A Combined Degree program enables undergraduate students to enroll in graduate courses in their senior year, which can be counted towards the completion of both their Bachelor's and Master's degree requirements. The ability to take these "swing courses" allows students to earn both their Bachelor's and Master's degrees in a shortened period of time, typically within five years. Undergraduate students interested in this option can find more information regarding program requirements on the University's Combined Programs website.
The Combined Degree with Dual Certification program is a 5-year program that leads to teacher certification in Elementary School Teacher in Grades K-6, teacher certification in Teacher of Students with Disabilities, a baccalaureate degree and a master’s degree. Interested students must apply to and be admitted to the Teacher Education Program as an undergraduate. Students must successfully complete the undergraduate portion of the program in order to be admitted to the Graduate School and complete the one-year master’s portion of the program.
Please visit the Teacher Education Program website for the required undergraduate professional sequence of courses, overall course outline, and other important Program requirements, guidelines, and procedures. Students also are strongly advised to review the Teacher Education Program Handbook.
120 credits of coursework is required for the baccalaureate degree with a minimum 3.0 overall GPA. Major GPA requirements differ depending on field of study. Consult the Teacher Education Program Handbook for more information.
Degree Requirements Overview
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| New Student Seminar | 1 | |
| SEEDS General Education Requirements | 15-18 | |
| Major Requirements | 36 | |
| Teacher Education Program Requirements (including Graduate swing courses) | 51 | |
| Free Electives | 17-14 | |
| Total Credits | 120 | |
Major Requirements
Requirements for the graduate portion of this combined program can be found here.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Family and Child Studies Core | ||
| FSHD 101 | Introduction to the Content Areas in Family Science and Human Development | 3 |
| FSHD 248 | Family Life | 3 |
| FSHD 304 | Research Methods for Studying Families and Human Development | 3 |
| FSHD 315 | Community Engagement | 3 |
| or FSHD 316 | Service-Learning Experiences with Families and Children | |
| FSHD 418 | Working with Diverse Families and Children | 3 |
| FSHD 445 | Poverty and Families | 3 |
| Developmental Core | ||
| FSHD 214 | Child Development I | 3 |
| FSHD 314 | Child Development II: Adolescence | 3 |
| PSYC 101 | Introduction to Psychology | 3 |
| Major Electives | ||
| Complete 9 credits of any available FSHD courses. | 9 | |
| Total Credits | 36 | |
Teacher Education Program Requirements
New Student Seminar
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Students in the Adult Learner program must take GNED 100. | ||
| Complete one course from the following. Some courses may be restricted by major. Consult with an academic advisor. | 1 | |
| Pathways to Success | ||
| Freshman Seminar in Chemistry | ||
| First Year Seminar | ||
| Adult Academic Success Seminar | ||
| New Student Seminar | ||
| Freshman Seminar in Health and Physical Education | ||
| Pathways to Adult Learning | ||
| New Student Seminar | ||
| New Student Experience for Mathematical Sciences | ||
| Freshman Seminar for Music Majors | ||
| Introduction to Nursing | ||
| Freshman Seminar in Political Science and Law | ||
SEEDS General Education Requirements
Click here for a list of courses that fulfill the SEEDS requirements.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Foundations | ||
| Effective Writing I | ||
| Complete one Effective Writing I course. | 3 | |
| Effective Writing II | ||
| Complete one Effective Writing II course. | 3 | |
| Interactive Communication | ||
| Fulfilled by FSHD 141 in the major. | ||
| Quantitative Reasoning | ||
| Fulfilled by MTHM 201 in the Teacher Education requirements. | ||
| Political and Civic Life | ||
| Fulfilled by ECEL 200 in the Teacher Education requirements. | ||
| World Language | ||
| Complete two sequential classes in one World Language when starting at the Beginner I or Beginner II level. Complete one class when starting at the Intermediate/Advanced Level. | 3-6 | |
| Exploration | ||
| Complete one course from four different Exploration categories: | 6 | |
| Analyzing Cultures and Societies | ||
| Fulfilled by FSHD 101 in the major. | ||
| Creative Expression | ||
| Ethical Inquiry | ||
| Historical Thinking | ||
| Literary and Artistic Analysis | ||
| Fulfilled by READ 209 in the Teacher Education requirements. | ||
| Scientific Reasoning | ||
| Total Credits | 15-18 | |
Recommended Roadmap to Degree(s)
This recommended five-year plan is provided as an outline for students to follow in order to complete their degree requirements within five years. This plan is a recommendation and students should only use it in consultation with their academic advisor.
Fifth year courses are taken at the graduate level, after matriculation into the graduate portion of this combined degree program.
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| FSHD 101 (Fulfills SEEDS: Exploration 1 – Analyzing Cultures and Societies) | 3 | FSHD 214 | 3 |
| FSHD 114 | 3 | FSHD 248 | 3 |
| New Student Seminar | 1 | SEEDS: Effective Writing II | 3 |
| Effective Writing I | 3 | SEEDS: Exploration 3 | 3 |
| FSHD 141 (Fulfills SEEDS: Interactive Communication) | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
| SEEDS: Exploration 2 | 3 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| ECEL 200 (Fulfills SEEDS: Political and Civic Life) | 3 | MTHM 201 | 3 |
| FSHD 314 | 3 | READ 209 (Fulfills SEEDS: Exploration 4 - Literary and Artistic Analysis) | 3 |
| FSHD 304 | 3 | FSHD 202 | 3 |
| SEEDS: World Language 1 | 3 | SEEDS: World Language 2 or Free Elective | 3 |
| ANTH 105 | 3 | FSHD 315 | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| FSHD 418 | 3 | ECEL 375 or CGST 250 | 3 |
| MTHM 302 | 3 | ECSE 305 | 3 |
| READ 399 | 3 | ECEL 408 | 3 |
| ECEL 279 | 3 | FSHD 445 | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| ECSE 339 | 3 | ECSE 523 | 3 |
| READ 408 | 3 | ECSE 536 | 3 |
| ECEL 427 | 3 | READ 515 | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 2 |
| 15 | 14 | ||
| Total Credits 120 | |||
| Fourth Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summer | Credits | ||||
| ECSE 580 | 3 | ||||
| ECEL 691 | 3 | ||||
| ECSE 508 | 3 | ||||
| 9 | |||||
| Fifth Year | |||||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | ||
| ECEL 502 | 3 | ECEL 504 | 3 | ||
| ECEL 510 | 3 | ECEL 511 | 6 | ||
| ECSE 542 | 3 | Comprehensive Examination | |||
| 9 | 9 | ||||
| Total Credits 27 | |||||