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Special Education, M.A.
Graduate Degree
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Program Overview Request Info Program Highlights Featured Courses Career Opportunities Admission Requirements
Program Overview

Our programs offer comprehensive experiences in special education with online and face-to-face options in the most in-demand areas of special education. Our faculty are highly credentialed, yet all possess actual classroom experience which makes them approachable and student-friendly. They offer a wealth of pedagogical and application-based learning experiences to produce special educators who are well-prepared for the demands of teaching in today’s classroom.

Here is an overview of endorsement coursework:

  • Autism – Includes an introductory course, a course in the instructional characteristics of Autism, and a practicum
  • Multicategorical Disabilities – Includes courses that cover the ways to work with those with intellectual disabilities, specific learning disabilities and emotional disturbances
  • Preschool Special Education – Includes courses in general education and early childhood education topics, plus specific special education courses in areas such as exceptional children, physically handicapped, working with families, developmental issues and assessment
  • Deaf and Hard of Hearing – Includes courses that teach American Sign Language, math strategies, applications software, and curriculum and methods for this population
  • Vision Impaired – Includes courses on reading and writing strategies, braille, math methods, and orientation and mobility skills

The autism and multicategorical endorsements also include a special education core consisting of an introduction to exceptional children, reading and math strategies, content area literacy and diagnostic clinical practices in special education.

All of the endorsements require two semesters of special education research, a course in trends and issues in special education and a seminar.

View Program Overview and Curriculum
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Program Highlights
Accreditation

The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), a member of Specialized Professional Associations (SPA), has accredited the multicategorical special education, preschool special education, and deaf and hard of hearing specializations.

On-campus or at Home

Special education graduate students may pursue their studies on the Huntington or South Charleston campus, as well as online. Some coursework is offered in a “hybrid” format that combines online and face-to-face learning.

On-Site

Teacher candidates participate in action research projects as a part of their research capstone projects. These projects are usually based in the school setting or around practical research applications.

Graduate students also participate in a variety of informal and formal clinical field experiences in the schools. This helps acclimate them into the field more successfully.

Featured Courses
CISP 520 - Intro to Exceptional Child
An introduction to the study of children who deviate from the average in mental, physical, and social characteristics, including a study of the characteristics of such children and the adaptation of educational procedures to their abilities and disabilities.
CIEC 534 - Applied Software Class Curr Area
Offers hands-on experience using applications software (databases, multimedia, spreadsheets, word processing) and explores a range of related topics for schools, including state/national standards, current trends/issues, Internet/communications technologies, and hardware accessories.
CISP 626 - Diagnostic Clinical Practices
Collaborative/consultative multi-disciplinary and curriculum-based assessment process and their use in developing appropriate interventions linking instruction to content standards and objectives.
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Career Opportunities
Special education is an in-demand field nationally. Our teacher candidates are generally offered teaching positions while in their field experiences, or often they have obtained the position and are going back to school to fulfill additional educational requirements. Our graduates have been hired by the Cabell County, Kanawha County, Putnam County, and Wayne County school districts in West Virginia. Overall, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, jobs are expected to increase 3% from 2018 to 2028. The median salary is $59,780 per year.
  • Classroom Teacher
  • Adjunct Professor
  • Specialist Roles
  • Education Tester or Diagnostician
  • Consultant
  • Instructional Coordinator
  • Behavior Intervention Specialist
  • Special Education Clinical Roles

Admission Requirements

Special Education M.A.

All applicants (including those seeking admission as professional development (certification only), should follow the admissions process described in this catalog or at the Graduate Admissions website at www.marshall.edu/graduate/admissions/how-to-apply-for-admission.

Applicants must:

  • Have an undergraduate Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.80 or higher on a 4.0 scale.
  • Meet one of the following two requirements:
    • A total of 286 on the verbal and quantitative sections of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) or
    • A raw score of at least 30 or a scaled score of 378 on the Miller Analogies Test (MAT)

Non-Education Certification Program

Students must meet all Special Education Program admission requirements. In addition to the general Special Education Admission requirements, applicants must pass the Praxis I (Pre-Professional Skills Test) in Reading, Mathematics, and Writing within their first twelve hours of coursework. The Praxis I requirement is waived for applicants with an enhanced ACT score of 26 or higher, a re-centered SAT score of 1125 or higher or if the applicant holds a master’s degree.

Current West Virginia Department of Education initial certification requirements also require a minimum overall GPA of 2.5, as well as a 2.5 GPA in the content specialization area. Candidates in the Non-Education Certification program must also meet the WVDE Praxis II testing requirements including the Principles of Learning and Teaching (PLT) test at the 5-9 or 7-12 levels.