Frequently Asked Questions - Formal Entry

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) mandates that all teacher certification candidates meet a certain criteria.  MU has adopted requirements in order to meet the criteria and to be a state approved teacher education program that successfully leads students to certification in the state of Pennsylvania.

All Education majors must apply and achieve Formal Entry status to advance in the program.

If you do NOT meet the criteria:

• You will not be able to take advanced professional classes.
• Your completion of the program may be delayed.
• You may need to consider another major.

Advanced professional courses are usually taken during the junior and senior semesters before student teaching.  Depending on what your content area is, some courses may be earlier or later in the program.

You can view your Formal Entry status through your audit.

• View the section labeled 'Formal Entry (Previously APS).  This section shows your progress towards obtaining Formal Entry status.
• When you have completed all requirements, you must submit a Formal Entry application.
• Once your Formal Entry status has been awarded, your audit will have a green check in the Formal Entry area and on all Formal Entry requirements.

Once you have completed all of the Formal Entry criteria, you must submit an application through the MU Formal Entry Page.

For more information on Formal Entry, visit the Formal Entry Home Page.