Points of distinction set the MAT at UP apart from other programs in the metropolitan area: our reputation, faculty, professional network, employment record, programming, selective cohorts, low tuition. We invite you to read further, learn more, compare us with other institutions, and join our tradition.
A reputation for excellence is something that is earned, not advertised on billboards and buses. As the longest-running teacher preparation program in the metropolitan area, the School of Education draws on two centuries of tradition educating the whole professional, uniquely positioning us to blend timeless pedagogy with cutting edge classroom innovation. We partner with approximately 100 local schools and 18 school systems in the area, where teacher candidates successfully serve diverse learning communities in unique partnerships, residencies, internships, and student teaching.
Our programs are accredited by the state of Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC), nationally accredited by the National Council on Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), and internationally by the Campus Alberta Quality Council (CAQC) in Canada and the Guam Commission for Educator Certification (GCEC) in the Guam U.S. Territory. Many of these accreditations reach back in history to the very inception of these agencies. Our recent approval by the State of Oregon's TSPC identified no areas for improvement, affirming our excellence in programming.
Our full-time faculty hold advanced doctoral degrees from leading national universities, providing a level of expertise that is geographically diverse and unique to the metropolitan area. Professors in the School of Education continue to maintain their teaching credentials, each having followed a pathway from the P-12 classroom to the highest level of scholarship and teaching. Most important, we are dedicated to providing you a full-time cadre of specialists, nationally published authors, and recognized experts in education who are dedicated to your success and individual program needs. Stop in to visit our faculty during their regular office hours. Set up an appointment. Explore our faculty webpage to find inspiration in their success and common mission to serve you.
When you complete an MAT at UP, you are immediately prepared to enter the teaching profession with an employment advantage. As a graduate, you are part of a select group of teachers who have passed rigorous entrance requirements, who bring expertise in discipline knowledge, and have successfully completed a nationally acknowledged and accredited program where student learning is the center of teaching practice. When you graduate in early May, you are fully certified, having passed state exams upon program entrance, and ready to begin substitute teaching in schools as an early advantage and support to your job search. Through a program of professional seminars, you have completed your resume and professional portfolio, participated in mock interviews with alumni principals, and cohort interviews for substitute teaching in local districts. You have the preparation, program reputation, alumni network, and advanced planning to successfully enter the profession.
As a member of the MAT cohort, the School of Education's commitment to fusing theory and practice provides you the opportunity to directly apply coursework attained concepts and skills during each semester of the ten-month program. Grounded in a focus on student learning, summer experiences immediately place you in charge of tutorial classes on the UP campus under the guidance of our faculty, working with local K-12 youth, communicating with parents and guardians about learning outcomes and strategies, and putting into use the strategies you learn in program classes. During the fall and spring sessions, you are placed in local school classrooms, where you gain the skills necessary to work independently as a classroom teacher. You will complete an edTPA portfolio demonstrating your ability to effectively plan for instruction, teach students, and assess student learning, under the guidance of faculty, supervisor, and mentor teacher support. You are never alone in this school-intensive work, but work with support teams and cooperating teachers trained at UP in mentorship and instructional coaching.
The MAT program is an intensive program, which demands talented students who are dedicated to the pursuit of a career in teaching. We surround you with a cohort of diverse peers who are equally committed to this selective program and its mission. We intentionally keep cohorts small and engage with you in an application process designed to allow us to know you as an individual, a learner, and a prospective teacher. Because we believe that every child deserves an excellent education, we look for candidates with the potential to have an impact on student learning as program participants, who demonstrate background knowledge in subjects to bring to the classroom, and who will support their cohort of peers in this pursuit. We require all applicants to pass state-required content exams as a program entrance requirement. As an applicant, you will be personally interviewed by our faculty and asked to demonstrate experience working or serving school-aged populations. We are the only program in the region that requires passage of state required exams as a program entrance requirement, further defining the talent we gather to form each cohort, the level of expertise you bring to the classroom, and caliber of classmates who join your professional journey.
The School of Education MAT offers you one of the lowest total tuition packages at a high value in the metropolitan area. Tuition and fees are locked in for each cohort, incorporating many of the additional or hidden fees that are added on to the cost of becoming a teacher in Oregon. As a student, you are assessed no added course or field experience fees with the exception of state-required testing fees. You are advised through the testing process so that each is completed as an application or program requirement, providing you the advantage of immediate state certification upon graduating in May, and avoiding costly delays in certification due to testing retakes. The School provides a full-time staff to support your progress, maneuvering through state required applications, work samples, and processes; you work with real people rather than outsourced on-line support vendors which pass on additional fees delay certification. Dedicated full-time faculty provide face-to-face course experiences, regular office hours, and immediate communication to serve you in your studies and job search. Stewardship and value is what every student should expect in a comprehensive and low tuition rate.
We believe our professional network is the life blood of strong and stable careers in education. When you enter the University of Portland MAT program, you are welcomed into an alumni network of teachers and school leaders over 7,500 strong that runs deep into public and private schools. Our alumni are placed in over 300 schools in the region as teachers, school leaders, and specialists. Our alumni boards, the Educational Leadership Network and the Teacher Leadership Network, works to promote a professional network among program graduates to help you cultivate deep professional friendships and opportunities. Our professional networks promotes lifelong connections between recent graduates and master teachers and leaders, arranging mentoring of new teachers, professional development opportunities, and employment advice throughout your career. Our professional networks launches and sustains your career and advancement in education.
As a life-long learner, you are afforded the opportunity to grow and advance in your career upon graduation. As an alum of the MAT program, you have priority enrollment access to continuing education and professional development programs, symposia, and courses, often at reduced rates or no cost. The School of Education offers a variety of post-graduate degrees in school leadership, advanced certificates and endorsements. Annual conferences hosted on campus and summer programs will engage you in credit-option opportunities to advance in expertise. Annual professional networking gatherings on campus afford you the opportunity to reconnect with alumni and learn about opportunities to advance your practice and career. Our faculty invite you to visit us on campus for career advice and to become a mentor yourself to our current students in the classroom and in the field.
University of Portland
5000 N. Willamette Blvd.,
Portland, Oregon 97203-5798
503.943.8000
