About English Education
Are you an English teacher who still needs to earn a master’s degree? Or are you working in another career and feel a calling to share your love of literature with middle and high school students? Would you like to help adolescents hone their reading, writing, and critical-thinking skills? Would you like a fulfilling career where you make a difference every day in the lives of young people? If so, Buffalo State's graduate English Education Program might be perfect for you.
The graduate program in secondary English education is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). The master of science degree certifies graduates to teach English in the seventh through 12th grade in public and private schools.
Degree Information
The English education program prepares students to teach English to students in seventh through 12th grade. Our graduates are in high demand from school districts throughout the country. Some of our graduates decide to specialize in teaching special needs-, advanced placement-, or international-students.
If, for some reason, you decide that teaching in a middle school or high school classroom isn’t for you, the skills you will have garnered in our English education graduate program will qualify you for a variety of other professions:
- Advertising
- Community college teaching
- Communications
- Juvenile Outreach
- Marketing
- Media
- Publishing
- Research
- Social Services
Buffalo State is committed to providing education students with plenty of hands-on experiences outside of class:
Sigma Tau Delta: International English honor society, and Buffalo State’s Alpha Pi Chi Chapter was founded in 2009. It recognizes excellence in scholarship, leadership, and service for undergraduate and graduate students.
The Western New York Network of English Teachers: The professional social network links classroom ELA teachers, teacher educators, and school administrators with the goal of encouraging and supporting meaningful teaching of ELA in the Buffalo-Niagara region.
TeachLivE™: A virtual-reality classroom that provides teachers the opportunity to develop their pedagogical practice in a safe environment that doesn’t place real students at risk.
Service Learning: Under the tutelage of Buffalo State faculty and staff, service-learning initiatives are available through many organizations located on Buffalo’s West Side.
English education majors engage in school placements throughout Western New York under the supervision of a classroom teacher. The culminating courses vary in placement but usually include two supervised student teaching experiences. In addition, some English education majors have secured internships with the Western New York Network of English Teachers.
Stellar Reputation
Buffalo State has received national recognition for outstanding work in collaborating with school partners to provide exemplary teacher-preparation programs.
Great Location
Because Buffalo State is the second largest city in the state, and the Western New York region includes multiple school districts, English education students have the opportunity to work with middle and high school students in urban, suburban, and rural settings.
Award-Winning faculty
In addition to being active scholars publishing in their fields, our faculty members have been awarded prestigious fellowships and prizes on the statewide, national, and international, national levels.
Small Class Size
Classes required for the English education graduate program typically have between 12 and 25 students; the field-based courses have a maximum class size of 15, which means plenty of individualized attention from faculty.
Networking Opportunities
Before you even graduate, you have the chance to network with professionals through the Western New York Network of English Teachers.
