Early Childhood Education, Interdisciplinary - Teacher Residency (MAT)

This program was approved for students entering the university in the Summer 2024–Spring 2025 catalog year. For more information about catalog year, go to Catalog Year Information.

Master of Arts in Teaching in Interdisciplinary Early Childhood Education, Teacher Residency
Unit: College of Education and Human Development
Department: Special Education, Early Childhood and Prevention Science
Academic Plan Code(s): IECEMAT

Program Information

The program emphasizes in-depth academic preparation and field experiences that allow teachers to be knowledgeable about the field of early childhood/special education and to develop critical thinking and lifelong learning skills. The program emphasizes:

• Nurturing students as active agents in their own learning
• Authentic, performance-based assessment of teaching and learning
• Meeting the needs of all students
• Responding constructively to socio-cultural differences among students

The program prepares students interested in working with children from birth to age 5 in a wide variety of settings - day care centers, public and private preschools, community programs, and clinics. This program gives students authentic experiences with infants, toddlers, and preschool children in the areas of curriculum development, typical and atypical child development, programs and services for children and their families, family involvement and intervention, screening and assessment, program administration, current topics, and practicum/action research.

The Teacher Residency program is designed to assist local school districts in meeting the demand for a diverse cadre of qualified teachers. Residents are enrolled in a one-year MAT program at the University of Louisville while employed with JCPS as a resident. Candidates receive personalized instruction throughout the process to help them succeed in the classroom. Candidates selected for the Louisville Teacher Residency (LTR) program commit to teach in accelerated improvement schools (AIS) for five years.

 Admission Requirements

Candidates who meet the following criteria may be eligible to apply to the Master of Arts in Teaching, Teacher Residency program. Candidates considering an application to the MAT program should contact the MAT admissions counselor (teacher@louisville.edu) prior to applying for admission. Admission is competitive.

Candidates who meet minimum academic requirements are not guaranteed admission to the program:

1. Application to Graduate School. This should be completed three to four weeks prior to the application deadline.
2. Bachelor's Degree from Accredited College or University with a Minimum 2.75 Grade Point Average (official transcripts required)
3. Grade of C of higher in ENGL 102 (or equivalent)
4. Oral Communication course
5. TOEFL/IELTS/Duolingo
6. Professional Statement
7. Three Letters of Recommendation
8. Signed Professional Code of Ethics/Technology User Agreement/Statement of Understanding of Admissions Guidelines
9. Acceptable interview with school district

Program Requirements

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EDAP 604 is taken twice during the program and is a course taught by district and school level personnel.

Mid-Point Assessment: Satisfactory dispositions assessment; 3.0 cumulative GPA in course work above with no lower than a "C" in each course; all prerequisites met; successful completion of EDTP 651, EDTP 652, and EDTP 654; electronic documentation of 200 hours of diverse and approved field experiences; satisfactory performance on all Hallmark Assessment Tasks; Target performance or better on all rubrics.

Certification Assessment:  Satisfactory dispositions assessment; passing scores on PRAXIS content and PLT exams; completion of degree requirements.

Degree Assessment: All program course work with 3.0 cumulative GPA (and no more than two grades of "C" grades in degree courses); satisfactory performance on all Hallmark Assessment Tasks; Target performance or better on all rubrics.

Praxis Disclaimer: Teacher certification requirements are subject to change. Before registering for certification test(s), please refer to the Education Profession Standards Board (EPSB) website at www.epsb.ky.gov or www.ets.org/praxis for current requirements.

Degree Candidacy: Students not enrolled during the semester in which they intend to graduate must register for degree candidacy as outlined in the Graduate Catalog. 

The Master of Arts in Teaching in Interdisciplinary Early Education (IECEMAT) prepares students to meet the requirements for certification and/or licensure.  If you plan to pursue professional licensure or certification you should first determine your state’s criteria for examination and licensure to see how/if our program meets those requirements prior to enrollment. We recommend that you also contact your state’s licensing board directly to verify that the requirements have not changed recently and to answer any questions especially those regarding additional requirements beyond the degree. 

More information about certification or licensure is available at the following website:  https://louisville.edu/oapa/licensure-information (you may search by school or by the name of the program then click on 'View Details' to display the information).

For programs with an online option, more information about certification or licensure is available here: https://louisville.edu/online/About-Us?tab=disclosures.