Fields of Study - 0 4201
Contact Us
Phone:
800.336.1616
802.258.3510
TTY:
802.258.3388
Fax:
802.258.3500
PO Box 676, 1 Kipling Road
Brattleboro, VT 05302 USA
Contact us by email.
Frequently Asked Questions
For Practicing Teachers (Summer MAT in French, Spanish, or English to Speakers of Other Languages)
- How long is the course work and how long does it take to get the degree?
- When does the program start?
- How many credits will I earn in the program?
- Can I transfer credits from graduate level courses I have taken elsewhere?
- Can I do course work (or some of it) by distance learning?
- What are the requirements for the Interim Year Teaching Practicum? Can I look for a new job to take for the interim year?
- Does the program qualify me for public school teaching certification?
- Is there a thesis required?
- How much does it cost?
- What kind of financial aid is available?
- What other funding opportunities are there for international students?
- What kind of resources are available to help me find a job?
- What kind of work are MAT Program graduates doing and where are they?
- What are the admissions requirements?
- Do I need to take the GRE?
- Do I need previous teaching experience?
- Is there a second language requirement?
- When is the application deadline?
FAQ Answers
- How long is the course work and how long does it take to get the degree?
Course work is done in an intensive eight-week-long term in each of two consecutive summers. During the interim year, you return to your teaching job to put into practice your ideas about teaching more effectively. Most students write the Independent Professional Project (IPP) to complete the degree requirements during the academic year following the second summer of course work, or during the third summer. - When does the program start?
The SMAT Program starts in mid-June each year. - How many credits will I earn in the program?
The minimum required credits for the Summer MAT is 34 plus 1 undergraduate credit for language study during the first summer. You earn 6 credits for the Interim Year Teaching Practicum and 6 for the Independent Professional Project. - Can I transfer credits from graduate level courses I have taken elsewhere?
It may be possible to transfer up to 6 credits of graduate level courses taken elsewhere, but only if the course was parallel to one offered in the program and does not substitute for one of the core MAT Program courses. An official course description must be submitted to the program director for consideration. There is no reduction in cost even if credit is accepted for transfer. - Can I do course work (or some of it) by distance learning?
No. The kind of learning experience that you get in this program - experiential, participatory, cooperative - could not be replicated in a distance-learning mode. By being part of a dynamic, group process, you learn about facilitating groups and working effectively as a teacher with your own students.
The Summer MAT format, however, does offer working language teachers the opportunity of keeping their jobs while working on a master's degree. Their classroom becomes both the focus of and an integral part of their graduate studies. During the Interim Year Teaching Practicum, Summer MAT participants are visited and observed in their classrooms, wherever they are in the world, for a week by a faculty supervisor. The rest of the year is spent reflecting on and writing a series of reports about different aspects of their teaching as they learn how to better monitor themselves and make their teaching more effective. - What are the requirements for the Interim Year Teaching Practicum? Can I look for a new job to take for the interim year?
Applicants to the Summer MAT must have a job currently teaching the language of concentration for a minimum of 12 hours a week for at least 8 months of the year with a minimum of 7 students per class and must return to the same job for the interim year. The required minimum teaching hours can be fulfilled at more than one location.
The Summer MAT is designed as an "in-service" master's degree for working language teachers in which the current teaching job is an integral part of your study. Coming to the program from a teaching context with which you are already familiar will enable you more easily to identify areas you want to work on in your teaching as you examine how to teach more effectively, and to set goals for yourself for the Interim Year Teaching Practicum that are both realistic and relevant to the context. - Does the program qualify me for public school teaching certification?
It is not possible to get Vermont public school teaching certification solely through participation in the Summer MAT Program. However, the course work completed for the master’s degree can be used in most states as a partial fulfillment of certification requirements. We advise you to contact the Department of Education in your state or those states in which you hope to work in the future. - Is a thesis required?
The final requirement to complete the program is the Independent Professional Project (IPP), which gives you the opportunity to study in depth a professional topic of special interest to you. Because of the practical focus of the program, most students choose to explore and develop a topic practical in nature that will be of value and relevance to others working in the classroom. - How much does it cost?
The tuition total for the 2005-2006 Summer MAT is $23,400. Tuition is paid in 5 installments over a 14-month period. Room and board costs will vary depending on your choices. - What kind of financial aid is available?
Financial aid is available in the form of SIT grants, and small scholarships. US citizens and resident aliens also qualify for US federal loans. Typical financial aid awards (including loans) made last year averaged $11,000 for US students and residents, and $2,000 for international students for the first summer. The Financial Aid Department starts to process financial aid applications on March 1. Summer MAT students can apply again for financial aid for the second summer and, of course, you will be earning your salary from your teaching job during the interim year as well. - What other funding opportunities are there for international students?
We encourage international students to explore other sources of funding as well, such as the Institute of International Education (Fulbright Scholarships), American Association of University Women, Rotary International, NAFSA, Open Society Institute (Eastern Europe and Central Asia), AMIDEAST (Middle East), and government-sponsored scholarships and loans. For further information about financial aid, go to our Financial Aid website or call 800.336.1616 x3281. - What kind of resources are available to help me find a job?
SIT's Professional Development Resource Center offers help in career planning, job-searching, and networking, and is available to students and to graduates throughout their careers. The active world-wide alumni network is also a great resource for finding out about jobs and career opportunities in specific areas. In addition, because the MAT Program at SIT has such an outstanding international reputation and numbers among its faculty some of the most well-known names in the field, our graduates often find that doors open for them readily. - What kind of work are MAT Program graduates doing and where are they?
Our graduates are living and working in 62 countries around the world with about two-thirds of them currently in the United States. Many of them have devoted their lives to teaching - in public and private schools, language institutes, colleges and universities, adult education programs for recently-arrived immigrants in English-speaking countries, corporations, and development projects - while others have continued into the fields of teacher training, program administration, textbook and educational materials development, cross-cultural counseling, or doctoral studies. - What are the admissions requirements?
Each candidate is considered on an individual basis and assessed as to their readiness for and potential to succeed in the SMAT Program. Criteria include:
- Bachelor’s degree and demonstrated academic ability
- A minimum of two years of language teaching experience
- A teaching position in the language of concentration between the two summers of coursework. The position must include at least 12 hours of classroom teaching each week for at least eight months, with a minimum of seven students per class.
- Good interpersonal and communication skills
- Ability to work well in groups and with others of different cultural backgrounds
- Ability to articulate and analyze past experiences
- An understanding of the structure and philosophy of the program
- Goals that match what the program offers
- Applicants for whom English is not a first language are required to demonstrate literacy and oral proficiency enabling them to successfully complete degree requirements. While SIT has no minimum score that would automatically eliminate an MAT application, both a standardized test and an oral proficiency interview are required. SIT considers official results of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the International Education Language Testing System (IELTS). The average computer based TOEFL score for students enrolling in September 2003 was 238. The average IELTS band was 8. Oral proficiency for the same group averaged Advanced on the ACTFL scale (seventh level of a nine-level scale).
- Do I need to take the GRE?
No. The GRE does not measure the kind of qualities we look for in candidates. - Do I need previous teaching experience?
Yes. You must have a minimum of two years previous language teaching experience and have a job currently teaching the language of concentration that you will return to for the Interim Year Teaching Practicum. - Is there a second language requirement?
There is no language requirement for entry to the program (except for applicants who are not native speakers of English) or for graduation, but you will take a language course during the first summer. The purpose of this course is to give you the chance to re-experience the language learning process from the learner’s perspective and, as a result, increase your awareness of how to teach more effectively - When is the application deadline?
We have rolling admissions so there is no application deadline and we continue to process applications until the classes are filled.
To contact a counselor about this program, you may send an e-mail message to one of the following people.
marshall.brewer@sit.edu
minhee.kang@sit.edu
