Application Process & 1st Enrollment

Non-Degree Admission 
Students may start taking graduate courses as non-degree seeking students and apply up to 12 credits toward their Master's once they are admitted.  Many students start as non-degree seeking students while they complete the formal admissions process or establish the credentials required for formal admission. 
 
Steps 
1. Complete the Application as a Non-Degree Seeking Student and submit it to the Registrar's Office.  You can apply on-line by going to Non-Degree Application.
2. Within about a week, you will be eligible to register for courses for the upcoming term.
3. Review the individual degrees for the recommended course sequence and download the Program Plan for your degree.
4. Register for available courses required in your program on the USF online registration system called OASIS.   Courses may be taken at any campus.

Formal Admission to the Masters is based on the student's demonstrated potential for graduate work in mathematics education.  The 12 credits you complete as a non-degree student may count toward your degree.

For All Four Degree Programs, Prospective students must have
1.      A bachelor’s degree or equivalent from a regionally accredited university &
2.     Graduate School Application &
3.     Transcripts &
4.     Meet the established criteria  for the specific program (See program descriptions)

  

 

For MAT and MA Plan II students.  In addition, because they are seeking their Initial Certification candidates must have.

a. Passes all sections of the CLAST, or 
b. Achieved a verbal plus quantitative GRE General Test score of 1000 taken within five years

VIP:  We recommend that you take CLAST if you are in the State of Florida! When you contact the USF Evaluation and Testing Center, tell them you are seeking admission to the College of Education.  They will schedule you for both the computer version which is given all the time and the essay portion of the test at its next administration, once each month.

 

Do not apply for Formal Admission without GRE and CLAST.   If you have a copy of your CLAST scores report from the State of Florida include it with your application or if the scores appear on your transcript, that report of your scores will be used.  In the case of students who graduated from one of the community colleges or universities in Florida and who took the CLAST at that time, the scores may appear on your transcript.  If neither of these cases are true in your case, you will need to have your scores sent to the USF.  Do not apply for the degree program until your scores have been received at the COE Graduate Admissions Office (974-3406), or your admission will be denied and you will have to reapply.  FDOE has indicated that there are no exceptions to this policy. 

Note: All students must pass the Florida Teacher Certification Exam.  Scores must be on file at COE prior to the completion of the internship.  FTCE draws heavily from the courses recommended above.  Students who do not have course work in these fields may want to embark on an independent program of reading, even if admitted to a masters.

For M.Ed. and MA Plan I students

  Certification in mathematics  education is required.  Please submit a copy of your Florida State Teaching Certification with your application.  A temporary teaching certificate does not meet this requirement.

 

Application Steps  (This part of the process is handled by the Graduate School.)

Letters of recommendation are not required, but may be helpful for students with marginal GPAs.  

The deadlines posted in the Guide to Graduate Study are intended to ensure adequate processing time. Admission decisions are made on a rolling basis as applications become complete.

  1. Have your CLAST/GKT (MAT and MA Plan II only), and GRE  scores sent to the USF Graduate Admissions (or include a transcript with the CLAST scores or a CLAST score report).
  2. Complete the Application as a Degree Seeking student and submit it to the Graduate Admissions Office.  You can apply on-line by going to Graduate Online Application. 
  3. Have your official transcripts sent to the Graduate School Admissions Office. 
  4. Once the admissions packet is complete it is sent to COE and the Mathematics Education Program for consideration.
  5.  The Mathematics  Education Program will recommend your admission, contact you for additional information if required, defer admission until you meet the criteria, or deny admission. 
  6. The Graduate Admissions Office notifies you of the admissions decision.  
  7. If admitted, you are then eligible to register for courses for the upcoming term.
  8. Download the Program Plan for your degree and register for courses based on the recommended course sequence.  Both are available for your degree by clicking on one of the degree listed under Clickable Links.  Check the Course Availability link to plan the semesters in which you will take courses.
  9.  Register for available courses required in your program on the Internet using OASIS.  Courses may be taken at any campus.  We recommend a sequence but you may vary from that recommendation unless there is a prerequisite. 
  10. During your first semester make an appointment with your advisor to review and approve your program.  Prior to  the advising session, you should email a copy of a filled out  Program Plan that is based on your plans for taking 1, 2, or 3 courses a semester.  Once the Program Plan is approved, your individual program will only be changed for your benefit.  You are then expected to manage your program plan to completion.  Selection of electives, changes in the planned sequence of courses, and the number courses taken in a semester do not require a modification to the approved Program Plan or consultation with your advisor.

Testing

Admission Testing: The new General Knowledge Test (GKT), which is indigenous to Florida, is being developed to replace CLAST.  It will not be acceptable for admission to teacher education programs until a Florida Department of Education rule change has been implemented.  So if you have not taken the CLAST and until such time as the GKT becomes available, you must take the CLAST, Praxis or the GRE.

For Graduation: Each student should plan to take and pass the General Knowledge Test (GKT) and the Florida Teacher Certification (FTCE):  the Professional Skills Test and the Subject Area Test (social studies content) during their final internship at the latest. The one exception from this EXIT requirement is for students who took and passed all sections of the CLAST prior to July 1, 2002: These students will not be required to take the General Knowledge Test.

Test Preparation:  The Counseling Center offers test preparation sessions. Go to
http://www.usf.edu/counsel/wosvc.htm or  
call 974-2831; or
stop by SVC (Student Services) 2124. Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday (except University holidays).

Test Taking:  The USF Evaluation & Testing Service offers all required test to enter and complete a teacher education program.  Go to
 USF Testing Services or
call at 813-974-2742

Passing Scores on the CLAST are:

    Dates
    08/01/84 - 07/31/86
    08/01/86 - 07/31/89
    08/01/89 - 09/30/91
    10/01/91 - 09/30/92
    10/01/92 & thereafter    		 Essay
    4
    4
    4
    5*
    6    		 ELS
    265
    270
    295
    295
    295    		 Reading
    260
    270
    295
    295
    295    		 Math
    260
    275
    285
    290
    295

Back to Masters in Mathematics Education Degrees Home Page