Education, Associate Degrees

Two Year Programs Leading to the A.S./A.A. Degrees

Requirements for teachers within Indiana and nationally are changing. Students pursuing degrees focused on teacher education should communicate frequently with their advisors to plan their programs consistent with the most recent requirements.

Public school teachers in the state of Indiana must successfully complete a four-year-course of study in order to obtain a teaching license. Vincennes University has been authorized by the Indiana Commission of Higher Education (ICHE) to offer the first two years of the requirements leading to such licensure in nineteen different teacher education programs and concentrations.

The curricula of a university’s education programs in the state of Indiana must be approved by the Indiana Department of Education. In addition, the course work must follow general guidelines as set down in the Administrative Rules of the Indiana State Board of Education (Rules 2002), and in the future REPA, prepared by the Indiana Department of Public Instruction. It is the Department of Public Instruction, Office of Educator Licensing, which ultimately issues the license permitting the holder to be employed as a teacher in the state of Indiana. Vincennes University has created a variety of alternative education concentrations to permit students to transfer successfully to other Indiana colleges and universities to complete their four-year degrees and to obtain licensing as teachers.

The course work for education majors at Vincennes University has been selected to provide students with a sound, comprehensive, introduction to the field, to meet the current Rules 2002 guidelines, and in 2013 the future REPA guidelines, and to provide for efficient transfer to most teacher preparation institutions in Indiana. However, students completing their two-year program in education at Vincennes University may find, upon transfer, some differences exist in the requirements for course work in the first two years between Vincennes University and the transfer institution. It is recommended that a VU student majoring in education review the requirements of their proposed transfer institution as soon as possible after initial enrollment at Vincennes University.

Formal admission into a teacher education program at most four-year Indiana teacher preparation institutions commences during the fall semester of the Junior year. Prior to admission to the education programs most universities require that students attain a minimum cumulative GPA and meet Indiana state required scores on the Core Academic Skills Assessment (CASA).

Vincennes University offers seventeen teacher education programs and concentrations. These correspond to the teacher license content and developmental areas as listed in REPA. The content majors and developmental areas of these concentrations are outlined below.