Requirements for Graduation and Licensure

In order to graduate and receive licensure, a student will be required to demonstrate:

• A willingness and ability to positively impact students’ learning and development as demonstrated through field experiences and clinical practice assessments conducted by program faculty and clinical educators.
• An understanding of the expectations of the profession, including codes of ethics, professional standards of practice, and relevant laws and policies by completing the Educational Studies program requirements and all required assessments.
• An overall GPA of 3.0. or higher in the program, a requirement determined by the Tennessee Board of Education.
• An understanding of professional knowledge by passing the Praxis® Core Academic Skills for Educators, Praxis subject tests for each area of endorsement sought, and all other relevant Praxis tests required by the state.  Passing Praxis scores are determined by the Tennessee Board of Education and can be found on the ETS Tennessee requirements webpage.
• Knowledge of the profession during the clinical practice (i.e., Student Teaching) as indicated by passing edTPA scores. Passing edTPA scores are determined by the Tennessee Board of Education and can be found on the Tennessee edTPA website.

Each student is required to submit a licensure application to the Tennessee Department of Education in the first week of May following the successful completion of the Clinical Practice (EDUC 660). Additional graduation requirements include a successfully defended master’s thesis and the completion of all program coursework.