Canisius College

Applicants who have an undergraduate QPA below a 2.7 may be required to meet additional requirements in order to provide evidence of their ability to be successful in graduate studies. These requirements may include the GRE, GMAT or MAT.

Portfolio Development
In designated courses throughout the program of study,candidates will complete specific assignments which reflect the conceptual framework of the School of Education and Human Services and the standards established by specialized profession­al associations and, for teacher candidates, the principles of the Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium. These assignments, which include both content and reflection components, must be assembled into a portfolio which will be evaluated at specific transition points throughout the program and must be successfully completed prior to graduation.

Summary Assessment System
The faculty of the School of Education and Human Services have adopted a unit-wide assessment system which requires the evaluation of candidates at five transition points: 1) entrance to the program; 2) prior to Field Experience I; 3) prior to Field Experience II; 4) after Field Experience II; 5) prior to program graduation. Program directors can provide program-specific information describing the requirements which must be met at each of these transition points.

Teacher certification
Candidates must complete a master’s degree in order to obtain professional certification. This master’s degree must either lead to an additional certification or extension or include at least twelve credit hours which combines pedagogy with an academic discipline. Unlike permanent certification, the professional certificate will be a five-year renewable certificate. During each five year period, the holder of a professional certificate will be required to complete 175 hours of professional development activities in order to renew the professional certificate.

All students who complete a certification program apply for certification through Canisius College. The college will endorse your certification(s) and forward your application to the State Education Department. Candidates who complete registered, approved programs do not apply through B.O.C.E.S.

New York State has adopted a new certification application process, TEACH, that is completely on-line. Candidates who meet certification requirements in their program may go on-line to the New York State Education web page and from there create an account in TEACH. TEACH directions are available from the School of Education and Human Services Graduate web site.

In certain cases, a candidate may require a letter from Canisius College stating that all certification and/or master degree requirements have been met. This is usually for employment purposes. Candidates requesting a letter may go to the School of Education and Human Services Graduate Education web site and fill out the necessary information. Please note that a two week notice is required for all letters.

Canadian (Ontario) students apply for certification (temporary letter of standing) directly to the Ontario College of Teachers (O.C.T.). The College of Teachers requires each candidate who has studied outside the Province of Ontario to obtain the endorsement of the sponsoring N.Y. institution. The Canisius College certification officer will provide a letter to O.C.T. for each student who has completed all certification requirements. Dual citizens (U.S. and Canada) are required to first obtain N.Y. certification before receiving Ontario certification. Also, candidates applying for N.Y. certification must possess either a 4-year bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree to obtain N.Y. certification. Holders of a 3-year bachelor’s degree must complete the entire master’s program before N.Y. will issue teacher certification.

Beginning March 1, 2007, all Canadian (Ontario) students will be required to actually obtain N.Y. certification before O.C.T. will issue a teaching credential. This policy is consistent with Ontario’s ‘long standing’ policy that if a person leaves the province to study to become a teacher, that person must complete and obtain certification in the jurisdiction in which he/she studied. O.C.T. will no longer require a letter from the institution, only a valid N.Y. state teaching credential will be accepted. Therefore, beginning in 2007, Ontario students will follow the same procedure as U.S. students in applying for certification, including finger print clearance.

Note to Canadian students
Canadian students cannot take courses offered by distance education
(Web-based courses) that are part of the initial teacher education program.

Transfer credits
No more than six credits of graduate coursework will be accepted in transfer from other institutions. The grades must have been at least “B” and must have been earned within the five-year time limit for completion of degree requirements. All transfer credits must coordinate with the candidate’s program of study at Canisius College, as approved by the program direc­tor. Any exceptions to the above may only be made with the approval of both the program director and the associate dean.

Credit by examination
Individuals who are applying for admission or who are presently in attendance may obtain credit for previously completed examinations sponsored by the College Level Examination (CLEP) of the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) or by the New York State College Proficiency Examination Program (CPE). The minimum acceptable grades for these exams are “Pass” for exams graded Pass/Fail and “C” for exams with letter grades. On exams graded on a standard score scale of 20 to 80, the passing score varies from 40 to 50 depending on the subject area. Candidates must consult with the appropriate dean for permission to use any credit by examination toward their graduate degree or certification requirements.

Probation and disqualification
Receipt of a grade of “D” will result in probationary status. A second grade of “D” will automatically disqualify a candidate from the master’s degree program. A candidate whose grade point average drops below a 3.0 will be placed on probation and will be dismissed from the master’s degree program if their over­all grade point average is below a 3.0 in two consecutive terms.

State examinations
Applicants for initial certification must pass the Liberal Arts and Sciences test (LAST), the Assessment of Teaching Skills-Written (ATS-W) and the appropriate Content Specialty Test(s) (CST). For professional certification, a candidate must complete a master’s degree within three years and teach successfully for three years. The professional certificate is a five-year renewable certificate requiring completion of 175 hours of professional development every five years.

Time limitation
A candidate must complete all master’s degree requirements within five years. Exceptions to this policy must be approved by the director and chair of the appropriate program as well as the associate dean.

Instruction in child abuse; prevention of school violence; fingerprinting
New York State requires that all persons applying for an initial or professional certificate or license in the areas of administra­tive or supervisory service, classroom teaching service, and school service complete two clock hours of coursework or training on the identification and reporting of suspected child abuse or maltreatment. In addition, all new candidates for certification must attend a mandatory two-hour course on the prevention of school violence and must also submit fingerprints for law enforcement clearance.

Fingerprint packets are available in the Graduate Education Suite, Horan-O'Donnell Room 014. Starting March 1, 2007 Canadian (Ontario) candidates will also follow this procedure.