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Degrees for Teachers

Teaching is a vocation, but it requires adequate training. We hope to progressively make available on this website resources for those considering a career as a teacher. In addition, we hope to provide resources for those with a specific interest in graduate study in religious education or theology. 
 
The level of qualifications required of teachers and researchers in the field of education varies between countries. This makes it difficult to provide resources relevant for multiple countries. Therefore, as a pilot, this page provides resources focusing on graduate study in the United States. Based on your feedback, we may extent the resources on this page to other countries. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback. 
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For the United States, this page provides information on programs of graduate study that may be of interest to those interested in becoming teachers. We focus in particular on programs serving disadvantaged communities. Information is also provided on colleges and universities offering degrees in religious education. Finally, information is provided on colleges and universities providing degrees in theology and religious studies. Again, if you have suggestions for resources to be added, please contact us. 
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Graduates Holding Diplomas
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For the United States, this page provides links to selected programs training teachers and, separately, to schools granting MA or PhD degrees in religious education or theology. Specifically, links are provided to: (1) Teach for America; (2) the University Consortium for Catholic Education; (3) Selected other programs for aspiring teachers; (4) MA and PhD programs in religious education; and (5) MA and PhD programs in theology. If you have suggestions for resources to be added, please contact us.
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Teach for America
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Teach For America is a highly selective and well regarded program whereby “corps members” commit to teaching for two years in a public school in a low-income community (the program has no affiliation with the Catholic community). The program provides extensive training an support. It does not pay tuition for the cost of a Master's degree, but some regions have partnerships with colleges and universities that can facilitate undertaking the required program of study towards a Master's degree. The program has an extensive network of nearly 62,000 alumni and corps members.  
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University Consortium for Catholic Education
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The University Consortium for Catholic Education (UCCE) consists of 14 programs placing over 400 teachers in Catholic/parochial schools in two dozen states each year.  Graduate students complete coursework at their respective universities and spend two years serving as educators enriching their Catholic school communities. They also commit to sharing and deepening their faith and spiritual lives. The links below provide useful comparative data on the 14 programs as well as links to the individual program websites:
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Other Programs for Aspiring Teachers
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Beyond Teach for America and programs from the University Consortium for Catholic Education, other programs exist for other types of schools, including independent schools and charter schools. A useful description of some alternative programs is available here. 
 
Graduate Programs in Religious Education
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The Religious Studies Association maintains a list of graduate programs in religious education, considering both Master's degrees and PhDs. The list is provided below. 
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Doctoral Programs
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Master’s Level Programs
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Graduate Programs in Theology - Catholic Universities
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The Association of Theological Schools (ATS) in the United States and Canada  provides accreditation for graduate schools of theology. Below is the list of Roman Catholic schools that are accredited. Schools from other denominations are also included in the ATS directory but not listed here.  When selecting a school, you will be directed to the school's entry in the ATS directory. You can search the directory among others by degree granted, location, and denomination (member schools page in ATS website).  
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