Admission Requirements

Requirements for All Graduate Education Programs

Bachelor's Degree

All applicants must hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution recognized by the State of Illinois.

GPA in Undergraduate Studies

Generally, applicants must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) for consideration. However, in special circumstances applicants with lower GPAs may be considered for the MAE and MATC programs if they score well on the GRE or MAT exams. In addition to cumulative GPA, MATC candidates must have a GPA of 3.0 in their major classes for Illinois Teacher Certification

Application

All applicants for graduate programs in education complete the same online application.

Recommendations

All applicants for graduate programs in education must submit three professional letters of recommendation through the online application. For MAEL applicants, one of these letters must be from your current principal.

Transcripts

All applicants must supply official transcripts from all colleges and universities they have attended. A transcript is only considered official if it is an original copy, sealed by the institution and sent directly to North Park University at this address:

North Park University Admissions
3225 W Foster Avenue, Box 19
Chicago, IL 60625

Interview

Graduate program applicants may be required to sit for a personal interview with the School of Education Admissions Committee.

Additional Requirements for the Master of Arts in Education with Teacher Certification

The Illinois State Board of Education requires all candidates for teacher certification to have passed the Illinois Basic Skills Test or the Test of Academic Proficiency (TAP). You may also now submit the ACT in lieu of the Basic Skills or TAP. Please call or email with questions pertaining to the ACT.

Additional Requirements for the Master of Arts in Educational Leadership Program

To assist future principals in meeting Illinois state requirements for principal preparation programs, the School of Education has designed a two-phase admissions process for this master of arts in educational leadership program (MAEL). In Phase One, candidates for admission must meet all of North Park's standard admission requirements for graduate education programs (above), have at least four years of teaching experience on a valid and current Illinois certificate/license, and show evidence of having passed the Basic Skills Test or TAP.

If you successfully pass Phase One of the process, you'll enroll in EDUC 6030: Educational Leadership, the first course of the MAEL program, meeting three Saturdays in July. During this course, your instructors will work with you to develop an Admissions Portfolio that will demonstrate how you successfully meet the requirements for Phase Two admission, which are designed to prepare you for the State of Illinois for principal endorsement and include:

• An updated resume
• Evidence of leadership roles and descriptions of your impact on your classrooms, school or district, or constituents served
• Demonstration of at least four years of teaching experience on a valid and current Illinois certificate/license, with demonstrated student growth within two of the last five years
• An in-person interview with full-time faculty members in the School of Education and representatives from partner schools and districts
• An on-site written response to a scenario presented by the interviewers

Questions? Request more information about the MAEL program and requirements.