MASTER OF ARTS IN TEACHING

NATURAL SCIENCE

I. Purpose

This program is intended to serve students who have not obtained initial professional certification, and who wish to prepare for careers in secondary school teaching in more than one natural science field. Programs will be individually struct ured in consultation with a committee in order to accommodate students with diverse needs and backgrounds. Provision will be made for students who have not completed all of the undergraduate prerequisites for the program.

II. Admission

A. The applicant must meet the following general requirements for admission to the MAT program:

1. Submission of a complete application to University of South Carolina Graduate School.

2. Admission to the graduate school on the basis of satisfactory Graduate Record Examination scores.

3. Graduation from an accredited college,

4. Minimum undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale.

5. The applicant shall not have obtained or qualified for initial professional certification in any state.

6. Acceptance by the College of Arts and Sciences and by the College of Education.

B. Undergraduate natural science prerequisites for the program are as follows:

1. Introductory Biology (1 year)

2. Introductory Chemistry (1 year)

3. Introductory Physics (1 year)

4. Physical Geology or Physical Geography

(1 year in one or one-half year in each)

A student who lacks these prerequisites must arrange to complete them, together with any prerequisite mathematics, before proceeding to advance work in these areas.

III. Graduation Requirement

Before the M.A.T. degree is awarded, the student must have 12 hours of undergraduate credit beyond the introductory level in one of the four natural sciences comprising the content area for the degree. If these hours are not already part of the student's undergraduate record, they may be earned during the course of study leading to the degree.

IV. Degree Requirements

A. The student must meet the basic requirements for the M.A.T. degree:

1. Completion of at least 48 hours or credit in graduate courses, half of which must be at or above the 700 level. Teaching content area courses may make up 15-24 hours of total, with the remaining hours in Education. List of Education Courses Required for MAT

2. Candidates must have completed the requirements for a Class 1 professional certificate in teaching area and in professional education (24 credits including undergraduate and graduate work). Specific Education requirements are listed on the attached page.

3. A thesis may be submitted in lieu of six semester hours of course credit.

4. A formal evaluation will be conducted by the student's committee during the semester when other requirements will be completed.

B. The advisory committee will meet with the student at the beginning of his course of study to plan a program which must include graduate work in at least three of the following area:

1. Biology (including Marine Science)
2. Chemistry
3. Geology/Geography (listed as Natural Science)
4. Physics

In structuring the program, the student and his advisory committee will give careful consideration to:

1. The overall coherence of the program and the desired balance in teaching areas,

2. The candidate's current academic background and related teaching experience of the candidate,

3. His/her professional needs as a classroom teacher, and

4. Undergraduate deficiencies.

The committee will give final approval to the program.

Professor Jeff Wilson
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Telephone (803) 777-4650 or FAX (803) 777-3065
or e-mail jwilson@sc.edu

MAT Education requirements

Back to Degree Programs
Back to Physics and Astronomy