Special Education - Moderate Disabilities Online
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate (PBC)

Earn a Special Education - Moderate Disabilities certificate online with this four-course, 12-credit program that allows students to qualify for a Moderate Disabilities license in Massachusetts.

Initial License

You will qualify for an initial license in Moderate Disabilities upon completion of this program if you are an educator who currently holds a Massachusetts initial license in a core academic area.

Provisional license

You will qualify for a Massachusetts Provisional license in Moderate Disabilities after completing the Special Education Certificate program if you are a pre-service educator or an educator who does not currently hold a teaching license, and have also passed the relevant MTELs for the license.

State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA)

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Contact

Online & Continuing Education

Foster Administration, 001
285 Old Westport Road
Dartmouth, MA 02747-2300

508-999.9202
508-910.9060
online@admissions.umassd.edu

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Students will gain practical experience in teaching and design for inclusion classrooms, as well as self-contained classrooms through a 150-hours, semester-long practicum/internship experience.

The program can be completed in as little as one year.

Licensure in Moderate Disabilities PreK-8 or 5-12 can be added to any Initial License in a core academic area such as elementary, English, history, biology, physics, general science, or math.

Required courses (12 credits)

EDU 547 Introduction to Special Education or *EDU 611 Developmental Reading
EDU 548 Classroom Management for Mildly and Moderately Disabled Students in Inclusive Settings (pre-req/Co-Requisite EDU 547 or equivalent)
EDU 549 Diagnostic and Remedial Assessment for Students with Moderate Disabilities (pre-req EDU 547 or equivalent)
EDU 550 Differentiated Instruction and Evidence Based Practice (pre-req EDU 547 or equivalent)

*Students will complete EDU 611 Developmental Reading in lieu of EDU 547 Introduction to Special Education if they have previously completed an Introductory Special Education course as part of their teacher preparation program.

Curriculum

Program curriculum includes:

Special Education Law and foundations
Individualized Education Programs (IEP’s)
Response to Intervention (RTI)
Differentiated Instruction (DI)
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Assessment techniques
Behavioral Interventions
Classroom Management
Report Writing
English Language Learners (ELLs)
Research and theories related to Special Education and Inclusive Practices

Program Sequence

Fall Semester

EDU 547 Introduction to Special Education or EDU 611 Developmental Reading
EDU 548 Classroom Mgt for Mild/Moderate Disabilities

Spring Semester

EDU 549 Diagnostic and Remedial Assessment for Mild/Mod Dis
EDU 550 Instruction and Evidence-Based Practices

Course descriptions, schedules and requirements

Expand your opportunities

Add a Special Education endorsement to your existing (or in-process) initial license.

Admissions requirements

Candidates should have evidence of passing the following MTEL tests:

Elementary

Communication and Literacy Skills
Foundations of Reading or Reading Specialist Subject Matter Test
General Curriculum (multi-subject and math subtests)

Middle/Secondary

Communication and Literacy Skills
Foundations of Reading or Reading Specialist subject matter test
Subject matter test in one of the core academic subjects taught in 5-8 or 8-12 for which the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education issues licenses or the General Curriculum.

Application Requirements

Completed Special Education Certificate program application.
Bachelor’s degree from an accredited University with a minimum of a 3.0 GPA.
Personal statement describing your beliefs about teaching and learning and why you have chosen teaching as a profession.
Resume
$60 application fee
Copy of Massachusetts Teaching License or Copy of MTEL results, or proof of 1 year of teaching experience evidenced in your resume.

Graduate admissions requirements

University requirements for graduate admissions

Submit an application via the online portal. Be sure to provide your full legal name and to capitalize the first letter of all proper nouns.
Pay non-refundable $60 application fee (American Express, Discover, MasterCard or Visa) via the online portal. For Nursing applicants, the non-refundable application fee is $75.
Statement of Purpose, minimum 300 words. Unless otherwise indicated in the program requirement details, indicate your graduate study objectives, research interests and experience, and business or industry experience if applicable. If you are applying for a teaching or research assistantship, include any special skills or experience that would assist us in making assistantship decisions.
Resume
Transcripts for all post-secondary institutions attended (regardless of whether a credential is earned or not). Unofficial transcripts are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled a final official transcript is required. International students applying for Data Science must submit semester-by-semester transcripts as well as consolidated transcripts.
Many programs have specific recommendations/requirements, please see the additional program-specific requirements for more information.
International students: official TOEFL, IELTS, Pearson PTE or Duolingo (if accepted by program) score. Unofficial scores are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled official scores are required and must be sent by the testing agency (copies/scans not accepted). This is required of any applicant who did not earn a bachelor’s degree or higher degree from an accredited academic institution in the U.S. or accepted English-speaking country, see exemptions for more details. The Duolingo test is not accepted for the following programs: Art Education, Biology/Marine Biology, Luso-Afro-Brazilian Studies & Theory, Marine Science and Technology (MS, PSM, PhD), Nursing (MS, DNP, PhD), Portuguese Studies, Professional Writing and Communication, Psychology (ABA, Clinical, Research), and Public Policy.

Program deadlines

Learning Style: Online

Online courses are taught by UMass Dartmouth faculty to provide high quality instruction and personal attention. Students have the flexibility to accommodate work and home responsibilities within the structure of defined assignment due dates. The majority of our online courses are taught asynchronously.