Santa Clara University

Master of Arts Programs

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

Advisors: Susan Charles, Sara Garcia, Melissa Gilbert, and Pedro Hernández-Ramos

For Admissions Questions Contact: ecpadmissions@scu.edu

Admission to the Master Degree Program Requires:

• Completion of Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution. International students must submit 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 Educational Administration are required to have a valid teaching credential.
• 3 Letters of recommendation.

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 students with full graduate standing.

Provisional Graduate Standing - applicants with GPA below 3.0 or possessing prerequisite deficiencies may be admitted on a provisional basis, but must: 

1. Maintain a 3.0 GPA for two quarters (or two courses, whichever comes first) 
2. Remove prerequisite deficiencies
3. 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 a 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 a leave of absence form must be submitted to the Graduate Services Office in person. If a leave of absence is requested after registration has occurred, the student is responsible for dropping all classes through eCampus in addition to filing for the leave. A leave of absence will be granted only for a specified period of time and normally not for more than one year. A leave of absence is not required for those students who do not attend summer quarter.