Education - Graduate Program

Dr. Pamela Bork, Director of Graduate Studies & Professional Development for the School of Education
School of Education Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development
Room 446, College of Professional Studies Building
Phone: 715-346-2354; Fax 715-346-4846
Email: pbork@uwsp.edu OR educgradadvs@uwsp.edu
Web: www.uwsp.edu/education/Pages/Graduate/

The School of Education offers the following graduate programs:

Master of Science in Education-Elementary Education (MSE), for certified teachers.
Master of Science in Education-General, for certified elementary or secondary teachers with two or more years’ full-time teaching experience.
Master of Science in Teaching. See more information in the biology , English , and history sections of these graduate pages.

You may also work toward:

Master of Science in Education: Educational Administration OR Specialist in Education: Educational Administration, offered in cooperation with UW-Superior. For more information, contact SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development, 715-346-4403.

Resources for Education Graduate Programs

School of Education (SOE) Graduate Advising Office
Room 438, College of Professional Studies Building
Phone: 715-346-4403
Web: www.uwsp.edu/education/Pages/Graduate/

School of Education graduate program admission
Graduate level certification programs (alternative education, early childhood education, gifted and talented education, reading, and special education)
Program planning and adviser assignment
Planning sheets/program outlines
Program of Study change forms
Credit checks
Graduate exams in education
Application for graduation

Admissions Office
Room 102, Student Services Center
Phone: 715-346-2441
Web: www.uwsp.edu/admissions/Pages/default.aspx

Office of the Registrar
Room 101, Student Services Center
Phone: 715-346-4301
Web: www.uwsp.edu/regrec/

Application for graduation

Enrollment Services Center
Room 106, Student Services Center
Phone: 715-346-3300
Web: www.uwsp.edu/enrollmentservices

Registration information
Requests for official transcripts

CPS-Continuing Education (CPS-CE)
Room 100, College of Professional Studies Building
Phone: 715-346-3801 and 715-346-4782
Web: www.uwsp.edu/cps/conted/Pages/default.aspx

Offerings for nontraditional students
Degree completion programs in Business, Health and Wellness, and Early Childhood Education
Courses for add-on certifications

UWSP Continuing Education
Room 032, Old Main Bldg; 8 am-4:30 pm; Monday-Friday
Phone: 715-346-3838 or 715-800-898-9472
Web: www.uwsp.edu/conted/Pages/default.aspx

Off-campus course listings
Registration for outreach/distance learning courses

MSE-Elementary Education

Admission to the Program - MSE-Elementary Education Program

Submit an application to pursue graduate study at UW-Stevens Point to the Admissions Office.
1. Be aware that you must make your initial application to the Admissions Office before you can be admitted to MSE-Elementary Education program.
2. We recommend that you apply no later than mid-semester of the semester before you want to be admitted.
3. The UW-Stevens Point Admissions Office processes your application and notifies you when your materials are being forwarded to SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development. Your application will then be reviewed by Graduate Advising for admission to the “program.”
Submit official transcripts for undergraduate and any additional coursework listed on your application.
Send a copy of your teaching license to SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development.
Have an undergraduate grade point average of 3.00 or higher. If your GPA is less, you may be admitted on probation, but will then need to establish a minimum 3.00 GPA on your first 9 resident graduate credits at UW-Stevens Point to be fully admitted.
Complete no more than 9 credits of graduate work. You may apply earlier, but you should be admitted to the program and meet with your adviser before you have completed 9 graduate credits.

Admission to Candidacy for MSE Elementary Education Graduate Program

Admission to candidacy (program planning) does not occur until after you have applied to pursue graduate study at UW-Stevens Point through the Admissions Office and been admitted to your elected program through SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development. Once you are admitted you will receive a “working copy” form, planning guide sheet to use as you prepare your proposed plan of study, and be assigned an adviser.

To be accepted as a candidate:

Remove any academic deficiencies and/or complete all subject matter prerequisites.
Maintain at least a 3.0 (B) grade point average in all your graduate work.
Because you may include no more than 9 completed graduate credits in your official Program of Study, submit your proposed plan of study and rationale statement BEFORE you complete 9 graduate credits.
Receive approval from your graduate adviser for your Program of Study.

Exit Interview (graduation credit check)

You must complete an exit interview one semester before the semester in which you plan to graduate. This interview generates a credit check on your progress and requirements and provides a one-semester “cushion” to cover discrepancies. You will receive a graduation application at the interview and you apply for graduation after the interview.

Deadlines: Decide on the term in which you anticipate receiving your diploma. Schedule your credit check, sign up for exams and apply for graduation by the month indicated.

Apply by August for December diploma and ceremony.
Apply by December for May diploma and ceremony.
Apply by December for August diploma. There is no ceremony in August; however, you may request to participate in the May or the December ceremony.

MSE-General

The MSE-General is for licensed teachers with at least two years full-time elementary or secondary teaching experience. Substitute teaching will be considered for this requirement, but student teaching and interning will not. The program allows you to design a Program of Study that meets your specific needs. You may incorporate credits from several disciplines into the 30 required graduate credits provided you can verify a professional need for them.

Admission to the Program - MSE-General

Follow steps 1-5 as listed for MSE-Elementary Education above. In addition, you will need to:

Have an employing official provide a letter certifying that you have two or more years of full-time teaching experience. For substitute teaching, have an employing official provide a letter documenting the number of days of substitute teaching with less than five hours a day and number of days with five or more hours/day.
Have an employing official provide a letter of reference.

Admission to Candidacy for MSE-General

Same as MSE-Elementary Education above.

You must submit a rationale statement with the proposed plan of study that explains how the proposed courses will enhance your professional expertise and how they reflect your personal, professional, and academic interests and needs. Generally, you can group courses into categories (curriculum, math, reading, etc.) and write a rationale for each group. You may prepare the rationale statement in paragraph format and attach it to the “working copy.”

Please note that the “working copy” is NOT the final Program of Study. It is a tool used to assign an adviser whose background most closely parallels your area of interest and/or expertise. The “working copy” will be used at your advising conference to develop a formal Program of Study which your adviser will approve.
SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development makes all official adviser assignments after your proposed plan of study and your rationale statement have been received. You may request a specific adviser at this time. You will receive a letter of adviser assignment including address, phone and email address of your adviser. Schedule an advising conference with your assigned adviser to have your proposed plan of study officially approved.

You will receive a copy of the official Program of Study once the advising process has been completed. The original will be retained in SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development. If you want to change your officially approved Program of Study, you must submit a change of study request form to SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development prior to enrollment in the new class. Contact SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development for more information.

Exit Interview (graduation credit check)

Same as MSE-Elementary Education above.

Graduate Certification Programs - School of Education

The School of Education offers graduate certification programs in:

Exceptional Education
1. Early Childhood Special Education
2. Emotional/Behavioral Disabilities
3. Learning Disabilities
4. Cognitive Disabilities
5. Gifted/Talented Education
6. Cross Categorical Special Education
Reading
1. Reading teacher (316)
2. Reading specialist (317)
English as a Second Language (ESL)
Early Childhood Education

You may complete these certifications as specializations in the Education-General, M.S.E. via Option B or by enrolling as a graduate special student and pursuing certification only. Forward a letter of intent, along with copies of your Wisconsin teaching license and transcripts from every college or technical school attended, to SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development indicating which certification you wish to pursue. A file will be established for you and an adviser assigned. Curriculum requirements for each certification are below.

NOTE: If you are pursuing graduate level certification, you must DECIDE EARLY whether to incorporate credits for certification as part of the MSE-General degree. You may obtain a master’s degree which incorporates certification by taking a course in each of the required component areas (foundations, curriculum, and research). You can have no more than 9 completed graduate credits at the time your official Program of Study for master’s degree is approved.

The certification program plan is NOT the same as the master’s Program of Study. The certification program plan outlines coursework required for certification only.

The master’s program plan outlines coursework required for awarding the master’s degree. In some cases, coursework will apply to both programs. Certification candidates, therefore, will have two program plans on file: one leading to certification and another leading to awarding the master’s degree. It is conceivable that a candidate may complete requirements for one program plan prior to completing requirements for the other program plan. Contact SOE Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development, 715-346-4403 for further information.

Programs

Graduate