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Admissions Requirements - Special Education/Childhood Education

Admissions Requirements

  • Free Online Application - The application includes a 300 word essay.
  • Official Bachelor's Degree Transcript. Unofficial or in progress transcripts are acceptable to begin the admissions review process. Applicants will be expected to have a 3.0 undergraduate GPA. Applicants with less than a 3.0 undergraduate GPA will undergo additional review.
  • Test Scores:
    • Initial Certification (without an education background): All applicants will be required to submit Graduate Records Examination (GRE), Millers Analogies Test (MAT), or ACT or SAT test scores.
    • Professional Certification (education majors): All applicants will be required to submit Graduate Records Examination (GRE), Millers Analogies Test (MAT), or Academic Literacy Skills Test (ALST) test scores.
  • Two Letters of Recommendation. Letters can be personal, professional or academic references.
  • Evidence of teaching certification (not required for initial certification candidates in the on-campus program)

Program Start Dates: New graduate students are admitted three times a year: Spring (January), Summer (May-June) and Fall (late August). There are no deadlines for applying, we operate on a rolling admissions basis. 

  • Applications are processed on a rolling basis
  • We recommend submitting all application materials 30 days prior to the start date for the term you wish to begin.
  • Earlier application is encouraged for international students, including Canadians, in order to complete VISA requirements necessary prior to enrollment. 

Additional Requirements for International Students

  • Canadian and other international applicants must provide a completed Certification of Finances Form. 
  • International students who have completed university coursework outside the U.S. and Canada are required to have their transcripts and degrees evaluated by a foreign credential evaluation service such as World Education Services (WES) 
  • TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score, IELTS (International English Language Testing System) score, or a CAEL (Canadian Academic English Language) score. 

TOEFL: 79 IBT or 550 PBT
IELTS: 6.5 overall
CAEL: 70 overall

  • Students from Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa are waived from the language proficiency requirement.
  • Student who completed a 4 year degree (on campus) at a U.S. college/university are waived from the language proficiency requirement.

All items can be mailed, faxed or emailed to:

Canisius College
Graduate Admissions Office - Lyons Hall 120
2001 Main Street 
Buffalo, NY 14208

Fax - 716-888-3290

Email - gradadm@canisius.edu 

Questions? Contact Us at 1-800-950-2505 or 1-716-888-2545

If you have been an inactive student for two years or more, please complete a Re-admit Form.