Master of Arts in English, TESOL
Once an M.A. TESOL graduate has found an ESL position in a Pennsylvania school district, the corresponding school district must send on his/her behalf a special form (located on the website below) to the Pennsylvania Department of Education to inform them that he/she is eligible for an ESL Program Specialist Certificate. The school district must also state in that letter that he/she will be working at that school only as an ESL teacher. On their part, M.A. TESOL graduates applying for ESL teaching positions in Pennsylvania need to:
- Go to the website of the Pennsylvania Department of Education to check the ESL Program Specialist Application Requirements.
For more information contact:
Bureau of Teacher Certification and Preparation
Department of Education
mbargo@state.pa.us
333 Market Street
Harrisburg, PA 17126-0333
Phone: 717-787-3470
Fax: 717-783-6736
- Have their transcripts and courses approved by a designated faculty member from an institution included in the approved list of providers (see the above website) to determine whether courses at IUP meet the state requirements. If needed, our program will be glad to provide further evidence/clarification about the specific ways in which it addresses the Pennsylvania state requirements in ESL.
- If not approved, M.A. TESOL graduates will have to take more courses offered by that institution to meet the state standards.
- If an M.A. TESOL graduate wants to change jobs, i.e., move from one Pennsylvania school district to another, he/she will have to go through the entire process again since this is only an ESL Program Specialist Certificate, NOT a form of Pennsylvania state certification in ESL. The latter doesn’t exist.
For updates on these requirements, check the Pennsylvania Department of Education website.
