Secondary Education

Master's in Secondary Education

The Master of Science in Education (MSE) with an emphasis in Secondary Education qualifies candidates to seek licensure in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Earth and Space Science, Middle Level Science, History, Business, and foreign languages.

To qualify, students must hold a bachelor’s degree or higher in the appropriate teaching subject area of the equivalent. This graduate program is offered 100% online and requires 27 credit hours for licensure. In addition, students must complete a field experience in the appropriate classroom and a semester of full-time student teaching, which can occur in any approved classroom within the United States.

Students may not be employed as the teacher of record while in this program and will not be eligible for licensure until completion of the 27 credit hours along with passing required licensure exams. Students will have the option of completing the MSE degree by taking an additional 9 hours and passing comprehensive exams.

This degree is offered by the Department of Teacher Education and the Department of Advanced Education Programs and is approved for licensure by the Kansas State Department of Education.

Before Applying

Read through the T2T vs MSE/Secondary Frequently Asked Questions. For information regarding licensure requirements, please see our Licensure Disclosure.

Option 1 Stipulations

Candidates will not be eligible to serve as the teacher of record in a K-12 or 6-12 classroom until after successful completion of licensure courses and passing the required exams.

While all of the required courses are offered online, candidates will be required to complete a field experience practicum of approximately 80 clock hours over the course of a semester in an approved K-12 or 6-12 classroom. Additionally, candidates will also have to student teach, full-time for an entire semester, in an approved K-12 or 6-12 classroom.  FHSU has no influence over nor is it responsible for students’ employment status or the extent to which they can receive compensation during their practicum and/or student teaching experiences.

Candidates are not required to live in Kansas and can complete their field experience and student teaching in any approved school in the United States. However, this program is only authorized to lead to licensure in the state of Kansas. If you are interested in obtaining licensure in another state, review FHSU's out-of-state licensure policy and then contact your home state department of education. FHSU does not work with other state departments of education to facilitate license transfers nor does it answer questions related to this.

Admission Requirements

General M.S.E. Admission Requirement

• Content area verification from the Teacher Education Graduate Program Coordinator at FHSU.
• Two letters of recommendation from people who can comment on your potential to be an effective educator in the content area you are pursuing.
• A written statement (of at least 250 words) that describes your professional reasons and motivation for pursuing licensure in your content area, which includes examples of the qualities and characteristics that will make you an effective educator. This statement should also reflect your ability to write and construct a narrative at the graduate level.
• A minimum undergraduate GPA of 2.75.  
• A grade of B or better in English Composition II and Speech/Oral Communication.
• A grade of C or better in College Algebra.
• Completed Admission Criteria Acknowledgement form.
• Completed Program Expectations form.
• In addition to overall GPA, students’ previous undergraduate academic performance will be evaluated.
• A consistent and successful academic history at the undergraduate level that demonstrates the student can successfully pursue education-related coursework at the graduate level and pass licensure exams. 
• Please note: Candidates must meet the undergraduate requirements. Subsequent graduate performance and/or degrees will not be considered.

Additional Departmental Requirements

These requirements are not associated with the FHSU Graduate School. Students will be provided information after they have been accepted into the MSE program at FHSU.

Candidates must pass the appropriate Praxis content exam related to their area of licensure (as required by KSDE) within the first 9 hours of graduate study. Candidates must check with their advisor before registering to take this exam. Candidates who fail to meet this requirement will not be allowed to continue in the program.

FHSU has partnered with 240 Tutoring to provide test preparation for the following tests at a discounted rate of $25/month:

• English
• Math
• History
• Physical Education
• Middle School Science

If interested, contact Kerry Schuckman, kschuckm@fhsu.edu to get this rate. Review the licensure testing requirements for additional test preparation information and resources.

Candidates will also need to meet the following criteria, which will be facilitated through an online, graduate course and are necessary to enter classrooms.  These requirements are not associated with the FHSU Graduate School and are not part of the initial application.

• Provide verification of completing a national background check that must be conducted after admission into the MSE program.
• Provide verification of a negative tuberculosis (TB) skin test that must be completed after admission into the MSE program. Most TB skin tests take three days to complete.
• Provide verification of professional liability insurance.

Program Summaries

Option #1 (PDF) leads to K-12 or 6-12 licensure for candidates who do not hold a teaching license.

Candidates will be required to pass licensure tests in order to become eligible for secondary licensure in the state of Kansas. Additional information will be provided after program admission.

These documents must be uploaded as part of the graduate application.

• MSE Secondary Education Admission Criteria Acknowledgement (PDF)
• MSE Secondary Education Program Expectations (PDF)

How to Apply

1. To determine eligibility within the content area, email an unofficial copy of your transcripts to Dr. Valerie Zelenka.
2. After content eligibility has been determined, review the FHSU Graduate School's admission information for instructions and link to the online application.

Although there is no application deadline, all applications must be approved and processed at least two weeks before beginning a new semester to secure registration.

Contact Us

For information specifically related to the MSE in Secondary Education program, please email Dr. Valerie Zelenka or call the Department of Teacher Education at 785-628-4204.

For more information and general questions about the FHSU Graduate School, contact the FHSU Graduate School.

Scholarship Opportunities

FHSU created a post-baccalaureate program to increase the number of secondary science teachers to meet the demand of rural school districts. The Noyce Post-Baccalaureate Program is a competitive award program for individuals who have obtained a bachelor's degree in science and are considering a teaching career. Individuals selected for one of the six awards will receive a $22,685 stipend to complete coursework in a special post-baccalaureate program leading to full teaching licensure.