Department of Educational Studies Teacher Education Program - Admission Criteria

Certification Developmental Ranges

Early Childhood – Middle Childhood Certification
(ages birth through eleven)

Middle Childhood – Early Adolescence Certification
(ages six through thirteen)

Early Adolescence – Adolescence
(ages ten through twenty-one)

Early Childhood – Adolescence
(ages birth through twenty-one)

Submit two (2) copies of application materials to 220 Morris Hall. Applications are accepted Monday through Friday of Week 3 for each Fall and Spring semester. Applications will not be accepted after 4:00 p.m. on Friday of Week 3.

Application Criteria - Minimum Requirements

The Admission Committee will obtain grade point average, PPST scores and credit information from the University database.

  1. Coursework:
    A minimum of 24 earned semester credits (UW-L and transfer).
  2. Grade Point Average:
    A minimum combined cumulative grade point average (UW-L and transfer) of 2.75. 
  3. PPST (Pre-Professional Skills Test):
    Passing PPST scores for Math, Reading and Written Language.
  4. Application Form: must be filled out and submitted with materials.
  5. Current SNAP report: must be submitted with materials.
  6. Education-Related Experiences:
    - A minimum of 30 hours completed is required.
    - All experiences must be post-secondary (after high school graduation)

Experience Format

(Not adhering to the formatting below may negatively affect the admission decision regarding your materials). View a sample experience table.

  • Use Microsoft WORD, or an EXCEL software table
  • Use Times New Roman style font
  • Use 12 point font
  • Place table in landscape format
  • Include the following table headings:
    a. topic or title for the experience
    b. organization sponsoring the experience
    c. age/grade level of population
    d. brief description of responsibilities/duties
    e. brief description of content of learning
    f. diversity of population
    g. beginning and ending dates of experience
    h. total number of hours spent in each experience
    i. contact information (name, email address & telephone number)
    j. include a total number of hours for all experiences combined

Admission Committee Review and Action

Admission to the Teacher Education Program is a competitive process. Applicants must meet the minimum requirements to apply. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission. A faculty committee within the Department of Educational Studies receives and reviews all applications. The faculty seeks to admit those students whose combination of grade point average, PPST scores, and education-related experiences demonstrate the best ability to develop the necessary knowledge, skills, and dispositions for successful completion of the program. If not accepted, a student may apply one more time in a subsequent semester.

  • All application materials are due the third week of each semester.
  • Acceptance decisions are made by the end of the eighth week of each semester. 
  • Action letters will be e-mailed to applicants by the end of the eighth week of the semester in which applicant applied.

Students admitted with less than forty (40) earned credits will be admitted contingent upon maintaining a 2.75 combined cumulative grade point average after 40 earned credits.

Receiving two (2) denial decisions for admission to the Teacher Education Program will prohibit further application attempts. However, the applicant may appeal a second denial through the following process.

  • Appeals to waive the second denial for admission to the School of Education shall be submitted directly to the Director of the School of Education.
  • The formal appeal request shall be submitted to the Director in a timely fashion. Contact the Office of the Director regarding deadline dates.
  • The formal request packet must include a letter from the applicant providing evidence of preparedness for admission to the School of Education which was not presented in the original admission application. In addition, three letters of support for the appeal are required.
  • An interview with the applicant will be scheduled by the Director after the deadline for receipt of appeals.
  • Applicants will be informed of the Director’s decision following the completion of all interviews.

Information Sessions

Three (3) orientation sessions describing the admissions application and process are scheduled as follows:

4:00pm to 5:00pm at Morris Hall 335 on:
Monday of Week 2
Wednesday of Week 2
Friday of Week 2

Questions

Questions about this information may be directed to the DES Admissions Committee at soedes@uwlax.edu.