After you are admitted to the Teacher Education Program, you must continue to make satisfactory progress to continue in the program. This section of the handbook provides information on your continuation in the program.
Maintaining a 2.5 QPA
Once you have been formally admitted to the Teacher Education Program, you are required to maintain a 2.5 overall GPA. If your GPA falls below 2.5, you will be suspended from the Teacher Education Program until the deficiency is corrected, which means that you will not be allowed to take courses with
admission to the teacher education program as a prerequisite. When the problem is resolved, a request for
reinstatement to the Teacher Education Program can be made. Check the course descriptions in the UNCP
Earning a Grade of „C-‟ or Better in Required Courses
If you earn a course grade lower than ‗C-‘ in a specialty area, professional education, or content pedagogy course, you will be suspended from the Teacher Education Program until the course is repeated with a grade of ‗C‘ or better. This means that you will not be allowed to take courses with admission to the
teacher education program as a prerequisite. When the problem is resolved, a request for reinstatement to
the Teacher Education Program can be made.
Intervention/Remediation
The faculty, staff, and administration of the Teacher Education Program want you to do well, but from time to time, concerns related to a candidate‘s performance can arise. These concerns may be due to a low grade in a required course, a poor review in a field placement, low ratings on a disposition
assessment, or when a professor recognizes a serious concern. In such cases, intervention/remediation may be required. It is the intent of the Teacher Education Program that every teacher candidate is given the opportunity to remediate behaviors or dispositions that do not align with those of effective educators and appropriate teaching standards.
Remediation plans will be developed for students in need by a faculty committee as explained in Remediation Plans and Procedures. To see the remediation form used, please see
Appendix M.
Enrollment in the Professional Semester/Year
The professional year is a two-semester sequence, which occurs during the senior year. The first semester of the professional year includes advanced methods courses, and related field experience requirements. Whenever possible, students are placed for pre-internship field experiences with the Clinical Teacher who will supervise their internship during the professional semester. Teacher candidates should attempt to schedule other classes to permit their spending a morning and/or afternoon block of time in the school to which they are assigned for any advanced field experience assignments.
Enrollment in the professional semester is the culminating experience of the UNCP undergraduate Teacher Education Program. To be eligible for consideration by the Teacher Education Committee and approved for enrollment in the professional semester, each candidate must
1. Be formally admitted to the Teacher Education Program one full semester prior to the professional semester.
2. Have not more than six (6) hours remaining of degree requirements at the beginning of the professional semester, excluding those required in the professional semester.
3. The remaining hours shall not include professional studies core or content pedagogy courses. If the remaining hours include specialty area courses, the courses must be approved by the Program Coordinator and the Dean of the School of Education.
remaining hours taken during the professional semester must be scheduled at the conclusion of the school day, online or during weekends.
5. Have an overall quality point average of 2.5 (on a 4.0 scale) or better as well as a 2.5 or better in the candidate‘s major field of study.
Two semesters prior to the internship, each candidate must complete the professional semester enrollment packet, including but not limited to the following items:
1. The Application for the Professional Semester
2. Advisor’s Recommendation for Professional Semester form signed by the candidate‘s advisor and program coordinator
3. North Carolina Public School Health Examination Certificate 4. Registrar’s Statement and Application for Degree form 5. A resume
6. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) form 7. Copy of health insurance card
The professional semester enrollment packets are distributed by the Director of University-School Partnerships at scheduled meetings each semester. The dates, times, and locations of these meetings are announced on the School of Education (SOE) website, the SOE announcement board in the Education Center, and the SOE Blog. They are also available from the Office of University-School Partnerships. You should be alert for these announcements and attend a meeting during the second semester of your junior year.
Candidates with disabilities who may require special accommodations during the professional semester should contact the Director of University-School Partnerships.
Student internship placements are cooperatively arranged by the Director of University-School
Partnerships and contact persons in the local school systems with which The University of North Carolina at Pembroke has written agreements. Prior to UNCP‘s forwarding placement requests to area systems, programs coordinators have the opportunity for input as to the grade level(s), school(s), and teacher(s) requested. Student interns may not be placed in a school which he/she attended, in which he/she has been employed, in which a relative is employed, or in which a relative is enrolled.
Acceptance and Notification
You will receive written notification from the Office of University-School Partnerships as to whether or not your enrollment application was approved by the Teacher Education Committee. You are not officially enrolled in the professional semester until such notification is made AND all University registration procedures are completed. If a teacher candidate's application for enrollment in the professional semester is not approved for any reason, the candidate is suspended from the Teacher Education Program. When the problem is resolved, the candidate may request to be reinstated. The process for appealing the decision of the Teacher Education Committee can be found later in this