Today, we have about 1,800 undergraduate students and 900 graduate students within our six academic departments, each featuring different curriculum, faculty, and degree opportunities. We have about 65 full-time faculty members and 30 clinical and adjunct faculty members.

The College offers:

• Bachelor’s degrees in elementary, secondary, and special education
• Postbaccalaureate teacher certification
• Master’s and doctoral degrees in education

Working with other colleges, the College of Education is responsible for the vast majority of teacher education on campus. We prepare special educators, school and rehabilitation counselors, school principals and superintendents, and leaders for K-12 and higher education.In recent years, there has been a national call for increased scientific-based research in education. Research is a valuable part of our agenda, and we recognize that a formidable college will include a wide range of scholarship and research — from insight-based, fundamental research to engineering-focused programs of research and development.As we contribute to the national debate about education research and investigate solutions to pressing problems of practice, we find that the plea for greater emphasis on research is consistent with our values and mission.

Diversity

More than 40 percent of Arizona’s public school students represent ethnic minorities, while only about 14 percent of the state’s teachers are from minority groups. At the UA College of Education, however, about one-third of the teacher preparation students are from minority groups.

Our UCATS program is a model for teacher preparation for the country. Here’s how it works: In the semester before student teaching, students take all of their methods courses at a local school. The courses are taught by both clinical and regular faculty members. This not only orients students to the field in which they will eventually work, but it also gives them the opportunity to apply what they are learning in a real classroom with real children. What this means is that teacher candidates will have spent a whole year in a local public school by the time they graduate.