Science Education

Secondary Certification

How do I gain certification to teach secondary science? The information below is intended to answer this question, but remember that you must select one science area (from among biology, chemistry, physics, and earth/space science) as your area of specialization. Please see the specific guidelines for science coursework background. Certification may be completed at either the undergraduate or graduate level at the UGA main campus in Athens, or at the graduate level through the Program for Alternative Certification in Secondary Science at the Gwinnett campus.

Note: Secondary science certification is preparation for teaching science in grades 6 through 12. This is a subject matter specific certification and is not the same thing as Middle Grades certification.

Secondary Science Certification
at the UGA main campus

Downloadable PDF version

Step 1 - Gaining admission to the science education program at UGA to pursue certification

Undergraduate students – If you wish to learn about the nature and amount of coursework required to pursue a BSED degree program in science education, you may contact Dr. Steve Oliver at 706-542-1763 or soliver@uga.edu for an initial consultation or you can examine the advising sheets for each of the four subject matter areas in which certification is offered. Click on the name of the subject matter area to see the advising sheet: biology, chemistry, physics, earth/space science. However, in order to be admitted to the degree program, you must contact the Student Services Office in Room 122 Aderhold Hall (http://www.coe.uga.edu/students/) prior to being admitted and formally advised in the Science Education Program. (See undergraduate programs information at http://www.coe.uga.edu/mse/science/programs/undergrad.html) Undergraduate advisement for the science education undergraduate program will be conducted by the staff in the Office of Student Services.

There are certain entrance requirements that must be met prior to full admission to the science education program. These entrance requirements include: (1) Completion of the General Education requirement in the BSED program; (2) Passing score [or exemption] on GACE Basic Skills I; (3) Overall GPA of 2.50 required for admission to science education courses; (4) Completion of CHEM 1211, CHEM 1211L, CHEM 1212, CHEM 1212L, and MATH 2200, MATH 2200L with a grade of "C" or better. NOTE: A grade of "C" or better must be obtained in all content specialization courses for teacher certification. Receiving a grade of C- (C minus) is NOT satisfactory.

Graduate students - Call the Science Education Program (706-542-1763), stop by the Office (212 Aderhold Hall), or send email to schedule an initial consultation meeting with the Graduate Coordinator, Dr. David Jackson, djackson@uga.edu. At this initial meeting, you will have an opportunity to discuss your interest in science teaching and to confirm that you have met (or will meet) the entrance requirements for admission to Science Education as a Master's degree or Non-Degree student.

In order to take course work toward certification and/or a graduate degree, you must be admitted to the UGA Graduate School (http://www.gradsch.uga.edu). Contact the Graduate School to obtain an application and information regarding related requirements. (See masters programs information at http://www.coe.uga.edu/mse/science/programs/masters.html). You may apply as either a master’s degree or non-degree student. Make the decision as to which is best for you in consultation with the science education program faculty.

Step 2 - Admission to Science Education

For undergraduate students to attain admission to the science education program, you should download the Admission form from this website and complete it. Please return the completed form either electronically or printed to Ms. Valerie Kilpatrick (valkil@uga.edu) in Rm. 105 Aderhold. The application form is required for securing the Permission of Department (POD) for admission to the Block I courses in Science Education. For graduate students your admission to graduate school is sufficient, you do not need to specifically apply for admission to the program. The other issues covered in this section apply to graduate students just as they do to undergraduate students.

Next you must complete a criminal background check. You do this by making application to an off-campus firm that completes this process. Faculty and staff of the University of Georgia are NOT informed of the results of the background check. When a student teaching or practicum placement is requested for you at a specific school, a copy of the criminal background check will be forwarded to that school as part of their information packet about you. You can learn more about the process for completing the criminal background check at: http://www.coe.uga.edu/students/admission.html

Next, please read the information on the Field Experience website regarding student teacher liability insurance. http://www.coe.uga.edu/students/liability.html. You are covered for liability insurance when participating in any practicum or student teaching experience that is part of a science education course. The coverage, provided by the state of Georgia, is for $1 million of liability coverage. (NOTE: If you are placed in a non-public school, or in a school not in Georgia, you will not be covered by this insurance.). Other liability insurance policies are available from professional organizations for teachers such as Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) or its student affiliate (SPAGE). Insurance from these professional organizations may provide additional coverage. Investigate these options at both the website named above as well as the websites of the professional organizations listed on that page.

GACE basic skills

You must also fulfill the GACE basic skills examination requirements prior to admission to the Science Education (ESCI) courses. For more information examine the website at: http://www.gapsc.com/documentation/basicskillsinfo.asp

The Basic Skills assessment is designed to assess knowledge and skills in the areas of reading, mathematics, and writing. The assessment is composed of three tests—the reading and mathematics tests each consist of selected-response questions; the writing test consists of selected-response questions and a constructed-response assignment.

Students may exempt the GACE basic skills assessment based on scores from the SAT, ACT, or GRE tests. Sum you verbal and mathematics scores – there is no minimum verbal or mathematics score. If the sum of those composite scores is above the following minimum scores then you are exempt from GACE basic skills:

SAT exemptions: minimum combined verbal and mathematics score of 1000
GRE exemption: minimum combined verbal and quantitative score of 1030
ACT exemption: minimum combined English and mathematics score of 43.

Step 3 - Advisor Assignment

Undergraduate students: You will be advised in the Office of Student Services.

Graduate students: When you are admitted by the Graduate School you will be assigned an advisor in Science Education. You will receive official notification of acceptance from the Graduate School, but you will also subsequently receive a letter from the Department of Mathematics and Science Education regarding your admission and your advisor assignment. The advisor will work with you to design a plan and maintain progress toward completion of either the degree or certification (see http://www.coe.uga.edu/mse/science/programs/index.html). You should meet with your advisor on a regular basis. You may make appointments by telephone or through email correspondence.

Step 4 - Completion of Pre-Professional Experience and Admission to Block I

The Block I courses are the first formal educational experience in the Science Education program for students seeking teacher certification. These courses are offered in both fall and spring semester. In order to take the Block I courses, a student must have completed most of the science subject matter content courses required for their degree or certification requirements. Some of these courses may be taken concurrently with Block I courses. Typically admission to the Block I courses will be denied if there is more than one science course that is required for certification that has to be completed after Block I.

Prior to admission into the Block I courses you must submit the form labeled Statement of Completion of Pre-Professional Experience with Children and an essay described therein. The purpose of this requirement is to ensure that all prospective teachers have had some experience in formal education settings working with children. This essay will be read by the secondary science faculty when they are making the admission decisions for the Block I courses. The form and essay are to be submitted to Ms. Etta Roberts in Room 212 Aderhold. Statement of Completion of Pre-professional Experience with Children

Step 5 - List for Block I

Upon turning in your materials (Admission to Science Education, Criminal Background check, Statement of Completion of Pre-Professional Experience) you should request that Ms. Etta Roberts add your name to the list of students wishing to enter the Block I courses for the upcoming semester. This action will place your file among those that will receive committee review and consideration for admission into Block I.

Step 6 - Registration for courses in Block I

During pre-registration, you will be notified of your admission to enroll in the Block I courses. Enrollment in Block I courses is by Permission of Department (POD). If permission to enroll is not granted at that time, you will be notified of how to meet the requirements for admission to Block I. If you are completing the science education certification through the UGA main campus, you must take all of the courses within a block at one time. The courses for Block I include: ESCI 3450, 4450/6450, and 4460/6460. The courses for Block II include: ESCI 5460/7460, 5470/7470, and 5480/7480.

Step 8 - Registration for courses in Block II

During your Block I enrollment you will be requested to complete forms to indicate placement preference with regard your Block II student teaching/internship. Enrollment in Block II courses is by Permission of Department (POD). Notification of the school site for these placements is done by email from the Educational Field Experiences Office in Aderhold Hall.

Step 9 – Other tasks to be completed

During or before your Block II internship you should also plan to sit for the appropriate GACE Content Assessment. See the Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators website for additional information - http://www.gace.nesinc.com/. You must choose the appropriate GACE content assessment for your certification. Contact program faculty in science education if you need assistance in determining which GACE assessment is correct for the certification you are completing. The GACE assessment in each of the four science areas requires that you take both a content knowledge and content essays test. NOTE: The science education program does not offer broad field science certification, but students who are working toward Earth/Space Science certification take the Science GACE test. In all other science certification areas, prospective applicants for certification must take the subject specific GACE test (Biology, Chemistry, or Physics).

Other Information

The College of Education has the following policies related to being eligible to receive a student teaching/internship assignment (http://bulletin.uga.edu/). A student must:

have at least a 2.5 overall grade point average;
have completed the prerequisite education courses related to the major with a grade of at least C in each (courses in curriculum and teaching procedures must have been taken on this campus);
have completed essentially all required courses in the content specialization with a grade of at least C (a C minus is not sufficient) in each;
make an application for a student teaching placement through the Educational Field Experience Office by the end of the first week of classes in the semester preceding the student teaching/internship semester;
have completed the form provided by the science education program faculty regarding hindrances to placement and desired sites for school placement;
have successfully completed the school practicum during Block I;
be in satisfactory personal health to assume responsibility in student teaching; and
have completed a criminal background check.

NOTE: A student is not permitted to student teach while on court ordered probation.

Science Education

Secondary Certification

Secondary Science Certification at the UGA main campus

Secondary Science Certification
at the UGA main campus