This 13-month intensive program leads to a Master's in Education degree (M.Ed.) and certification eligibility in Maryland, and is designed for those who hold a Bachelor's degree and want to become a general elementary or secondary teacher.

CERTIFICATION FIELDS

The MCERT program leads to Maryland teacher certification in Elementary Education (1-6); Art (PK-12); Physical Education (PK-12); TESOL (PK-12); World Languages including Spanish, Chines, French, Italian, and German (PK-12); Middle School Math and Science (4-9); Secondary Mathematics (7-12); Secondary Science including Biology, Chemistry, and Physics (7-12); Secondary English (7-12); and Secondary Social Studies (7-12).

COURSEWORK

The program begins in early June and concludes at the end of the following June. Students complete graduate coursework, which includes content-pedagogy classes, diversity and reading courses, a year-long action research seminar, and a final capstone course. Courses during the summer are scheduled Monday through Friday during the day. MCERT coursework during the school year is scheduled in the evening and on Saturdays (Secondary only) to align with the internship. As an outreach program, classes are scheduled off-campus at such locations as: the Universities at Shady Grove, Laurel College Center, the Hoyer Center, or our partner school sites.

INTERNSHIP

All MCERT students participate in a full-time, year-long teaching internship and are placed in schools across our four partner districts, which include: Anne Arundel, Howard, Montgomery, and Prince George's counties. All MCERT interns are supported by a school-site mentor as well a university supervisor. Interns meet on a bi-weekly basis in their content-cohort groups led by their PDS coordinator in order to examine the challenges they face in their classrooms.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

• Transcripts of a bachelor's degree with a minimum 3.0 GPA from an accredited institution
• Three letters of recommendation
• A statement of goals
• Passing scores of Praxis I and Praxis II content tests
• Evidence of content-area prerequisites as required by MSDE

APPLICATION DEADLINES

• Priority deadline: November 1
• Final deadline: February 1

To apply, please visit www.gradschool.umd.edu/gss/admissions.html.

To learn more about the MCERT Program, please visit www.education.umd.edu/edci/mcert.

With any questions, please email Kay Moon, MCERT Coordinator at kmoon@umd.edu.

For more information, contact:

College Park, MD 20742