Teacher Education Program

Admission to Concord University does not guarantee admission into the Teacher Education Program (TEP). Rather, there are specific steps you must successfully complete before you can be considered for admission into the program.

Candidates must satisfy all admission requirements (see section “Educator Preparation Provider (EPP) Full Admission Requirements” on pages 2-3 of th admission packet) in order to be fully admitted into the Teacher Education Program. Failure to satisfy all requirements by the deadline provided in admission status letters will result in Teacher Education Program denial for the semester in which application was made. Candidates may re-apply for admission the following semester. Candidates must be officially admitted to the Teacher Education Program prior to taking EDUC 306, and all courses that have EDUC 306 as a prerequisite or co-requisite.

Completers of a certified Educational Technology Program (i.e. Mercer County Teacher Cadet Program) do not need to complete all sections of the Professional Portfolio. These candidates will only be required to complete the Introduction section (see page 4 TEP admission packet) of the Portfolio template that is in LiveText. In addition to the Introduction materials listed, candidates will be required to include documentation of passing NOCTI exam scores in this section of the Portfolio template. Completers of an Ed. Tech. Program are still required to satisfy Full Admission Requirements #1, and #3-#10 listed below.

Application for Admission to the Teacher Education Program

In order to be considered for admission to the Teacher Education Program, candidates are required to satisfy the following requirements: 

• 1. Successful completion of a minimum of 24-25 credit hours, which must include 18-19 hours from the General Education Program, with at least a 2.00 grade point average. The general studies courses must include the following:

• 2. Complete EDUC210,  Diversity, Culture, and Education in a Pluralistic Society, with a grade of “C” or better, and successfully complete the required twenty-five hour field based experience. Candidates transferring EDUC210 from another institution must provide documentation of a completed 25 hour school-based field experience in the form of a course syllabi stating the hours of the field practicum, a copy of the signed field practicum time log(s), or other proof of your participation in a 25 hour field practicum.

• 3. Complete EDSP303, Introduction to Special Education, with a grade of “C” or better.

• 4. Attainment of an overall grade point average of 2.50* or better in all coursework attempted (including transfer credit).
  *Note: A candidate may apply to the Teacher Education Program with an overall GPA of 2.50. However, the GPA of all the candidates who apply during the semester (cohort average) must be 3.00 or above. If the cohort average is not met, individual candidate GPAs of less than 2.75 may be removed from the cohort.

• 5. Successfully complete the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators Exams. It is highly recommended that this test is taken within the first 24 credit hours of coursework. ​ A student may obtain a waiver for the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators Exams by providing an official letter from the Registrar’s Office if one or more of the following criteria have been met. These waivers are accepted only in the state of WV.
  • Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators Combined Computer Delivered Test Code - 5751
  • Reading (Individual Exam):     Minimum score needed: 156          Computer Delivered Test Code – 5712
  • Writing (Individual Exam):      Minimum score needed: 162          Computer Delivered Test Code – 5722
  • Math (Individual Exam):          Minimum score needed: 150           Computer Delivered Test Code – 5732
  • attained, from a single administration, a qualifying score on the American College Test (ACT®) or Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT®) or Graduate Record Examinations (GRE®) as listed below:
    • A composite ACT test score of 26 or higher
    • A score of 1125 on the re-centered SAT using the combined Verbal and Math score (effective for exams taken March 2005-April 2016)
    • A score of 1170 on the revised SAT using the combined Critical Reading and Math score (effective for exams taken May 2016-present)
    • A  GRE combined score of 800 verbal and quantitative (prior to November, 2011), or at least a score of 286 (November, 2011 – the present)
  • hold a valid out-of-state certificate in the content area
  • hold certification through the NBPTS
  • hold or have held a West Virginia Professional Certificate
  • hold a master's degree from an accredited institution of higher education

• 6. Declaration of a specific and accurate major and content specialization(s) the Registrar's Office 

• 7. Successful completion of all Pre-Admission to Teacher Education Program seminars. Students will receive a Certificate of Completion for each seminar. These must be included in the Professional Portfolio.

• 8. Pre-professional Snapshot-Candidates will complete a pre-professional snapshot before applying to TEP. The snapshot will be a part of the co-selection process which occurs prior to candidate placement in the public school. Schools will be provided the candidate snapshots and teachers will select the candidate for their classroom. The co-selection process enables all parties to be a part of the placement. The biographical snapshot will be a work in progress for the candidate. It will be updated periodically throughout the candidate’s progress through the program.

• 9. Completion of an Educator Disposition Assessment (EDA) by a Department of Education faculty member. This is typically completed during EDUC210, EDSP303 or EPaT. For those students who did not have an EDA completed during these courses, one will be required to be completed by a Department of Education faculty member prior to full admission. Candidates are required to include the signed EDA statement (page 7 of the TEP admission packet) in their portfolio.

• 10. Completion of the “12-Item Grit Scale” by the candidate via LiveText. This is completed during EDUC210. For those students who did complete this during EDUC210, it will be made available to students via the ‘Forms’ tab in LiveText the first working day in October during the Fall semester, or the first working day in March during the Spring semester.

• 11. Candidates must complete 75 hours of documented experience working with school age children/youth in organized/structured settings prior to admission to the Teacher Education Program. Appropriate experiences might include: Scouts, 4-H, Energy Express, tutoring in after-school or summer programs, camp counselors, coaching, library read-aloud, etc. The 75 hours of experience must be documented through signed letters on official letterhead from teachers, supervisors or leaders. This documentation must provide a description of what the volunteer hours entailed, the dates and/or time-frame in which the experience(s) was completed, and the total number of hours completed. All documentation must be included in the candidate’s portfolio when they apply for admission to the Teacher Education Program. The 75 hours are in addition to any required field practicum hours.

• 12. Submit a professional portfolio via LiveText to the Department of Education (see below– How to Submit a Portfolio via LiveText). In some cases, applicants may have to complete an interview with faculty prior to admission. Portfolios will be due to the Department of Education via LiveText the last working day of September during the fall semester, and the last working day of February during the spring semester. Candidates whose portfolios are not approved will be given recommendations for improving their portfolios, or will be counseled concerning their admission to the teacher education program.