Post-Baccalaureate Secondary Education Teacher Certification

Go to information for Education  for more details.

Department Contact:

Director: Mrs. Melissa Peppetti, mpeppetti@francis.edu, 814-472-3068

Program Description:

The post-baccalaureate teacher certification program is designed for individuals who hold a bachelor’s degree and seek to qualify for Pennsylvania state teacher certification at the secondary level (grades 7-12). 

Certification Areas:

The Graduate Education department offers six content-specific areas of study in cooperation with the content area departments. Each leads to its own certification with required courses and Praxis exams:

• Biology
• Chemistry
• English
• Mathematics
• Social Studies
• Spanish (Go to Post-Baccalaureate Spanish, Teacher Certification  for information on the Spanish K-12 certification.) 

Estimated Completion Time:

Typically 2+ years of part-time study

Admission Requirements:

Applicants must provide the following:

• Online Application and $30 application fee made payable to Saint Francis University;
• Two letters of professional recommendation;
• A minimum undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 is required. If candidate’s GPA is less than 3.0; he or she may be accepted on a provisional basis while taking up to nine (9) credits. The student must obtain a minimum GPA of 3.0 in the first nine credits to be admitted to the program. If these requirements are not met the student will not be admitted to the program.
• Official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate course work completed.

Admission Deadline:

The program has rolling admission.

Progression and/or Retention Criteria:

• A minimum average of 3.0 must be maintained throughout the program. If a student falls below the 3.0 requirement he or she will be placed on academic probation for the next semester. Student’s continued eligibility in the program will depend on the GPA in the semester following the low GPA. If the student’s GPA does not go above the 3.0, after being placed on probation, the student is subject to dismissal from the program.
• Students must complete required clinical observations for each of the courses requiring clinical hours.
• Student must successfully complete the student teaching in the content area.
• Successful completion of required Praxis tests.

Note:

See Education  for information on student teaching, student learning outcomes for pre-service teachers, certification information, and more.

Total Credits Required:

• Biology, post-baccalaureate teacher certification = 97 credits
• Chemistry, post-baccalaureate teacher certification = 90 credits
• English, post-baccalaureate teacher certification = 78 credits
• Mathematics, post-baccalaureate teacher certification = 84 credits
• Social Studies, post-baccalaureate teacher certification = 99 credits