Education & Counseling (Also see Mental Health)
Read our Teaching K-12
guide to learn how to prepare and apply to California teacher education programs.
Explore the Profession
Discover whether this profession matches your interests, skills and abilities and meets your lifestyle expectations:
- Decide If Teaching Is For You
and follow Teach California’s steps to become one - Learn how to Become a Teacher in California in elementary, high school or special education
- Learn about the various Types of Credentials in California and the Requirements to obtain them
- Science and math majors should consider CalTeach, the UC Science and Math Initiative
- Consider a career in Student Affairs or College Student Personnel
- View the Faculty/Staff Qualifications for California Community Colleges
- Check out current teaching job vacancies and salaries at EdJoin
- Consider joining the National Education Association (NEA) Student Program
- Read about national Special Education Requirements and Licensure
- Visit our library to read Peterson's Graduate Programs in Business, Education, Health, Law & Social Work, Counselor Preparation (Programs, Faculty, Trends) and more
Get Experience & Prepare
Confirm your interest in the field, prepare academically and develop the necessary skills and experience:
- Explore your field of interest through relevant classes at UCSD, including courses in Education Studies, Public Service, and Human Development
- If possible, choose a Major in the same area that you would like to teach
- Gain teaching, tutoring and experience with children through the Partners at Learning program
- Volunteer with the AS Volunteer Connection or local Service Agencies
- Learn how to Maximize Your Volunteer Experience
- Consider Internships, Jobs, or other Experiential Learning opportunities
- Join an education-related Student Organization or Professional Association
- Develop communication and leadership skills through Express to Success
Apply to Schools
Most graduate school applications occur in the late fall/early winter of the academic year before you want to start. You will need to identify programs that match your interests and complete an application. Some steps take time so plan ahead!
- Schools & Programs – Use the links below to identify programs with a curriculum, faculty, facilities and services which match your needs. Consider your likelihood of admission and cost.
- Use GradSchools.com and Petersons.com to search by degree level, field and location (US or Int’l)
- Search by Specialty:
- Use GradSchools.com
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- Attend our Graduate School Fair to learn about programsfrom school representatives
- Check our Rankings page for general or field-specific rankings of programs
- Workshops – Watch our Calendar for preparation and application how-to sessions
- Applications – Carefully prepare and submit online applications to individual schools before the deadline
- Tests – Requirements vary. Check with your program for which test(s) to take and Prepare.
- CBEST – The California Basic Educational Skills Test (required for all credential programs)
- CSET – The California Subject Examinations for Teachers (to show subject matter competence)
- GRE – The Graduate Record Examination (for many Master’s programs)
- PRAXIS – The PRAXIS series (for non-California credentials)
- RICA – The Reading Instruction Competence Assessment (for some credential programs)
- CBEST – The California Basic Educational Skills Test
- Letters of Recommendation – Get to Know Writers and Collect Letters
- Application Essay – Write your Personal Statement and get a Critique
- Interviews – Get prepared for Interviews if required
- Financial Aid & Fellowships – Learn how to Pay for School
For additional help with your professional & graduate school preparation and application come into the Career Services Center or contact your Professional & Graduate School Advisors.