Best Graduate School of Education by U.S. News and World Report!

University of Pittsburgh School of Education rated as one of the best graduate schools for 2007

The innovative teacher preparation programs housed in the Department of Instruction and Learning, are among the highest ranked in the nation and in the top two in the state.

Our admission requirements are among the most rigorous in the nation. As a graduate school, our students are admitted with undergraduate degrees in the content areas, bringing with them strong academic backgrounds and raising the bar on the depth of work in our courses. Most enter with a GPA of well over 3.0.

Field experiences – internships and student teaching placements – are carefully chosen in collaborative school districts so that students encounter a range of experiences. Our Director of Field Placements negociates placements with skilled experienced classroom teachers that will allow students the opportunity to connect the theory, philosophy, and methods discussed in coursework with the realities and actual practices of the classroom. Students have the opportunity to impact student learning while they study the art and science of teaching. Upon completion of the program, our students consistently earn a 100% pass rate on the PRAXIS II and are actively recruited by the local and regional school districts. A high percentage of our graduates are also working in schools along the east coast, in the Carolinas, Virginia and Maryland.

After completing their certification program, students are eligible for Instructional I certification from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is quite a seemless process to convert this PA teaching certificate to initial teaching credentials in other states. Obtaining a PA Instructional I Certificate via a graduate program in Education is also beneficial for the teacher because the teacher does not need to take any additional credits to convert to an Instructional II Certificate.

Courses are taught by scholar faculty with international reputations who do extensive research and writing in the areas in which they teach. Among them, you will meet:

  • Dr. David Berman, who recently returned from a Fulbright Fellowship at the University of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, currently serving as co-director of the Kosovo Civic Education Project working in the area of curriculum development and teacher education.
  • Dr. Rick Donato, who has worked on curriculum development for the teaching of national languages and French in elementary schools in Mali, Africa, and has worked as a language education and research consultant in Thailand.
  • Dr. Jen Cartier, who was named Early Research Career Affiliate for the Center for Curriculum Materials in Science.
  • Dr. Amanda Godley, who was awarded the National Academy of Education/Spenser Post Doctoral Fellowship for 2005-2007.
  • Dr. Margaret Smith, who serves on the Board of Directors of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

PY vs. MAT

The School of Education offers two programs, both leading to teacher certification - the Master of Arts in Teaching Program (MAT) and the Professional Year Instructional I Teacher Certification Program (PY).

The MAT program is designed to give students a complete school-year internship (with intern certificate) while taking two terms and two summer sessions of course work at the university in methods of teaching. In addition to PA state teacher certification, students completing this program fulfill the requirements for the Master of Arts in teaching degree.

The Pro-Year (PY) program is designed to give students one complete semester of student teaching in a school, and one semester of full-time graduate coursework. Students completing this program satisfy the requirements for PA Instructional I Teaching Certification. PY students are generally able to apply 18 of their credits earned toward the 36 credits required for a Masters of Education degree. Students applying for the MEd within three years of completing the PY program will have their application fee waived.

The School of Education offers Instructional I and Master Programs in the following areas. If you are unsure where to begin, let us help you choose based on your career goals.

As required by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, students entering graduate teaching programs must have successfully completed a number of prerequisite courses pertaining to the content area. Download a request to review your transcripts

View all of our programs, degrees and certifications

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