Preparation for Secondary Education

The secondary certification program requires completion of an approved endorsement (major). Students must satisfactorily complete the required pre-candidacy courses, certification program courses, endorsement courses, cognates, the general studies program, and baccalaureate degree requirements as listed in this bulletin.

A minimum grade point average of not less than 2.75 is required in all pre-candidacy, certification, endorsements, and cognate courses that apply to these requirements. Any courses graded lower than a C cannot apply. A total of two repeats are permitted in any course or any combination of courses in the Phase 1 Pre-Candidacy and Phase 2 Teacher Certification Program combined.

Practicum experiences in secondary education require a formal application, law enforcement background check, and moral character clearance. Contact the School of Education and Psychology for details.

To be considered for admission into the Teacher Certification Program (TCP) Phase 2, students must have junior standing or permission of the department, a Phase 1 GPA of 2.75, complete an application packet and pass an entrance interview. (The application packet is available upon request in the School of Education & Psychology.) Students must demonstrate excellence in knowledge representative of scholarship, skills of professionalism and dispositions, along with personal fitness appropriate for teaching. These terms are defined and explained in the Minimum Competencies document distributed in EDUC 211 Introduction to and Foundations of Education. The documents is also available upon request from the certification officer in the School of Education and Psychology. Students applying for admission to the Teacher Certification Program are required by state law to earn a passing score on the Washington Educator Skills Test- Basic (WEST-B) and/or submit official documentation of current Washington State passing scores on the ACT/SATs, or a combination thereof, prior to admission into the program. Test dates and locations are available from the School of Education and Psychology.

Student teaching requires formal application to the School of Education and Psychology. Student teaching applications, available from the certification officer, are due by the end of fall quarter prior to the year in which the student plans to enroll for the experience. The candidate must document a minimum of 450 hours, according to current Washington state requirements, in supervised field experience over the course of their student teaching. Check with the certification officer for possible changes.

Senior students seeking certification are required to have passing scores on the Washington Educator Skills Test- Endorsement (WEST-E) and/or National Evaluation Series (NES) prior to their last quarter of student teaching. Students are required to pass the current Washington State assessment instrument in order to obtain WA State certification. In addition, students desiring to pursue graduate studies in education are encouraged to take the Graduate Record Examination (general).

Notes on Washington State Certification

The school attempts to provide current information on certification requirements in this bulletin. Because of frequent changes in state requirements, however, the candidate must consult with the School of Education and Psychology certification officer periodically for updated information that might affect certification status.

Meeting graduation requirements as specified in this bulletin does not guarantee state certification. An application process, including fingerprint clearance and a Dean's Affidavit regarding the candidate's fitness, and passing of the current Washington State assessment instrument is required.

Course credits more than ten years old that are used to meet initial certification standards will be reviewed by the academic department granting the credit to determine acceptability.