Master in Teaching with Secondary Certification

Completing the Master in Teaching program along with meeting state requirements leads to a master’s degree and a Washington State Residency Teacher Certificate with a Secondary (5 – 12) Endorsement in one of the following areas:

• Biology
• English Language Arts
• History or Social Studies
• Mathematics

If you have a degree in a different Washington State University supported-endorsement subject, we may be able to accommodate, email Academic Coordinator at van.education@wsu.edu with your unofficial transcripts for an evaluation. 

The Master in Teaching with Secondary Certification program has an emphasis on social justice. The overarching program goal is to create a collaborative environment that supports all students and offers a foundation for professional growth.

Admission requirements

Bachelor’s degree

• Admission is selective and requires a minimum 3.0 undergraduate GPA (per Graduate School policy) in a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution.
• This degree needs to fulfill the coursework requirements for an approved endorsement area (biology, English language arts, history, mathematics or social studies) and be approved through a transcript evaluation (see below).

Testing

• Take a basic skills test ACT/SAT/WEST-B (all sections—mathematics, reading and writing) per Washington state teacher certification requirements. There is no preference for one test or another, and no minimum score required; old scores can be submitted. Scores must be on file at WSU Pullman at the time of application.
  • If ordering SAT scores, visit the College Board website and use school code: 4705.
  • If ordering ACT scores, visit the ACT website and use school code: 4482.
  • If registering for the WEST-B, select the State of Washington and WSU Pullman to receive official test scores.
• You must also pass the content knowledge test (either an NES or WEST-E test) for the specific endorsement area and submit scores by Dec. 1 of the application year. All test scores must be sent to WSU Pullman.

Experience with children

Supervised experience with K-12 children is required, experience with children in grades 5-12 is preferred. Public school classroom experience is preferred, babysitting/nannying is not acceptable. Contact Academic Coordinator at van.education@wsu.edu to discuss whether your experiences qualify. Documented experiences must be completed by the time of application and must have occurred within three years of the program start date.

Application deadline

The priority application deadline is Sept. 15 each year. The MIT Secondary program begins once a year in January.

Admission requires a transcript evaluation. Email Academic Coordinator at van.education@wsu.edu stating which endorsement (see list above) you want to pursue, along with all transcripts showing courses that may fulfill admission prerequisites (unofficial transcripts are sufficient). Evaluations may take four to six weeks. To ensure transcript evaluations are complete before the priority application deadline, submit before July 1.

Email Academic Coordinator at van.education@wsu.edu for the application link, once the transcript evaluation has been returned. Only applicants who are within two courses (approximately six semester credits) may apply to the MIT Secondary program.

Program structure

The program begins annually in January (spring semester). It involves a minimum of 40 semester hours of certification courses including a year-long field experience. This program does not allow time for full-time employment. You will need to be available during the weekday for field-based work in local schools and in the evenings for in-person WSU classes.

Spring semester schedule (first semester in program):

• Classes are usually offered 5:45 – 8:30 p.m. Monday – Thursday, with potential school-day observations required for one or more classes during the semester.

Summer semester schedule:

• Classes are scheduled across the whole summer term (early May – late July), with most classes offered twice a week during the day or late afternoon.

Fall semester schedule:

• Fall classes are usually offered 5:45 – 8:30 p.m. Monday – Thursday.

• Teacher candidates spend two full school days a week at their placement school for their pre-internship.

Spring semester schedule: 

• Teacher candidates spend five full days per week (Monday – Friday) at their placement school for their student teaching internship.

Summer semester (final semester in program):

• Teacher candidates complete MIT 702: Final Master's project to complete the MIT degree requirements. This course has one in-person presentation in mid-June.