Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education

National Louis University's Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education program is designed for career changers who want to work toward their Illinois Type 09 certification for teaching middle or high school, or their Type 10 certification to teach foreign language (K-12).

Consider getting your Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education degree at National Louis University (NLU) if you:

• Have a bachelor’s degree in another discipline
• Are planning to teach grades 6-12 or in the case of Foreign language, grades K-12
• Would like to get your certificate in as few as 10 months
• Want to study at a well-established teaching institution

Why NLU for Teaching Secondary Education

NLU has a long-standing reputation for its education and teacher training programs, and is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Since 1886, we’ve trained thousands of Chicago-area teachers, and continue to graduate the majority of Illinois' Golden Apple Award winners—one of the most prestigious teacher honors in the state. Our instructors bring both academic skills and practical experience to the classroom, and our students are highly qualified—creating a unique depth to NLU's Secondary Education program.

The Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education program is organized as a student-centered, standards-driven, progressive experience. Small groups of students—no more than 22—work together throughout their program. These groups are made up of prospective teachers of English, Science, Social Studies/History, Mathematics, and Foreign Language, providing students opportunities to think beyond subject boundaries, consider a variety of instructional strategies, and gain experience planning multi-disciplinary units and programs.

What You Will Learn

• How to teach middle and high school students while taking into account their unique learning styles.
• How to teach a subject well, and connect and interweave it with other fields of knowledge so students encounter ideas that cross disciplines, replicating the ways we learn as adults.
• How to work with colleagues to create experiences that invite young people to pose questions, gather information, construct meaning, share their understandings, make decisions and take action based upon what they have learned.
• How to assess and evaluate your techniques, and how to use research to enhance your teaching practices.

Successful graduates of this program will earn a Master of Arts in Teaching degree, and Illinois secondary education certification in one of the following disciplines:

• Biological Sciences
• English/Language Arts
• Mathematics
• Physical Sciences
• Social Sciences
• Foreign Languages

Career Outlook

NLU has excellent placement rates for our graduate education students, helping them find opportunities through the university's Career Development Center. NLU students are recognized by school principals as teachers who are comfortable in the classroom, can improve student performance and understand how schools are run.

Clinical Experiences

The Secondary Education department requires students to complete at least 100 hours of classroom observation in middle or high school prior to student teaching. These hours must be completed during school hours.

Admission Requirements

All applicants must meet NLU's general admission requirements. Refer to the appropriate application checklist available online at www.nl.edu/applyonline.

In addition to NLU’s general admission requirements, applicants to the Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education program must also satisfy the following:

1. Passing score on the Illinois Test of Basic Skills taken within the past 10 years
2. Passing score on the relevant Content Area test
3. 32 semester hours of coursework in a discipline to include 12 semester hours of upper division (300 level or higher) courses
4. Grade point average of 3.0 or better in the area of concentration. GPA's between 2.5 and 2.9 will be considered for admission on an individual basis
5. Applicants with a foreign language concentration must pass the ACTFL foreign language oral proficiency exam
6. Applicants with a social science concentration must submit a passing score in at least five (5) of the six (6) categories (including the area of endorsement) on the Praxis II Social Studies Content Knowledge Examination taken within the past ten years. Students who pass more than 3, but fewer than 5 categories (including the area of endorsement) will be considered for admission on an individual basis

[1] Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition.