M.A. Mathematics Education - Teachers College or Pitt?

[jd065]

I was recently accepted to both Teachers College and the University of Pittsburgh School of Education to pursue a M.A. in Math Education.

 

Pitt

Pros

• 20k scholarship
• Located in PA which is where I did my undergrad so I'm familiar with PA teaching requirements
• Smaller classes

Cons

• Not the best ranking and lacks prestige
• I would have to complete 2 summer courses before enrolling which would cost me additional money
• Far from home (Boston)

Teachers College

Pros

• 12k in scholarship and perhaps more later on (as people decline)
• Located in NYC so not far from home
• Really good rankings (5th overall for secondary education) and a very strong math education dept

Cons

• Cost
• Reputation (diploma mill)
• Large class sizes

 

Both programs are only a yearlong. I would love to hear people's input! I must make a decision by next week.

[Voulez-Vous]

I'm curious - how can a school be both ranked highly and considered a diploma mill?

 

I don't know anything about Teachers College, but it seems to me that the pros for Pitt are more persuasive and the cons less negative.

[jd065]

Thanks for the input! As for your question, I'm not enitirely sure. I'm just going off of what I've heard and read about

[perpetuavix]

I'm not really sure who considers TC a diploma mill? I have a Masters in education and I know people who went to programs throughout the city, including TC. If you mean they grant a lot of diplomas, I guess that's true, but I wrote fewer pages over my entire program than most TC students wrote in one semester. TC is pretty rigorous, especially compared to many, many other education programs. 

Where are you planning to teach? New York has a pretty intense certification process (that is about to get even longer and more expensive). I would try to get certified in the state where you actually want to teach. I know that New York has reciprocity with other states, but if I had tried to get certified somewhere else, no one in my program would've been able to help me; they only (barely) knew the NYC requirements. 

[jd065]

I want to teach in Massachusetts. I've been given an informal offer at my old high school which is nice. When you say that TC is rigorous, are you talking about teacher education programs in particular, because that is all that matters for me?

[perpetuavix]

I want to teach in Massachusetts. I've been given an informal offer at my old high school which is nice. When you say that TC is rigorous, are you talking about teacher education programs in particular, because that is all that matters for me?

Yes, I'm talking about teacher education programs. I have one friend who did the Masters in math education, and a few who went through their special ed department. In talking to them, their programs actually taught them things about child development and educational theory. I don't think that a Masters degree actually prepares anyone to teach, but I really wish I had more theory and knowledge about current research, which is something a Masters can and should provide and mine did not. I repeatedly wrote 'my teaching philosophy' and that was about the extent of my grad school work. 

If you plan to teach in MA, why wouldn't you go to a school there? Teaching is a professional degree; it's easiest to get the degree where you plan to work. It doesn't mean you can't get a degree in a place that you don't plan to teach, it just means you will likely have to do the certification process without a lot of help from your program. 

[jd065]

Where did you do your Masters? NY has reciprocity with a lot of states so I'm not too concerned. I must make a decision by today!!! I'm leaning towards Pitt as of now.

[perpetuavix]

I got my Masters in NY to teach in NY. But I know a teacher who got her degree in NY and planned to transfer her license to NJ. It turned out to be a lot more challenging than she thought it would be. The program barely understood the NYS requirements and weren't able to help her at all with the NJ process.

Yes, NY does have reciprocity with most other states. That's likely because it has the most involved certification process I've ever heard of. The initial license requires 2 tests ($120 each when you do the computer-based version); the professional license will soon require 3 tests, for probably the same price per test. If you want to transfer your license to MA, you still have to take the MA required test. PA uses Praxis tests, which are pretty common across most states, but aren't used in MA or NY; they cost $85-$135 each and there's usually multiple required, depending on your subject area. I just don't know why you would spend money and time to get a license in a state solely so you can immediately spend more time and money to transfer it to a different one, especially in a field where it doesn't matter where you go to school. 

Edited April 15, 2014 by perpetuavix