More Information
The Principalship program requires that candidates be able to demonstrate knowledge, skills and dispositions as outlined in the Ohio Principalship Standards and the Educational Leadership Licensure Consortium. The standards are assessed as part of coursework and require that candidates in the program are able to demonstrate leadership in their schools. Program courses are designed so that a candidate begins the study of school leadership in ways that can be balanced with classroom teaching responsibilities.
The amount of time and participation in school leadership activities is increased as the candidate moves through the program courses and assessment activities. It is not necessary for a candidate to leave their teaching position to complete the program however participation in program activities will require significant time and effort on the part of the candidate.
To obtain a Principal license candidates, must complete the full program of coursework including the program classes and the post-MA/MS coursework, internship and Praxis examination.
Candidates who do not hold a Master’s degree may obtain a Master’s degree and a license by completion of the following:
- Admission to the UA/COE Masters program (program code 570104)
- Successful completion of this option provides an enrolled candidate a Master’s degree without a license. A license is required to obtain a position as a principal in a public school in the State of Ohio.
- Admission and completion of the Masters program followed by the post-MA/MS coursework, year-long internship and passage of the Praxis licensing examination.
- This option provides an enrolled candidate a Master’s degree and a State of Ohio Principalship license.
- To enroll in the post-master’s courses and internship a second application to the graduate school and program must be completed. The candidate must apply as a special non-degree (SND) candidate in the Principalship.
Candidates who hold a Master’s degree in a program other than a current MA/MS in the Principalship (graduation within the past 3 years) from The University of Akron Principalship program may complete the program in one of the following ways:
- If a second MA/MS in the Principalship is desired, a candidate may apply to the MA/MS program (see links above). Dependent on the age of coursework and relevancy of the coursework to the Principalship program, up to 9 hours may be transferred between programs. Candidates must complete the recommended program coursework, the post-masters courses, internship and Praxis examination requirements for license.
- If a second master’s is not desired, a candidate may apply as a special non-degree (SND) candidate in the Principalship. Once the application is received a program faculty member will review prior coursework and determine coursework necessary for an applicant to obtain a license. Candidates must complete the recommended program coursework, the post-masters courses, internship and Praxis examination requirements for license.
Each core class (those starting with the prefix 5170) contains a common assessment designed to meet program standards. The common assessment is directly linked to program standards (OPS and ELCC). Candidates are required to demonstrate proficiency of the standards as evidenced in the common assessments to be considered for a license.
At the program mid-point (at the end of the MA/MS if a candidate is obtaining the master’s degree or prior to enrollment in the internship if the candidate is not obtaining the master’s degree) the candidate must enroll in 5170:720 Capstone. In this course, the candidate will conduct a common assessment in the form of a needs assessment of their school. The needs assessment readies the candidate to complete the internship requirements. All program masters level candidates must compete the Capstone course as the final program course. Candidates enrolled as special non-degree (SND) must complete the Capstone course to be considered for a license.
The final activity required for candidates who wish to obtain a Principalship license for the State of Ohio is the internship. The internship (5170:695/696) is a year-long (fall/spring only) mentored experience that requires the candidate to demonstrate leadership knowledge, skills and dispositions as outlined by OPS/ELCC. A candidate may not substitute employment for the internship. All program candidates must compete the internship experience/courses to be considered for a license.
