Rose Rudnitski, Ed.D., Dean

Mary Ellen Hoffman, M.S., Associate Dean for Administration

Eric Martone, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Academic Affairs

DEPARTMENT OF CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Elena Nitecki, Ph.D., Chair

DEPARTMENT OF SECONDARY EDUCATION

Terri Lynn Germain-Williams, Ph.D., Chair

DEPARTMENT OF LITERACY AND MULTILINGUAL STUDIES

JungKang Miller, Ph.D., Chair

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP

Esther Wermuth, Ed.D., Chair

DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION

Christine Lang, Ph.D., BCBA-D Chair

All initial certification programs are nationally recognized by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and the Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP).

Education Programs

B.S./B.A. and M.S. Programs

The Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Arts and Master of Science Degree Programs are academic programs that allow students interested in the teaching profession as a career choice to earn both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in an accelerated venue. Through this special program, qualified students who major in psychology or behavioral science can receive teacher certification in Early Childhood or Childhood Education, and students who major in biology, English, mathematics, or history can receive teacher certification in Adolescence Education.

A key feature of these programs allows students to take up to 15 graduate education credits during their junior and senior years, and these credits can be used toward satisfying their bachelor’s as well as their master’s degree requirements. Combining undergraduate and graduate degree programs streamlines the teacher preparation program and enables students to achieve teacher certification on an accelerated basis, reducing the time and cost needed to earn a master’s degree. In addition, the multiple career options offer students the opportunity to acquire skills and credentials in several teaching specialization areas, thus increasing their employment potential in schools that need teachers to fill multiple and flexible roles.

Teaching Certification in New York State

In order to become certified as a teacher in New York State, candidates are required to achieve qualifying scores on the Educating All Students test (EAS), and the Content Specialty Tests (CST), in the area of each certificate being requested. A final exam, the edTPA is developed and submitted as part of the student teaching experience. Although five-year candidates are not required to take these tests prior to admission into the graduate program, interested applicants may contact the School of Education for additional clarification regarding this process. As of the fall 2016 semester, all candidates seeking to be admitted to the master level of the five-year program will need to take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Praxis Exam and submit their scores as part of the admissions to the School of Education. Candidates are encouraged to take the GRE no later than the fall semester of their senior year.

Admissions Requirements

To be accepted into a B.S./B.A. and M.S. Education program, a student must:

Be a high school graduate who has earned a New York State Regents Diploma with an 85 average or better
and
Place at ENGL 111  and MATH 115  or MATH 116  according to the program requirement.

Students must have an earned associate degree in Liberal Arts with an overall GPA of 3.0. Students must maintain a GPA of 3.0 each semester at Mercy College to remain in the Five-Year Program, and must adhere to the above requirements. An interview is also required.

If students do not qualify under the above admission criteria, they may still apply to the program upon completion of the 60-credit General Education requirement and completion of at least 15 credits in their major field of study with a GPA of 3.0 or better. Thirty credits must be taken in residency at Mercy College.

To remain in the Five-Year Program, a student must:

1. Maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 each semester at Mercy College.
2. Register for an introductory 3-credit graduate education course in the second semester of their junior year, or upon completion of 70-75 undergraduate credits with a B or better average.
3. Register for 12 credits in graduate education courses in the senior year.
4. Take the GRE no later than senior year and complete an application to the Graduate School of Education.

Please note that all graduate course descriptions as well as specific teacher certification parameters can be found in the Mercy College Graduate Catalog.

Additionally, all matriculated Mercy College students are required to demonstrate an appropriate level of achievement in each of the six college competencies to ascertain that they can communicate clearly and effectively both orally and in writing. They must also demonstrate their ability to use critical thinking and established methods of computation and use of contemporary technology. This early identification of potential areas of weakness enables students to monitor their progress in developing these skills. As part of this process, students have available to them the full resources of the College’s academic support services, including the Career Planning and Placement, and one-on-one tutorials with faculty.