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English

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Got questions? Connect with one of program coordinators to make sure you have the information you need to pursue your future as a teacher.

English Program Prerequisites

Applicants for the English program must demonstrate specific criteria to be accepted, such as a relevant undergraduate degree, certain coursework or experience, and GPA requirements.  

 Non-US Graduates: Review the graduate school’s application requirements for specific information about comparable degrees in your country and which academic documents are required. 

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Earn a Relevant Undergraduate Degree

Applicants need to have (or have completed by June of the year they enter the program) a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited U.S. institution or a comparable degree from an international institution with a major or a minor in one or more of an area associated with the certification area. 

These include: 

  • English 
  • Comparative literature 
  • Linguistics 
  • Theater & Drama 
  • Other areas available upon review- (e.g., media studies, journalism, gender studies, African studies, social sciences) 

To discuss your eligibility or to send us a statement and a copy of your transcript, email Danny Miller at dmiller38@wisc.edu

Demonstrate Competency in Relevant Content Domains

Prior to admission, applicants must demonstrate competency within certain areas of their chosen subject. This may be demonstrated through coursework or significant life experiences. 

Language 

  • Applying language to fit a variety of audiences and purposes 
  • Study of the structure or history of language, typically found in linguistics 
  • Exploring the interrelatedness of language arts, including reading, writing, speaking, listening, creating, and responding to media 

Writing/Composition 

  • Writing as a recursive thinking process (e.g., pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, publishing, and presenting) 
  • Writing, speaking, and creating media for a variety of audiences and purposes 

Literature 

  • Literature is broken into genres and connects to the world around us 
  • The breadth of literary exposure includes culturally rich and diverse (broadly speaking) representative works of major writers that can span Classic, Contemporary, and Futuristic genres from the United States and around the world 

Achieve Academic Standards and Qualification Benchmarks

Applicants must demonstrate academic and content competency through coursework, examination, or a portfolio of evidence. 

  • For admission to Graduate School, a minimum undergraduate grade-point average (GPA) of 3.00 on the equivalent of the last 60 semester hours (approximately two years of work) or a master’s degree with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 is required. 
    • If this benchmark is not met, the program may request special approval for a candidates 
    • It may be necessary for the candidate to take a standardized test such as the GRE, ACT, or SAT 
  • To be eligible for certification, candidates must have a GPA of 3.0 or above within their content area. 
    • If this benchmark is not met, 
      • the student would need to pass a content exam, or 
      • prepare a portfolio of evidence showing their competency in the content domains 

English Proficiency

Every applicant whose native language is not English or whose undergraduate instruction was not in English must provide an English proficiency test score. Your score must be from within two years before the start of the admission term. The language of instruction at the college or university level and how recently the language instruction was taken are the determining factors in meeting this requirement. 

 Non-native English speakers must also show adequate instructional verbal skills, by conducting an interview with a representative of the ESL instructional team. 

Applicants may be exempt if: 

  • English is the exclusive language of instruction at the undergraduate institution. 
  • You have earned a degree from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university within five years of the anticipated semester of enrollment. 
  • You have completed at least two full-time semesters of graded coursework, exclusive of ESL courses, in a U.S. college or university, or at an institution outside the U.S. where English is the exclusive language of instruction. Completion of graded coursework cannot be more than five years before the anticipated semester of enrollment. 
  • An exemption is contingent on the secondary education program’s discretion.

TOEFL scores must be submitted electronically via ETS. IELTS scores can be submitted electronically or by paper. Our office address is: 

UW-Madison Graduate School, Office of Admissions 

232 Bascom Hall, 500 Lincoln Drive  

Madison, WI 53706 

Get the Added Value of a Dual Certification/ESL Certification

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Our program is infused with a philosophy that teachers must be able to engage and value all students in the classroom. Our approach allows you to work with a wide range of students that engage in US public schools. For the secondary content areas, this also includes skills and techniques to work with students learning English, including the opportunity to earn a dual English as a Second Language (ESL) Certification along with your content. This certification increases your potential impact as a teacher and gives you a competitive advantage in the job market.