Teacher Certification & MAT Program in Education

Financial aid eligibility requires that the student be

1.  matriculated,

2.  enrolled for a minimum of 6 credits,

3.  in good academic standing,

4.  a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen.

Teacher Certification (Undergraduate and Post-baccalaureate)

The CCSU teacher certification and pre-certification programs are administered by the Department of Teacher Education in the School of Education and Professional Studies located in Barnard 277. Individuals who wish to become teachers in Connecticut's public schools are required by state law to be licensed (certified) by the State of Connecticut prior to employment.

Undergraduate students:  Who complete their teacher certification requirements along with their bachelor degree program are awarded financial aid as determined by their FAFSA.  This aid is awarded according to eligibility and class status.

Post-baccalaureate students: seeking teacher or other certification must be accepted into Graduate Studies but only on a non-degree status.

The U.S. Department of Education requires that financial aid awarded be the same as for a fifth-year undergraduate student. This means the student is eligible for Federal Direct Stafford Loans up to $12,500 for the academic  year.  The amount of the loans are limited to the remaining balance of the aggregate not used as an undergraduate. 

The student is also eligible to apply for the Direct Graduate Plus Loan.  To apply for he Plus Loan go to www.studentloans.gov.  Even though enrolled as a graduate student, the Direct Stafford Subsidized Loan will continue to be awarded to the post-baccalaureate students in a certification program if eligible. 

Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) 

This program is designed to offer high-quality, full-time, degree-bearing teacher preparation to expedite preparation to teach in specified academic areas.  The 13-month program begins in late May each year and ends the first session of summer school the following year.  The student must complete two FAFSA applications - one for the 2012 summer school term and a second for the 2012-13 academic year. 

 Financial aid consists of the following:

Direct Stafford Loans: 

The maximum available is $10,250 for Summer 2012 and $20,500 for the 2012-13 academic year.  These loans are automiatically awarded and do not require an applicaton other than the FAFSA.  Degree-seeking graduate students are eligible only to receive Direct Stafford Unsubsidized Loans effective July 1,2012.

 

Graduate Plus Loan:  

The student must apply for this loan at www.studentloans.gov.  The total amount of the loan may not exceed the assigned cost-of-attendance (COA) budget less all other financial aid posted.  The Cost of Attendance budgets are:

Summer 2012 - $12,550 and  Fall 2012/Spring 2013 - $29,800 in-state; $40,376 out-of-state; and $32,364 NERHE.  Financial aid is not availble for Winter 2012.

 

Teach Grants

are offered only to students in the MAT program for up to $4,000 each year for a maximum of $8,000.  This grant may revert to becoming a Stafford Unsubsidized Loan if the student does not complete the requirements as set forth by the U.S. Department of Education.  Visit the Federal Teach Grant home website at www.teach-ats.ed.gov.

TEACH Grant Program

Through the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, Congress created the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Program that provides grants of up to $4,000 per year to students who intend to teach in a public or private elementary or secondary school that serves students from low-income families.

Request a TEACH Grant

To request a CCSU TEACH Grant, complete the TEACH Grant Request Form found on our Forms web page. If you answer "Yes" to all questions, submit the completed form to the Financial Aid Office.

Student Eligibility Requirements

To receive a TEACH Grant at CCSU, you must:

• Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), although you do not have to demonstrate financial need.

• Be a U.S. Citizen or eligible non-citizen.

• Be enrolled in a credential or graduate program leading towards teaching in a public or private elementary or secondary school that serves students from low-income families.

• Be enrolled in coursework that is necessary to begin a career in teaching or plan to complete such coursework. Such coursework may include subject area courses (e.g., math courses for a student who intends to be a math teacher).

• Meet certain academic achievement requirements (generally, scoring above the 75th percentile on a college admissions test or maintaining a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25).  

• Sign a TEACH Grant Agreement To Serve (ATS)

• Complete the Entrance Counseling Requirement.

Conditions

There are conditions to receiving this grant that are not placed on other grants. Please make sure you understand these conditions prior to receiving the money.

In exchange for receiving a TEACH Grant, you must agree to serve as a full-time teacher in a high-need field in a public or private elementary or secondary school that serves low-income students. As a recipient of a TEACH Grant, you must teach for at least four academic years within eight calendar years of completing the program of study for which you received a TEACH Grant.

IMPORTANT: If you fail to complete this service obligation, all amounts of the TEACH Grants that you received will be converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan. You must then repay this loan to the U.S. Department of Education. You will be charged interest from the date the grant(s) was disbursed.

• High-Need Field

• High-need fields are the specific subject areas identified below:

• Bilingual Education and English Language Acquisition

• Foreign Language

• Mathematics

• Reading Specialist

• Science

• Special Education

• Other identified teacher shortage areas as of the time you begin teaching in that field. These are teacher subject shortage areas (not geographic areas) that are listed in the Department of Education's Annual Teacher Shortage Area Nationwide Listing.  

Schools Serving Low-Income Students

Schools serving low-income students include any elementary or secondary school that is listed in the Department of Education's Annual Directory of Designated Low-Income Schools for Teacher Cancellation Benefits.

Teach Grant Agreement to Serve

Each year you receive a TEACH Grant, you must sign TEACH Grant Agreement To Serve. The TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve specifies the conditions under which the grant will be awarded, the teaching service requirements, and includes an acknowledgment by you that you understand that if you do not meet the teaching service requirements you must repay the grant as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan, with interest accrued from the date the grant funds were disbursed. Specifically, the TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve will provide that:  

• For each TEACH Grant-eligible program for which you received TEACH Grant funds, you must serve as a full-time teacher for a total of at least four academic years within eight calendar years after you completed or withdrew from the academic program for which you received the TEACH Grant.

• You must perform the teaching service as a highly-qualified teacher at a low-income school. The term highly-qualified teacher is defined in section 9101(23) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 or in section 602(10) of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act.

• Your teaching service must be in a high-need field.

• You must comply with any other requirements that the Department of Education determines to be necessary.  

IMPORTANT REMINDER

If you receive a TEACH Grant but do not complete the required teaching service, as explained above, you will be required to repay the grants as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, with interest charged from the date of each TEACH Grant disbursement. If you are not already committed to teaching a high-need subject in a low-income school, please use caution when considering this possible source of funds. According to some estimates, only 20 percent of students who participate in the TEACH Grant Program will be able to use the funds as grants, while many students will see their funds converted to loans with accumulated interest.