Secondary Education Certificate

College of Education
1204 Benjamin Building
Phone: 301-405-2364
http://education.umd.edu/studentinfo/

The Upper Division Certificate in Secondary Education requires 21-23 credits, and will lead to teacher certification. Existing undergraduate students may elect to explore teaching as an option by selecting 11 credits from the General Education Courses (Part I) without being formally admitted into teacher education in the College of Education. It is desirable to have these 11 credits of the program completed before candidates are admitted into the program. These 11 credits will lead to the Transcript Notation in Secondary Education if the candidate decides not continue or is deemed unprepared to move into Part II and Part III of the Certificate program.

Admission requirements for the certificate program include:                 

1. Completion of 11 credits outlined in Part I and passing scores on any necessary testing requirements; or possession of a Bachelor's degree and completion of content area prerequisite courses; and 

2. Earned 2.5 GPA; and 

3. Two letters of recommendation; and

4. Prior experiences with youth; and

5. Educational goals statement

​Existing undergraduate students must be formally accepted into the Certificate program before they may proceed beyond Part I of the Upper Division Certificate in Secondary Education. Existing undergraduates interested in this certificate will have applied to the university through the traditional undergraduate/transfer process facilitated by the University. They will then apply to the Advanced Certificate, through the COE Student Services December 1st the year prior to starting. Conditionally Certified Teachers who possess a Bachelor's degree and the courses or experience necessary will apply to the Advanced Certificate via the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, with a priority deadline of November 1st. Conditionally certified teachers require the same admission criteria and matriculation benchmarks however they seek admittance prior to Part I. Once admitted, they must complete the content course requirements for the pathway in Part I, before moving to the pedagogy coursework in Part II.

Below is an example of a Program Outline for all candidates pursuing an Upper Division, Secondary Education Certificate in Social Studies.