Maine Teacher Certification Requirements

The Master of Science in Teaching Program
and Teacher Certification in Maine

 

The Master of Science in Teaching (MST) program at the University of Maine may be used as a means for students to progress toward qualifying for secondary mathematics, life science and physical science teacher certifications in Maine. Students taking MST core courses, and carefully selecting electives, will meet many of the Professional Education Requirements.

It is the responsibility of MST students desiring certification to work directly with the State of Maine Certification Office to determine all that must be done to qualify. To that end, all MST students desiring certification are encouraged to have the State Certification Office conduct an analysis of their transcripts early in their MST program of study. This process provides each student with documentation of exactly what certification requirements they have met, and which ones they must still meet.

The MST faculty will work closely with students to help them proceed toward meeting the certification requirements. Please consult with Professor Susan R. McKay (581-1019, susan.mckay@maine.edu) if you have any questions about the MST program and certification requirements.

 

New Maine Secondary Teaching Certification Requirements
(as of August 1, 2005)

 

(Mathematics, Life Science and Physical Science Certifications)

Everyone seeking secondary mathematics or science teaching certification in the State of Maine through the process of Transcript Review needs to complete the following:

  1. Application and Fee: An application for certification must be sent to the Maine Department of Education’s Certification Office along with the appropriate fee. Information is available at:

http://www.state.me.us/education/cert/cert.htm

  1. Fingerprinting: Applicants must be fingerprinted through an approved program prior to submitting the application for certification. Information is available at:

http://www.informe.org/cgi-bin/doe/fingerprint.pl

  1. Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited institution containing at least 60 credit hours of liberal arts courses. Courses qualifying as liberal arts are typically in English/language arts, science, social science, mathematics, or foreign languages. Courses in engineering, computer science, business, education, journalism, or other “professional” areas will not be counted as liberal arts courses. At least 36 of the 60 liberal arts credit hours must be in the desired certification area (see #4).
  2. Credit hours required in area of certification:
    1. Mathematics: A minimum of 24 total credits in mathematics.
    2. Life Science: A minimum of 24 total credits in life sciences.
    3. Physical Science: A minimum of 24 total credits in physical sciences.
  3. Praxis I Exam: Passing scores in Maine are: Reading (176), writing (175), and Mathematics (175).
  4. Praxis II Exam — Content: Information is available at the Prometric Testing Office, 1460 Outer Hammond Street, Bangor, Maine (contact #: 207-947-1234), or on-line at:

www.ets.org/praxis

Note:

Completing numbers one through four above qualifies a person for conditional certification in the State of Maine. The conditions inherent in this certification are the completion of the Praxis I & II exam (#5 & 6 above) and the professional requirements (#7 below). “7c” and “7d” may be waived following one year of successful teaching in your endorsement area under a valid Maine certificate. Upon completion of these additional requirements, the person would be eligible for a provisional certificate.

  • 7. Professional Education Requirements —
    1. Teaching exceptional students in the regular classroom— 3 credits— At UMaine the only option to fulfill this requirement is SED402/SED500.
    2. Teaching Methods in content area: 3 credits, including one credit or equivalent in science safety*. An approved course that teaches the student how to teach science or mathematics at the secondary level. Examples include ESC452, MAT305, MAT400.
    3. **Early and on-going experience or practicum—experiences in schools and working with students.
    4. **Student Teaching Internship: variable credits: one academic semester or the equivalent of 15 weeks which may be a combination of full- and part-time. Student teaching will be arranged by the COEHD and supervised by Center faculty.

 

*The science safety requirement is waived for students possessing at least 36 credits in chemistry.

** These two requirements may be waived for Conditional-level certificate holders.

Note:  Completing numbers one through six above qualifies a person for provisional certification in the State of Maine. A provisional certification is valid for two years. At the end of this period a teacher may be issued a professional certificate if the proper recommendation is made to the State Department of Education by a Maine approved certification support system. The professional certificate is then valid for the next five years.