Applying to the Urban Teaching Program

To apply to the Urban Teaching Track in either Secondary/Adolescent Education or Elementary/Childhood Education, you must:

1.     Attend an Open House and a Program Planning meeting in your first or second year

2.     Complete the application, including the Liberal Arts and Sciences Audit Form

3.     Interview

Criteria for Acceptance

The Barnard Education Program is a rigorous preparation program for NYS teacher certification.

There are 3 main criteria for acceptance into the program.

●      GPA of 3.0 or higher, demonstrated by review of transcript

●      Ability to complete the program, demonstrated through the program plan, the Liberal Arts and Sciences Form, and letters of recommendation

●      Desire to pursue a career in education demonstrated through the essay and interview

Open Houses and Program Planning 

Open Houses and Program Planning are arranged through Barnard and Columbia Colleges and take place in the fall and spring semesters. All students are welcome. Please find our upcoming Open House and Program Planning dates in the News and Events page.

The Application

The Urban Teaching application has 5 parts. All parts should be completed and delivered to the Education Program Office: 335 Milbank Hall, Barnard College, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027

■      Application: This portion of the application provides general background information and your education program plan. All students should download the application, fill out the clickable form, and print a copy for submission.

■      Secondary Education Program Plan: This portion of the application demonstrates when you intend to complete required content area coursework. All secondary education students should download and complete the content area program plan worksheet for their certification subject area. Note: For program applicants, this is a draft. The actual courses you take may change depending on course availability or conflicts with other required courses for the major, minor/concentration, or general college requirements.

■      Liberal Arts and Sciences Audit Form: All new Education Program students must complete the Liberal Arts and Sciences Audit Form upon application to the program to indicate courses already taken and courses planned for fulfilling the liberal arts and sciences requirements. Please see Liberal Arts and Sciences Requirements for Certification for more information.

■      Essay: Since our program is situated in an urban center and you will be interning in urban classrooms, we are interested in how your interests and experiences relate to our commitment to serve urban youth.  Discuss briefly (500-1000) your interests in the field of education and the special interests or skills you feel you bring to it. Some autobiographical material would be helpful. Please include experience you have had with children or adolescents. You should complete this essay as a Word document and submit it with your application.

■      Recommendations: Recommendation forms are available here. Please download this form and have 2 faculty members fill it out. The first should be a faculty member from your major field of study. The second may be a faculty member or a current or previous employer. At least one recommendation should be from a Barnard or Columbia faculty member. Recommendations should not come from TA's. You will be asked to provide the names of the people writing your recommendations on the General Information portion of your application.

Interview

After reviewing applications, program faculty will meet with all qualified candidates individually. Candidates will be contacted by the program’s administrative assistant to schedule the interview.