SEAS, GSE offer dual degree for undergrads

Students can earn a master's degree in 4 1/2 years and then teach high school classes. The School of Engineering and Applied Science and the Graduate School of Education will offer a new academic option next year allowing undergraduate Engineering students to receive a master's degree in education. Starting in September, students will be able to enroll in a program allowing them to graduate in 4 1/2 years with a degree in Engineering and a certification to teach math, general science and either chemistry or physics at the high school level. In order to earn both degrees, students will have to complete 38 credit units -- including six in math, nine in the natural sciences, 11 in engineering, five in education and seven in the social sciences and humanities. The required engineering courses will not be identical for chemistry and physics students. The undergraduates will also student-teach in Philadelphia middle and high schools five mornings each week -- for two months in the fall and five days each week for four months in the spring. School districts may also hire the students as long-term substitutes while they are still at the University. "[The program] is a great way to introduce undergraduates in engineering to a variety of fields," said Judith Silverman, director of admissions and financial aid in the Education School. "Being an engineer is one of them, but being a teacher is perhaps one of them as well." Assistant Director of Student Affairs in the Engineering School Kim Allen added that the undergraduates will be prepared to "teach students how math facilitates an understanding of science concepts and ideas." Allen said the program is challenging, as both the engineering and education curricula are very time intensive. "But it is not an insurmountable obstacle," she said. Most undergraduates will apply to the program after freshman year. According to Allen, those who enroll in the program early will find greater flexibility in their schedules. Students from the other three undergraduate schools must transfer into the Engineering School in order to pursue this dual degree. And undergraduates may earn a bachelor's of science in engineering instead of a bachelor's degree in applied science, though the curriculum is more rigorous. The Engineering and Education schools are organizing this arrangement partially in response to the U.S. Department of Education's recent estimation of a teacher shortage of about two million by next year. "In the next five years, a turnover of more than 60 percent of teaching faculty? will greatly exacerbate the shortage of elementary and secondary school teachers in the whole country," said Education Professor James Larkin. Students were generally supportive of the new degree. Engineering junior Betsy Hamme said that while she does not intend to teach in the near future, now is the most convenient time to pursue a master's in education. And Engineering junior Bryan Wells added that working in local schools -- especially the inner-city schools -- will be an "eye-opener."

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