A focus on Experiential Learning
When it comes to preparing School of Education (SOE) students for life after graduation, we leave no stone unturned. The workforce facing new graduates is highly complex, often unpredictable, and more demanding than ever. This requires providing students with extensive experiential learning opportunities where they can hone their skills in authentic professional environments and feel prepared to take on anything.
In the SOE, we have addressed this need directly by deliberately integrating unparalleled experiential learning opportunities throughout our academic programs. This includes internships, field placements, practicums, student teaching, faculty-mentored research, service-based learning, and study abroad opportunities. Undergraduate students in our teacher preparation programs engage in more than 1,000 hours of field-based experience prior to graduating, allowing them to gain invaluable, real world perspective in their fields of study. Students also complete class projects and research their own interests through the SELF Design Studio, a makerspace devoted to training teachers how to integrate technology and innovation into K-12 settings.
Graduate students in the SOE benefit from hands-on learning that is woven throughout our programs and co-curricular opportunities. Students interested in research work alongside faculty members on cutting-edge studies and innovation projects, providing them with first-hand experience with discovering solutions to pressing social and educational issues. In the Department of Counseling and Educational Development, students gain direct experience in counseling through the Vacc Counseling and Consulting Clinic, a world-class counselor training facility located on-campus. For students in the Department of Educational Research Methodology, real-world training in evaluation, assessment, and data analysis is provided by working on genuine analysis and evaluation contracts secured through our Office of Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Services (OAERS).
It is our goal to develop an outstanding workforce of education professionals that are successful from the very first day in their careers. We recognize that each student that chooses the School of Education at UNC Greensboro has different personal goals and interests, and we are here to help them achieve and explore as many of them as possible.