Education Certification

The Education minor affords Fairfield University undergraduates the opportunity to earn an initial Connecticut teaching certificate at the secondary level. Students who plan to teach in secondary schools will major in the subject area that they plan to teach and take the required education courses as the education minor. The majors that can be combined with the education minor to lead to secondary certification are: English, History, Politics, Economics, Sociology, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Modern Languages and Literatures (concentrations in French, Spanish, or German).

Application to the Secondary Education Minor

Applications for admission to the education minor may be obtained from the Director of Secondary Certification Programs, Dr. Sandra Billings. Early application to the minor is recommended. While students may complete a maximum of six credits in education coursework before formal admission to the minor, they cannot continue past this point until they have been formally declared by the director.

To be declared as an education minor, students fulfill the following criteria:

1. Possess an overall minimum GPA of 2.67
2. Pass or waive the Praxis I testing requirement
3. Submit an application
4. Submit an essay addressing why they want to be a teacher
5. Provide two letters of recommendation
6. Submit a declaration of minor form
7. Submit a planned program sheet
8. Interview with the Director of Secondary Certification Programs and the Director of Student Teacher Placement.

To waive the Praxis I requirement, a student must have a minimum SAT score of 1100, with verbal and mathematics sub-scores of 450 or higher. Note: For students who took the SAT prior to April 1, 1995, the overall required SAT score is 1000, with a score of at least 400 in both sub-tests.

The certification program culminates in a required student teaching experience in the spring semester of the senior year. Students must complete all coursework and student teaching as well as pass the appropriate PRAXIS II or ACTFL content test(s) before they will be considered certification program completers or receive an institutional endorsement for state certification.

Please see the College of Arts and Sciences general catalog for course requirements and specific information about the education minor program.