Eligibility

The Philadelphia Teaching Fellows program is designed for outstanding individuals who do not currently hold a teaching certificate. Eligible candidates must have the following:

• A bachelors degree conferred by May 30, 2012
• U.S. citizenship or hold permanent resident status
• Must not already be a certified teacher or must not have completed an education program that was intended to lead to teacher certification
• A cumulative 3.0 GPA* from either an undergraduate or graduate college/university. This is a Pennsylvania state requirement. 
  

*If your undergraduate GPA is in the 2.8-2.99 range, you could potentially be eligible. To determine your eligibility, please submit an online application.  In the space provoided on the application, please add details regarding your GPA including any additional coursework you have completed beyoned your undergraduate degree.  After submitting the application, please forward electronic transcripts to the PTF office to see if your application can be considered.

It is important to note that applicants must also register for, take, pass and submit to the PTF office passing scores for all Praxis I and Praxis II exams before being fully admitted into our Summer or Winter programs.

Candidates must have proficiency or skills in one of the high-needs subject areas for which we recruit. These subject areas change each year based on the district need. Some subject areas we’ve recruited for in the past include: special education (math, science, social studies, and English), Spanish, bilingual, ESOL, mathematics, math immersion, music, general science, physics and chemistry. Due to the stringent subject area requirements of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, individuals must meet the academic eligibility requirements of their preferred subject area (a minor is not considered an equivalent of a major).

The following table provides detailed information on college majors that meet these state requirements for the high-need subject areas for which we are recruiting for our Summer 2012 program:

 

Subject Area	Eligible College Majors	Ineligible College Majors
Special Education	Any College Major (including Liberal Arts majors)	Individuals from all academic backgrounds can qualify for special education, if interested
Mathematics	Mathematics Engineering	Statistics Accounting Finance Economics
Math Immersion	All majors as long as you've taken and passed a college level calculus class with a grade of a "B" or better from the math department of your college.	The class cannot be an AP class.
Physics	Physics Engineering	Chemistry Biology Geology Environmental Science Animal Science
Chemistry	Chemistry	Physics Biology Geology Environmental Science Animal Science
General Science	Biology Geology Environmental Science	Non-science related fields
Vocal Music	Music	Non-music related fields
ESOL	Any college major	There are very limited ESOL positions available.
English	English	If applicant's degree is not in English, it is not eligible for this subject area