Master’s in Secondary STEM Education Curriculum Requirements

Join our inaugural Jayhawk Flex Online Competency-Based Teacher Education Program

Program Structure

Competency-Based Coursework

The program includes 30 credit hours, typically completed in 18–24 months, and is delivered through a competency-based model that allows students to progress by demonstrating mastery of defined competencies rather than completing coursework on a fixed schedule. Program materials are available online for asynchronous access, with optional synchronous sessions offered to support student learning, including opportunities to practice design thinking in educational contexts.

Challenges and Assessments

The curriculum is organized around “challenges” that reflect real-world problems of teaching practice. These challenges require students to apply multiple competencies and demonstrate their learning through program assessments, including portfolios developed through clinical experience.

Clinical Experience

The program is complemented by ongoing clinical experiences in school settings. Clinical experience begins with early field experiences aligned with foundational competencies and continues through more advanced teaching responsibilities for those in the traditional pathway, and full-time classroom teaching for those in the restricted license pathway. A minimum of 500 hours of clinical experience is required.

Licensure Pathways

Students may pursue teacher licensure in the state of Kansas through either a traditional pathway or a restricted license pathway. Candidates pursuing the restricted license pathway may be employed as full-time teachers while completing program requirements.

Graduate Admission

Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree in a STEM field, a related interdisciplinary field, or equivalent experience from a regionally accredited institution or a foreign university with substantially equivalent degree requirements. A minimum grade point average of 2.5 (on a 4.0 scale) in the content area or equivalent is required. Applicants who do not meet the minimum GPA requirement may be considered upon review of their overall application. Candidates pursuing the restricted license pathway must have a minimum GPA of 2.75 in the last 60 credit hours of college coursework. All non-native English speakers must meet the University of Kansas English proficiency requirements for admission to graduate study. Meeting minimum admission standards does not guarantee admission to the program.

Application Checklist

M.S.E. in Secondary STEM Education

Applicants are required to submit an online application through the KU Office of Graduate Admissions and provide all supporting materials before the application deadline.

Application Deadline

Jul 15, 2026

Priority

Aug 13, 2026

Final

Admission & Curriculum Resources

The online application is designed to give applicants the ability to submit all supporting documents in one form. We invite you to explore our graduate degree information, review our student resources, and learn more about our knowledgeable faculty.

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Applications

If you’re interesting in starting the program in the spring or summer semester or a future date, please submit this interest form to be notified when applications are open.

Course Requirements

Each competency in the program is associated with one of the 7 domains in the program. Example competencies are listed below. Consult the course catalog for details.

CT-C 746 Defining Outcomes

CT-C 752 Assessing for Learning

CT-C 741

Understanding Backwards Design

CT-C 747

Designing Short-Term Learning Experiences for Deeper Understanding

CT-C 742

Individualized Learning: Agency, Motivation, Interest

CT-C 749

Individualized Learning: Universal Design for Learning

CT-C 740

Building a Community of Trust

CT-C 753

Leading Collaborative Learning - Discussion

CT-C 760

Productive Instructional Strategies

CT-C 761

Supportive Environments

CT-C 763

Context of STEM Teaching and Learning

CT-C 764

Transforming Classroom Practices and Policies

CT-C 751

Thinking Like a Designer

CT-C 767

Evaluating Educational Technology Tools

Candidates must obtain a passing score for the Kansas State Department of Education Praxis II content assessment (1a) in the subject in which they are seeking licensure prior to the second semester to demonstrate proficiency in the subject matter.

Please note: A suggested sequence of study includes competencies from different domains in each semester. Consult with your academic advisor before enrolling.

Program Completion Requirements

Program completion for the master’s in Secondary STEM Education includes demonstration of all required competencies through program assessments, satisfactory completion of clinical experience requirements, and successful completion of required program assessments and evaluations.
Total credit hours: 30

Program Faculty

Connie Chow Ph.D.

Director, MSE Secondary STEM Education (Jayhawk Flex), Associate Researcher Senior,CCenter for Certification & Competency-Based Education (C3BE), Achievement and Assessment Institute (AAI), Senior Lecturer in STEM Education, Curriculum & Teaching, School of Education and Human Sciences