I’m a junior right now, just transferred from a small private school in FL to a large public school in KY. I want to be a high school teacher, so secondary education is my focus major.
ACT: 33
GPA: 4.67 uw, 3.9ish w
AP tests: 4 on European History (old vhool didn’t offer APs to freshmen, and only that one to sophomores)
AP classes: European History, Physics, Gov, Lang. Plan on taking Calc, Studio Art, APUSH, Lit, and either Spanish or psychology.
All honors classes besides electives
NHS/beta club, Spanish National Honor Society. Old school- cheer (football, basketball, competitive), 4 plays, Spanish Club. This year- peer tutoring, Quick Recall, maybe the winter play.
A few colleges I’m looking at: Vanderbilt, U of KY, U of Louisville, Princeton (it’s a reach, but why not?), U of Portland, and Centre.
I can’t really figure out what I’m doing here, and I change my mind about these a lot. Ideas on colleges that might be a good fit?
Ask your teachers where they went. There are usually well recognized teaching colleges in each state. How much can your parents pay?
Your list is pretty good.
Your college of choice should be strong in the field you want to teach in. This can be your undergraduate major. Beyond this, the availability of a minor in education studies will help you get some early and valuable experience in the actual field of teaching. A master’s in teaching will then solidify your education.
Your choice of an undergraduate college, then, will be fairly open, and can be based on considerations such as whether you want to be in the city or the country and on whether you would prefer a university or a purely undergraduate focused environment. For some possibilities in the Northeast, consider the NESCAC colleges, Vassar, Bryn Mawr, Haverford and Swarthmore.
Teaching licenses are regulated by the states. Although you can transfer a license from state to state, it’s a pain in the you know what. Decide which state you want to teach in and go to school there.
@bouders: Couldn’t that decision be made when contemplating where to pursue a master’s degree? I get the impression that the OP wants their college search to be geographically broad.
People change their minds in the course of 4 years. Many students interested in teaching have not know people in the full range of professions-they know teachers and can imagine themselves teaching. Many better schools don’t have “education majors” although they may have graduate programs in education. Choose schools you feel will provide you with the environment and learning opportunities you want and that offer a broad range of majors–which you have already done. Good!
My mom is single and doesn’t make very much (third shift). I have a job on the weekends, but it’s mostly to supplement school costs more than anything.
Then apply to colleges that meet “full demonstrated need.” For these colleges, your academic work will be more important than your family’s financial circumstances.
It is fine to apply to reaches, but you should also apply to some of these schools that fall away from the top of the rankings. These are all quality schools.
You should also apply to a few schools that offer guaranteed scholarships for your stats as well.
http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com
You will need a major like math, history, English, physics, etc and then you can add your teacher certification classes.
Thank you for the tips! I’m applying to the Governor’s Scholars Program right now too, which could help a lot. If I make it, I’ll probably be staying in state.
@merc81 Teacher preparation programs are generally undergraduate programs and OP has said she wants an undergraduate education program. It can be difficult for a brand new teacher with a masters to be hired - they’re more expensive on the payscale.
It depends on the state - some require secondary teachers to have a “regular” major and then add a 1-one professional master in teaching/education.
Wherever you go, keep your debt coming out of school (undergraduate and graduate) low; you don’t want to be paying off loans for decades on a teacher’s salary.
Vandy is a great option for you – #1 education school (USNews) and meets full demonstrated need (and admissions are need blind). Placement outside of TN will not be an issue.
Your list looks good.
Centre is expensive, but they seem to give a lot of aid.