Master's Degree in Curriculum and Instruction
The Master's Degree in Curriculum & Instruction is the new name for the long standing Master’s Degree in Elementary Education. Approximately 75-100 teachers earn this degree each year by taking classes at one of our six locations in the Dallas and East Texas area. The program has now expanded to offer most course both face-to-face and 100% online giving students the choice of one or both venues for their studies. The program requires 36 semester hours of study: 18 hours are designated as the major and 18 hours are electives. The MED or MS in Curriculum & Instruction is designed to prepare teachers for three different levels of professional expertise:
- Those wanting additional expertise in the content and pedagogy of teaching
- Experienced teachers preparing for supervisory and leadership roles as curriculum specialists, mentor teachers, and teacher leaders
- Participants in the TAMU-C Alternative Certification (AC) program who wish to combine initial certification and the master’s degree program
Five Steps in the Admission-to-Graduation Process
Step 1. Apply for Admission
Step 2. Consider the Curriculum That Meets Your Needs
Step 3. Select Your Pathway of Study
Step 4. Contact an advisor to Obtain a Degree Plan
Step 5. Apply for comprehensive examinations and graduation
Step 1. Apply for Admission to the Graduate School
- Go to the Graduate School website to file the online application. When asked for your “planned program,” arrow down and click on “MED in Curriculum and Instruction.”
- Submit an official undergraduate transcript with a 2.75 GPA overall or 3.00 on the last 60 hours of undergraduate hours.
- Provide one of the following: proof of a current valid Texas Teaching Certificate; passing score on the ExCET or TExES, or TeCAT; acceptable GRE score taken within the last five years; or an official transcript of a completed master's degree with at least a 3.00 GPA. If you do not meet the above criteria, contact the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at 903-886-5537 for additional admission options.
You will be advised of your admission status within a few days and will receive your Campus-wide ID and Password. You will use these identifications to check you admission status, register for classes, and check your grades. Your primary contact person in the Graduate School is Rhonda_Neal@TAMU-Commerce.edu or call her at 903-886-5163.
Step 2. Consider the Curriculum That Meets Your Needs
The curriculum for the MED in Curriculum & Instruction consists of 36 semester hours of study, 18 hours of which must include courses with an ELED or EDCI prefix. There are three components to the program: common core courses (9 semester hours), support area courses (9-18 semester hours), and sufficient elective courses (9-18 semester hours) to make up the remaining 36 semester hours.
Part A. C&I Common Core Requirements (9 semester hours):
- EDCI 595 - Research Literature and Techniques
- EDCI 559 - Diversity and Equity in Education
- EDCI or ECE 538 – Classroom Management
Part B. C&I Support Area (9 - 18 semester hours)
- EDCI 500: Issues in Education
- EDCI 529: Workshop (Titles vary. Limited to one 529 in this area)
- EDCI 535: Leadership & Supervision in Elem Schools
- EDCI 597: Special Topics Course (Titles vary: Limited to two 597s in this area)
- ELED 524:* Language Arts Curriculum for Grades One through Eight
- ELED 530:* Mathematics Curriculum for Grades One through Eight
- ELED 545: Problems in Curriculum Development
- ELED 557:* Social Studies Curriculum for Grades One through Eight
- ELED 558:* Science Curriculum for Grades One through Eight
*Student completing the TAMU-C Alternative Certification Program must select 9-12 semester hours from ELED 524, 530, 557, and 558 unless exceptions are made by an advisor. Experienced teachers may select any courses listed above.
Part C. Approved Electives and/or Minor (9 - 18 semester hours).
Students completing the Alternative Certification Program may use those courses as electives in Part C. Electives must be sufficient to meet the 36 - hour minimum program for the master's degree. They may be taken within the Department or in any other department in the University providing they are at the graduate level. Electives are the choice of the student with advisor consent. Some students prefer electives in a variety of areas while others prefer to concentrate electives in studies such as ESL/bilingual, early childhood, gifted and talented, reading, secondary education, school library and information sciences, and other areas. Courses listed in Part B of the plan may also be taken as electives if not used in Part B. Consult your advisor on these and other possibilities.
Step 3. Select Your Pathways of Study
Traditional Studies. The traditional program is our long-standing master’s program whereby students may take all of their courses in face-to-face classes at any of our campus locations, take them entirely online, or combine face-to-face with online classes based on convenience to the student and/or location of the campuses. The curriculum is the same whether taken on our campuses or online. Below are the six locations that offer some or all of the classes leading to the MED in Curriculum and Instruction.
| Texas A&M-Commerce: Commerce, TX. 75429 |
Navarro College Campus: Corsicana, TX. 75110 |
| Mesquite Metroplex Campus: Mesquite, TX. 75150 |
Midlothian College Campus: Midlothian, TX. 76065 |
| Collin Higher Ed. Center (CHEC): McKinney, TX. 75069 |
Rockwall ISD Admin. Center: Rockwall, TX. 75087 |
Cohort Studies. If you are a certified and practicing teacher in Mesquite ISD, Rockwall ISD, or one of the school districts in the Corsicana & Midlothian area, you may be eligible for cohort studies whereby you take approximately 18-21 semester hours with the cohort. These courses are taught in the local school district of the cohort. Remaining courses are selected by the student and taken on any of our six campus location or entirely online. If you teach in Mesquite ISD, Rockwall ISD, or one of the ISDs in the Corsicana & Midlothian area, contact one of the advisors listed below in Step 3.
Step 4. Contact an Advisor to Obtain a Degree Plan.
Traditional Studies. Because our master’s program is available online as well as through organized classes, you are free to contact any advisor listed below or one who in the geographical area closest to you. All advisors are prepared to communicate with you immediately via email and provide degree plans.
Dr. Elton Stetson – Advises students primarily in the greater Dallas Metroplex area.
Dr. Gilbert Naizer – Advises students primarily in Dallas, Commerce, and East Texas area.
Dr. Jennifer Sennette - Advises students primarily in North Dallas, McKinney, & Collin County area.
Dr. Bill Humbert – Advises students primarily in the Corsicana & Midlothian area.
Cohort Studies. If you are interested in cohort studies and teach in Mesquite ISD, Rockwall ISD, or one of the school districts in the Corsicana and Midlothian area, contact one of the following advisors:
Mesquite ISD Cohort Program – Dr. Becky Sinclair
Rockwall ISD Cohort Program – Dr. Martha Foote
Corsicana & Midlothian Cohort Program – Dr. Bill Humbert
Once an advisor receives your email, he/she will communicate with you about your preferences and email a draft of a degree plan. If you accept the proposed plan, you will fill in the personal information at the top of the plan and send it back to your advisor. The advisor will sign the plan and send it to you to maintain in your own personal computer.
Step 5. Apply for comprehensive examination and graduation
Written Comprehensive Examination. It is important to apply for the comprehensive exam within the first week of the semester in which you plan to graduate. The department offers the comprehensive exam three times each year: fall, spring, and summer 1. The exam is a written essay covering the nine-hour core courses in Part A and core support courses in Part B of the degree plan.
The link below takes you to the web page with instructions to applying for and taking the comprehensive exam.
The Master’s Comprehensive Examination
The exam will be evaluated by faculty members and graded as Pass or Fail. If you fail, you may take the exam a second time no sooner than the next time the exam is scheduled.
Apply For Graduation. Apply for graduation during the very first week of your final semester. This is important because the deadline for applying is within the first 14-21 days of each term. The link below takes you to the web page with instructions to apply for and complete the graduation application process.
Trouble Registering for Courses?
Contact Priscilla Nichols or Maureen Preston.
The content for this web page was provided by Dr. Elton Stetson
