Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages

CERT2

Why study Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages?

The certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) is an online undergraduate approved program of study that can lead to an Ohio P-12 TESOL endorsement and a University of Cincinnati (UC) TESOL certificate. In response to the growing population of English language learners (ELLs) in U.S. classrooms locally and nationally, this certificate will prepare prospective teachers and other professionals to meet the unique instructional and communication needs of ELLs, thus increasing their marketability upon completion of undergraduate degrees at UC and elsewhere. 

The certificate in TESOL will provide teacher education students with a deep and comprehensive understanding of effective methods of teaching and assessment for ELLs in K-12 settings. Coursework required for the certificate is aligned with requirements to obtain the Ohio P-12 TESOL endorsement. When added to a teaching license, this endorsement qualifies a teacher to work as an English as a second Language (ESL) Specialist within a school, thus expanding her/his job opportunities.

Admission Requirements

This program is open to both education major students and non-education major students who are in good academic standing, with a cumulative university grade point average of 3.0 or higher and the desire to succeed. Simply apply for the certificate and register for the appropriate classes.

Although admission is open to any major, students accepted into the program must meet the academic standards of the program to advance to upper levels of study. Education majors may be admitted into a course in the UG TESOL certificate program in the spring semester of their sophomore year, but that does not guarantee that students will be admitted to the professional cohort.

Please note: In order to obtain this certificate, 50% or more of the required coursework must be taken from the College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services. Application materials for the certificate program can be located here. 

Applicants must submit:

  • Proof of having graduated from a secondary education program either in the US or from your home country.
  • Proof of one year of post-secondary experience (30 semester hours) or equivalent experience.  A short explanation of the equivalent experience will be reviewed by the TESOL faculty.  
  • International students should have all of their university transcripts evaluated by a member of the National Association of Credit Evaluators, such as SpanTran or WES. Please have the evaluator send both the course-by-course evaluation and the original, official university transcripts. 

All documents must also come with a professional, certified English translation, if  needed. Notarized/certified copies of original documents are considered official.

International students should send TOEFL test scores to UC directly from the testing agency. The minimum TOEFL iBT total score is 66, with at least 15 points for each separate section. The IELTS overall score is 6 with a minimum of 5.5 for each section.  Link for UC test codes: http://://admissions.uc.edu/information/international/requirements.html

Successful candidates in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages certificate should:

  • Respect other languages and cultures
  • Be interested in working with people
  • Enjoy a multicultural life
  • Take risks in creativity and application of ideas

Linguistic talents and previous language and learning experiences could be valuable assets but are not necessary. 

Graduates of this program will be prepared for the careers listed below. All opportunities may not be listed. 

Students must complete program requirements with a grade of C or better in order to obtain the certificate. Students who already hold an initial Ohio teaching license who would like to add the K-12 TESOL endorsement must apply to the Ohio Department of Education. 

Explore unique opportunities, faculty, and resources available in School of Education

Application Deadlines

Application deadlines:

  • Fall semester - July 1
  • Spring semester - November 1
  • Summer semester - March 1
The University of Cincinnati and all regional campuses are accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

Contact Information

Office of Recruitment
PO Box 210014
Cincinnati, OH 45221
(513) 556-6308
cechrecruit@uc.edu

Find related programs in the following interest areas:

Program Code: 18CRT-TESOL-C2-.TESOL-DL