There are several paths that Rutgers students can follow to prepare for a career in secondary school teaching.
1. The Five Year Mathematics Teacher Preparation Program in the
Rutgers University Graduate School of Education (GSE) integrates the
mathematics undergraduate program with teaching preparation, leading to
a B.A. degree in mathematics, an M.Ed. degree, and New Jersey teacher
certification. Students must apply for admission (usually in the junior
year), complete a standard mathematics major, satisfy undergraduate
requirements set by GSE as well as those set by the student`s
undergraduate college, and, in the fifth year, complete additional
course work, including an additional mathematics elective, and do a
student teaching internship. The nine required mathematics courses at
the 300 to 400 level must include 01:640:300, 311, 351, 435, 436, 477,
481, and an applied math course.
2. After completing the
mathematics major, students may obtain an M.Ed. and New Jersey teacher
certification through the Rutgers GSE Postbaccalaureate Certification
Program or through postbaccalaureate certification programs at other
institutions. Application to the program may be made in the fall of a
student`s senior year or anytime after graduation. This 45-credit
program requires course work in both mathematics and education as well
as a student teaching internship, and may be pursued either full time
or part time.
Other paths to secondary school mathematics
teaching include (1) "alternate route" certification, which usually
requires a period of apprenticeship in a high school and 200 hours of
course work at a cooperating college or university, and (2) teaching
without certification in a private independent or parochial school.
Prospective teachers should contact the mathematics department and/or
the Office of Teacher Education in the Graduate School of Education as
early as possible in their undergraduate careers and should stay
informed about the rapidly evolving procedures and standards for
certification. Further information on all Rutgers teaching programs can
be obtained from GSE or from the web site http://www.gse.rutgers.edu.
