Special Education Academic Requirements

Special Education Academic Requirements

Admissions Requirements for Students in the College of Education

As of September 2015, all undergraduate students who have not already successfully completed phase I coursework must fulfill new program entry requirements in order to take any upper level education courses. Program entry requirements include:

  1. GPA of 3.0 (The Dean's office may grant permission for a student to enter the program with a GPA below 3.0, but all students must achieve a 3.0 to qualify for certification.)
  2. Passing score on (or SAT, ACT, GRE waiver)
  3. Successful completion of all phase I coursework with a grade of B- or above*

*Students will complete phase I courses in the College of Education to meet the new program entry requirements.

New GPA requirement

Effective fall 2016, ALL candidates for teacher certification, graduate or undergraduate, must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0.

New Praxis Core requirement

  • The State of New Jersey is requiring teacher candidates to pass the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators test in math (test #5733), reading (test #5712), and writing (test #5722). Passing scores on the tests are 150, 156, and 162, respectively. You can register for the tests at . Additional information, including how to prepare for the tests, can be found .
  • The CORE must be taken and passed prior to entry into an educator preparation program.

Note: This requirement is waived for candidates with scores of at least (as stipulated by the NJ Department of Education):

  • SAT:
    • Math 540, Reading 560 (if taken between 4/1/1995 to 2/28/2016)
    • Math 570, Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 610, or Reading Section 30 (if taken on or after 3/1/2016)
  • ACT: Math 23, English 23
  • GRE:
    • Quantitative 720, Verbal 530 (if taken before 8/1/2011)
    • Quantitative 156, Verbal 155 (if taken on or after 8/1/2011)

This requirement is also waived for candidates who successfully completed all phase I coursework before September 2015 with a grade of B- or above.

New matriculation requirements for graduate students seeking teacher certification

  1. GPA of 3.0 (The Dean's office may grant permission for a student to enter the program with a GPA below 3.0, but all students must achieve a 3.0 to qualify for certification.)
  2. Passing score on (or SAT, ACT, GRE waiver) and Content Area Praxis

Students may take up to 6 graduate credits before matriculating into a graduate program.