The Master of Arts in Teaching requires 30-33 credits of course work. The MAT includes four core courses (12 credits); the remaining 18-21 credit hours depend on the concentration selected by the student.
Core Courses
- Exceptionalities
- Managing Student Behaviors
- Fundamentals of Education
- Psychological Foundations of Learning
Full Concentrations
Early Childhood Education (33 credits)
After completing all coursework and state licensure requirements, this concentration allows you to teach language arts literacy, mathematics, science, computer and information literacy, and social studies in preschool through grade three classrooms.
Elementary Education (30 credits)
After completing all coursework and state licensure requirements, this concentration allows you to teach language arts literacy, mathematics, science and social studies in grades kindergarten through six, and to teach reading, writing, arithmetic, and spelling, for basic skills purposes only, in grades six through 12.
Secondary Education (30 credits)
(Certification areas: Art, Biological Science, Chemistry, English, Family and Consumer Science, French, Mathematics, Music, Physics, Social Studies, Spanish, and Theater)
After completing all coursework and state licensure requirements, this concentration allows you to teach the subject matter of your endorsement (e.g. English) and only that subject at all grade levels. In practice, you will likely teach your subject in departmentalized grades 5 – 12.
Special Education (30 credits)
(concentration is best suited for already-licensed teachers)
This concentration allows you to teach students classified with disabilities in your content and/or grade level endorsements. You may provide consultative services and supportive resource programs including modification and adaptation of curriculum and instruction to students with disabilities in general education programs in grades preschool through 12. This sequence is ideal for those who have already earned a teaching license and are seeking an MAT with a special education concentration. Upon approval from the NJ Department of Education, currently licensed teachers will be eligible to earn a NJ Teacher of Students with Disabilities endorsement upon completion of the MAT.
Stand-Alone Certificates
Teacher of Students with Disabilities Certificate (21 credits)
This 21 credit certificate sequence will earn the student a Rutgers certificate in Teacher of Students with Disabilities and the candidate will also be eligible to earn a NJ Teacher of Students with Disabilities (TOSD) endorsement through the NJDOE upon completion. The sequence can stand alone as the student’s only program as a means to add the TOSD license on to an existing teaching license, or it can serve as a dual program to a student’s initial concentration in Early Childhood, Elementary, or Secondary Education.
Teacher of English as a Second Language (ESL) (15 credits)
This 15 credit certificate sequence will earn the student a Rutgers certificate in teaching English as a Second Language and the candidate will also be eligible to earn a NJ Teacher of English as a Second Language (ESL) endorsement through the NJDOE upon completion. The sequence can stand alone as the student’s only program as a means to add the ESL license on to an existing teaching license, or it can serve as a dual program to a student’s initial concentration in Early Childhood, Elementary, or Secondary Education.
Teacher of Bilingual/Bicultural Education (12 credits)
This 12 credit certificate sequence will earn the student a Rutgers certificate in Bilingual/Bicultural Education and the candidate will also be eligible to earn a NJ Teacher of Bilingual/Bicultural endorsement through the NJDOE upon completion. The sequence can stand alone as the student’s only program as a means to add the Bilingual/Bicultural license on to an existing teaching license, or it can serve as a dual program to a student’s initial concentration in Early Childhood, Elementary, or Secondary Education.
Supervisor Certificate (12 credits) – COMING SOON!
Beginning SPRING 2025, this 12 credit certificate sequence will earn the student a Rutgers certificate in Supervision and the candidate will also be eligible to earn a NJ Supervisor endorsement through the NJDOE upon completion. The sequence is for candidates who already hold a NJ standard instructional license.
Clinical Practice Requirements and Deadlines:
Students must apply for the fieldwork courses (Clinical Practice 1 and Clinical Practice 2) by February 1 in order to continue with courses in September (Fall semester). The program will secure the placement location for the student.
Students must also complete the following (in any order):
- NJ DOE approved basic skills assessment –NJ Basic Skills Requirement
- Praxis II in desired licensure area (More information about the Praxis exams can be found at the ETS website.) *Praxis II can be taken prior to CORE, if desired.
- OPI for World Language Candidates
- Current NJ Substitute license
Candidates seeking an initial certificate of eligibility with advanced standing must also pass the Commissioner-approved performance assessment prior to earning certification.
“The reason I love the Rutgers-Camden MAT program is because of the blend of academic theory and real-world practice that is provided. The professors all have years of experience in the teaching field and their dedication to our learning experience makes it clear that they want us to succeed in our future careers as teachers.”
– Devon Stokes, MAT Graduate