Santa Clara University

Master of Arts Programs

The Department of Education offers three Master of Arts (MA) programs, each with several emphasis areas to allow students to pursue their specific interests within the discipline.

Advisors: Ruth Cook, Susan Charles, Sara Garcia, Melissa Gilbert, Carol Gittens, Les Goodchild, Pedro Hernández-Ramos, and Priscilla Myers

Admission to the Master Degree Program Requires:

• Completion of Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution. International students will send undergraduate transcripts to an approved accredition agency for Bachelor degree equivalency verification. 
• Evidence of written and oral proficiency in English.
• Completion of an admission application with $50.00 nonrefundable application fee.
• Official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate courses.
• Applicants to either (a) Reading, or (b) Educational Administration are required to have a valid teaching credential.
• Letters of recommendation
• Applicants to Special Education are required to submit results from GRE or MAT.
• Acceptance by Chair/Director of the Academic Program as follows:

Special Education - Ruth Cook
Educational Administration - Pat DeMarlo
Reading - Priscilla Myers
Technology - Pedro Hernandez-Ramos

Student Classification

Applicants will be admitted to the program according to the following classifications:

Full Graduate Standing - applicants with GPA of 3.0 or higher in courses in the student's undergraduate major (or in any post baccalaureate courses) and who have completed all the necessary prerequisites may be admitted as a student with full graduate standing.

Provisional Graduate Standing - applicants with GPA below 3.0 or possessing prerequisite deficiencies may be admitted on provisional basis, but must: (a) maintain a 3.0 GPA for two quarters (or two courses, whichever comes first) (b) remove prerequisite deficiencies, and (c) have the recommendation of the appropriate graduate Program Director or Masters Admissions Committee in order to attain full graduate standing.

Note: The Presentation of a score of 1,000 or higher on the verbal and math sections of the Graduate Record Exam (taken within the last 5 years) may compensate for a low grade point average.

Enrollment without matriculation into a credential or degree-seeking program

Graduate students may be permitted to enroll for up to nine (9) hours before being accepted for admission to the graduate program. Permission of the appropriate graduate program Director or Admissions Committee is required. Enrollment in these courses may be counted toward graduation requirements following admission to the program. Admission to the degree program is required before the student is permitted to enroll in more than 9 credit hours. 

E-mail address: Upon admission to Santa Clara University, graduate students are assigned an email address (i.e., a Novell account with an "@scu.edu" extension). Students may then either (a) go to University's Information Technology Department and get a password or (b) use a preferred email (home, business). When registering for the first time for a graduate course, students must email ECP Admissions at ecpadmissions@scu.edu to let them know which email he or she prefers to use. In addition, it is the student's responsibility to notify ECP Admissions by email, whenever they change email address. This is critical for us to be able to provide information regarding registration for each quarter, information about graduation deadlines, and to share with faculty who need to contact students on their course rosters.

Leave of Absence: The Graduate Bulletin states that degree-status students who interrupt their course of studies for up to two years need not reapply on their return. However, students who are not enrolled in academic courses, but who have yet to complete their culminating project, have up to two academic quarters to demonstrate "progress" towards completion of their thesis, curriculum project, etc. In instances where students do not work towards the completion of mutually agreed upon goals, etc., faculty members may change the grade of "N" to an "Incomplete" grade for that course (491, 499 or an independent study), with subsequent consequences for the change in grade as stated in the Bulletin.