Chances at Teacher Credential / Masters?

[SummerUCSD]

Hi, I am going to be a fourth year undergraduate student at UCSD and I want to apply to teacher credential/masters programs this upcoming cycle (so I can get right into it after graduation). I was a Human Biology major for the first three years, since I used to be pre-med, but discovered through the med school application process I did NOT want to be a doctor. I remembered I always liked the idea of teaching. My mom is an elementary school teacher, so I have at least some idea of what the lifestyle is like. My (ultimate) goal is Stanford, but I also want to apply to UC Berkeley, UCLA, USC, and UCI. My goal is to teach Math at the Secondary level. Here are some more facts and stats about myself:

Major: Mathematics/Applied Science

GPA (overall): 3.55

GPA (math): 3.81 (does my math GPA get taken into consideration?) 

GRE (practice tests): 159V 165Q

Experience: I volunteered every summer at an LAUSD elementary school to help immigrant elementary students learn English under the supervision of a teacher (but not through the school, I just knew the teacher) (This volunteering experience was done for fun throughout undergrad, but only during summers since I go to UCSD.) Also, after realizing I wanted to be a high school math teacher, I immediately started volunteering in SD for a program that takes middle and high school students from highly disadvantaged backgrounds and tutors and guides them in their path to be a first generation college student. 

(Planned) Letters of Rec: I know it is rushed to ask for a letter before December 1, but that's when the first of the applications are due. I plan on asking the teacher at the elementary school, the volunteer coordinator at the SD volunteering org, and a physics professor I've gotten to know a little better last year. (I have had two lunches with this professor, but does it matter that he is a physics professor and not math? I do not know any of my math professors, and getting to know them before December through OH is rushed, since school starts mid/late September for UCSD.)

Here are some stats for the schools I want from a kind user here on gradcafe 

 

Anyhow, I was hoping to get some insight from people who got into these programs, mostly Stanford tbh, its my dream school. Plus, I love that their program is accelerated into 1 year for the credential and masters. Maybe one tidbit of info that my physics professor can add is that in order to avoid paying for online HW, I finished the quarter's worth of physics HW in the two weeks of the online HW trial period (my answers to the HW were 100% correct). This can possibly speak to my ability in accelerated programs? LOL. I should also mention that the physics class was a lower division class. 

I am sorry for the disorganized way I presented this info, I am just pouring all my thoughts as they come to me.

Also, what else can I do to bolster my application? Any advice? Please help!! Thank you!

[econteacher]

So I worked as a high school teacher (social studies) for six years, and worked in a state office of curriculum and assessment for 2 years. Like you, I graduated with a content degree and then went and got an accelerated Master's (MAT) in one year to get certified.

My advice? You really really do not need to go to a (for lack of a better word) "fancy" school like Stanford for a teaching credential. Stanford is awesome and may be your dream school, but unless you're going to get close to a full ride, in my opinion it is not worth it to pay that much for certification. The stone cold reality is that a high school principal may be abstractly drawn to the word "Stanford" on your resume, but in my experience as a former department chair (who you'll ultimately be interviewing with and have the final say in many schools) I only cared about these things:

• Recommendation from your mentor teacher during student teaching
• Your certification credentials (will you have also have a special ed endorsement? ELL? Reading specialist?)
• Your flexibility and willingness to teach whatever is offered. You might be stuck in a below grade level Algebra 1 class where kids can't draw an "x". 

Possibly at a private school they may be concerned with "names" because parents are paying big bucks and want their kids taught by Stanford grads, but I really don't think the cost is worth it. I considered Johns Hopkins for an MAT, but instead went to the more affordable mid-tier state school down the road and saved thousands and thousands of dollars, and was not at a disadvantage at all in the hiring process.

I think the odds are even more in your favor because there is a tremendous shortage of math teachers nationwide. With your math endorsement, you will almost be able to pick your district. And if you look at this website (http://nasdtec.site-ym.com/?InterstateAgreements) it shows you reciprocity agreements with other states. I can tell you from experience that if you were in Maryland, where I used to teach, you could have applied in January to almost any district in the state and with a math certification probably have a contingent contract before you graduate. The demand is that high.

Your credentials make you very qualified, and I'd be very surprised if any teacher master's program didn't accept you. But I would seriously do some cost/benefit analysis on going to an expensive school for teacher certification, because based on my 8 years of experience in the field, I'm not sure it's worth the money. Obviously there are lots of factors to consider, and there's certainly something to be said for dream schools, but I did want to throw this information out there.

I hope this helps!

 

[SummerUCSD]

@econteacher Thank you for your input! For me, Stanford is really the dream school, so if I get in, I am lucky enough that my family will help me pay the costs if necessary. It's encouraging to see you say that I can probably get into some master's program, so here is to hoping for the best!