MA in Teaching FAQs

You need to have completed a baccalaureate or higher degree from a regionally-accredited college or university. 

A candidate with a degree in Education, Early Childhood Education, Education Studies, or any other degree in Education will only be allowed to earn a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential per Assembly Bill No. 170. All Bachelors degrees must be earned at a regionally accredited institution of higher education and the institution's regional accreditation status must have been in place at the time the degree was earned.

The amendment of AB 170 allowing candidates for Multiple Subject teaching credentials to hold a Bachelor's degree in Education does not extend to Single Subject credential candidates who must still hold a Bachelor's degree in a subject other than Education.

The MAT program is designed to be completed in 11 months. 

We ask that you have a 3.0 cumulative GPA from your bachelor's program; however, we review all applications holistically for individuals who show potential for success in our program. If you have concerns about your GPA, you're welcome to include a brief 'GPA Statement of Explanation' with your application.

Seven years.

Master of Arts in Teaching (with preliminary teaching credential) is offered at the West Los Angeles and Calabasas campuses.

Applicants who attended schools outside the United States are required to submit certified transcripts in English. Submitted transcripts must include a cumulative grade point average (GPA on a 4.0 scale, A = 4.0) that has been evaluated by a NACES member credential service such as the World Education Services, Inc. or the International Education Research Foundation.

If you have not completed your bachelor's degree at the time of application, submit a current transcript. Upon degree completion, you are required to provide official transcripts in a sealed envelope prior to enrollment.

Mailing Address:
Pepperdine Graduate School of Education and Psychology Admissions
6100 Center Drive 5th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90045, USA

International applicants whose native language is not English are required to submit a minimum passing score of 550 on the Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL). The computer-based TOEFL test requires a minimum passing score of 80. Information concerning the availability of this test in foreign countries can be obtained by contacting TOEFL, Educational Testing Services, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA, or online. As an alternative to the TOEFL, you may submit a score of at least 6.5 on the IELTS exam. 

In August 2021, the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom issued a policy to encourage teachers and staff to get vaccinated to stop the spread of COVID-19 in all California public schools.  This policy has impacted requirements to access school sites by administrators, teachers, students, staff, and any other person wanting access.  Although some districts have issued additional or stricter policies than Governor Newsom’s plan, the COVID-19 vaccine mandate to access a school site has prevailed across K-12 districts in the State of California.

The MAT program has worked with partnering districts to ensure teacher candidates have met all the requirements needed to access a school site base on the California COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

If an MAT teacher candidate is not vaccinated, access to student teaching sites may be limited.  Thus, an unvaccinated teacher candidate may be delayed in fulfilling the 600 hours of required minimal clinical experience, 4 weeks of solo teaching, and 14 formal observations needed to be recommended to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC), and consequently, the MAT program may not be completed in the 11 months.