Deaf and hard of hearing MEd and licensure

Deaf and Hard of Hearing MEd and licensure

The University of Minnesota Deaf and Hard of Hearing MEd and licensure program prepares you to effectively teach students, birth through grade 12, with varying degrees of hearing.

2.5 Average years to completion

100% primarily remote with in-person components

March 1 priority deadline

April 15 Final deadline

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Program details

Deaf and Hard of Hearing MEd and teaching licensure

Teach Deaf and Hard of Hearing students

In the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) MEd and teaching licensure program, you'll receive the training you need to teach students, birth through 21, with diverse backgrounds and hearing levels. Our classes are offered in the evenings, in real-time primarily online with some in-person components. You'll graduate with the qualifications needed to apply for a DHH licensure in Minnesota and the skills you need to teach DHH students through culturally responsive and multilingual, multimodal best practices for instruction connecting ASL, English, and additional languages through an anti-bias lens.

Students in the program often have undergraduate degrees in special education, Deaf education, elementary education, bilingual/ESL education, Deaf studies, and interpreting.

In order to be recommended for your Minnesota B-12 Deaf or Hard of Hearing License, you must successfully complete these licensure requirements for an initial licensure and these licensure requirements for an additional licensure mandated by the state of Minnesota.

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How to apply

Tuition and funding

Tuition

Visit the College of Education and Human Development's Tuition and Financial Aid page for information on tuition.

Funding

Scholarships and awards through school districts for employees

Ask your employer if they have funding to support your education.

Special Education Pipeline Grant is a partnership between educator preparation programs and K-12 schools to recruit and prepare employees to become fully licensed Tier 3 or Tier 4 special education teachers.

Grow Your Own Program is similar to the Pipeline program, but is not limited to special education and often includes a focus on diversifying the teacher workforce.

Come Teach in Minnesota allows school districts to offer hiring and retention bonuses to eligible individuals when they move to Minnesota and enroll in a teacher preparation program.

WE-IMAGINE Funding:

The Deaf and Hard of Hearing MEd and licensure preparation program has received a federal grant for personnel preparation from the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). Project WE-IMAGINE: Well-being in Education: Integrating Multilingual & Mindfulness Approaches to Guide & Inspire New Educators- Preparing Teachers to Serve School Age Deaf and Hard of Hearing Student:

Purpose: To address the gap in service to Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) students by training teachers to meet the culturally and linguistically diverse needs of DHH students through multilingual and multicultural approaches to education, while addressing the wellbeing of teachers and students.
WE-IMAGINE grant scholars will be eligible to receive a range of financial support towards tuition, possible stipends for expenses and travel, and professional development.

Students who accept support from the WE-IMAGINE Project must agree to the following UMN and OSEP requirements:

Teach the full-time equivalent of two years with students who are DHH and/or other disabilities for each year they receive funds.
Students who fail to do so are obligated to repay all or part of the scholarship received plus interest directly to OSEP.
Participate in all grant-related activities. These include:
- Attending in-person and/or online professional development and conferences, and online grant-related events.
  - Participate in planning activities, as requested.
- Opportunities to work with a grant-related mentor, as determined by DHH program instructors.

Apply for WE-IMAGINE Funding

Grants for eligible, enrolled students

TEACH Grants

TEACH Grants are part of a federal program to provide financial support to students who will teach in a high need area at a low-income school for at least four years. Application information is available from Onestop on their grants and waivers page.

Scholarships, fellowships and awards through the University

Financial aid

Minnesota Aspiring Teachers of Color Scholarship Pilot Program

Minnesota Aspiring Teachers of Color Scholarship Pilot Program provides post-secondary financial assistance to eligible undergraduate and graduate students who are preparing to become teachers, have demonstrated financial need, and belong to racial or ethnic groups underrepresented in the state’s teacher workforce.

Visit OneStop Student Services for more information on available financial aid.

Careers

Graduates of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing licensure preparation program:

Teach in classrooms at residential or day Schools for the Deaf
Teach in classrooms, resource rooms with DHH programming
Provide instruction directly with students and their families as itinerant teachers or early interventionists
Serve as a DHH consultant to general classroom teachers
Serve DHH students from birth through young adults, who come from a variety of backgrounds: cultures, linguistic, race, socio-economic, hearing levels, and abilities

Video Player

0:00 University of Minnesota Deaf Education Teacher Preparation Program
3:16 Why Deaf and Hard of Hearing children need you to become a DHH teacher?
5:30 Why should you join the UMN DHH Teacher Preparation Program?
6:44 How can MN community organizations support you as a DHH teacher?
8:07 How do I get involved in MN communities?
11:11 Final thoughts

Coursework

All classes are offered in the evening to allow students to maintain full time employment while completing course requirements, as long as their employer is flexible in allowing them to complete all field experience requirements. Most courses are taught synchronously remote and some also include in-person sessions on the St. Paul campus and/or in local DHH programs.

The Deaf and Hard of Hearing MEd program requires the completion of 46 credits (plus an additional 8 credits for those without prior licensure). Your total number of required credits may vary based on previous educational experience or licensures.

Sample course schedule

In-person requirements

Required DHH licensure courses (46 credits)

Common content courses (8 credits)

Access resources for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

Visit the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) Commission of the Deaf, Deaf/Blind, and Hard of Hearing website.