EdS in Education (TESOL or World Language Education)

The Education Specialist Degree in Education (concentration in TESOL or World Language Education) is a post-masters degree program that equips you to be a leader in the field of TESOL or TFL, such as in Spanish, French, Mandarin, German, Italian, and Russian. The degree is tailored to meet the evolving challenges for educators in response to the rapid changes in technology, migration, and other local and global developments. Our faculty is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in education with strong ties to local public school districts, community organizations, and various on-campus units. Graduates of the Ed.S. program from UGA are often given professional and leadership responsibilities, and have served as school-based literacy coaches, department heads, Title III program coordinators, parent-school liaisons, professional development facilitators, and curriculum writers throughout the state of Georgia and beyond. At the end of your Ed.S program, you will be eligible to have a T6 rank in the Georgia public school system.

A Flexible Program for Professionals

Advisors work with student needs and availability to complete this ten-course (i.e., 30-hour) advanced degree in a way that is nourishing and complimentary to busy working lives. Courses are offered consistently on campus, online (i.e., asynchronous, synchronous, and hyflex), and year-round.

Ed.S. and Georgia Teaching Certificate Combination Option

If you have a master’s degree in ESL, TESOL, Applied Linguistics, World Languages or TFL or in a similar content area with teaching experience but are not yet certified, you can complete a one-year teaching certification program in TWLE , and then complete the Ed.S. degree in one year.

Highlights

1. For working teachers who already hold a master’s degree
2. Earn certificate upgrade in one of six areas when your studies align with initial certification
3. Range of course formats, including online, weekends, and nights

Curriculum

Ed.S coursework includes:

• 24 hours from a list of approved courses on the topics below
• 6 research-based hours, whether conducting research or learning about research methods.

Choose TWLE courses that suit your interests in the areas of:

• Second-language acquisition
• Language assessment and testing
• Bilingual and world language education
• Heritage language education
• Less commonly taught languages
• Bi/multiliteracies
• Spanish children’s literature
• Multilingual poetry and memoir
• Youth Participatory Action Research
• Multicultural education
• Computer-assisted language learning
• Language policy and discourse analysis
• Bilingual cognition

Useful Links

• Portfolio and Poster Presentation Guidelines (PDF)
• Portfolio Defense Rubric (PDF)

How to Apply

Part 1: Apply to the University of Georgia

The Graduate School handles admission for all graduate programs at the University of Georgia, including those in the College of Education. The Graduate School website contains important details about the application process, orientation, and many other useful links to guide you through the process of attending UGA at the graduate level.

Start a Graduate School Application

Part 2: Apply to the Ed.S. in Language and Literacy Education (TESOL or World Language Education)

While completing your Graduate School application, please include the following documents:

• Current resume/CV
• TOEFL/IELTS for international applicants
• Statement of purpose
• Unofficial transcripts from all institutions attended
• 3 letters of recommendation

Please indicate in your statement of purpose which area of emphasis below you intend to pursue for the Ed.S. program (i.e., English Education, LCL, or World Language Education or TESOL).

In addition to the Graduate School application, applicants must meet the following requirements:

1. You must hold a master’s degree from an accredited college or university in the area of TESOL and/or World Language Education
2. 3.0 minimum GPA (across last 60 credit hours of study)
3. At least one year teaching experience in multilingual or world language classroom
4. Sample writing that scores 4/5 using program rubric

For international residents, you must take the TOEFL or the IELTS. We require the following scores:

• TOEFL: at least a score of 100 with a minimum score of 25 in speaking and a 25 in writing
• IELTS: at least a score of 7 with a minimum score of 6.5 in speaking and a 6.5 in writing

For international residents, you must also demonstrate proficiency with two languages as evidenced by:

• A bachelor’s degree in English linguistics and literature
• A master’s degree where English was the medium of instruction
• We recommend an undergraduate GPA of a 3.0 or higher
• We recommend at least two years teaching experience

UGA Financial Assistance Mary Frances Early College of Education Financial Assistance

Deadline to Apply

• October 15 (Spring, international)
• November 15 (Spring, domestic)
• February 15 (Summer, international)
• April 1 (Summer, domestic)
• April 15 (Fall)

Log into existing application