Sixth Year Certificate in
Agricultural Education
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Sixth Year Certificate in Agricultural Education |
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The sixth year
certificate is unique to the world of education. In some states and in
some universities there is a degree called the Educational Specialist.
This degree is sort of a bridge between the Master's degree and
Doctoral degree. It is for the individual who needs additional training
beyond the scope of the Master's degree. North Carolina State
University does not offer the Educational Specialist degree but has
permission from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction to
offer a 6th Year Certificate. The 6th year program is designed to produce formal leaders in the field of education. Though course work and interaction with the faculty are important in developing educational leaders, the individuals admitted must bring evidence to the program that they indeed have the necessary professional disposition and professional, content, and pedagogical knowledge and skills to be education leaders. In order to be admitted to the sixth year program, one must currently be in a teaching or administrative position in the school system and hold a Master’s degree in agricultural education. Individuals who earn their sixth year certificate might pursue opportunities to become Directors of Career and Technical Education for Local Education Agencies (LEA), work at the Department of Public Instruction level, or be employed in similar positions. The 6th year program has specific course requirements; however it also has some flexibility to allow individuals to select courses that are most appropriate to their professional goals and aspirations. If a student has completed a Master’s program at another institution and does not have the core courses they would have completed in the NCSU Master’s program, they are required to remedy these deficiencies.
The culminating product of the 6th year program will be an expanded professional portfolio. This will be similar to the portfolio presented by the Master’s students with several exceptions. Each section of the portfolio will be more in-depth than the Master’s level portfolio. The focus will be broader than just a single classroom. At the Master’s level, the portfolio tends to emphasize what the teacher does at the classroom level. The 6th year student will be required to have documentation that focus more on the school or LEA level. Additionally, there will be two additional sections added to the 10 sections of the portfolio. The first new section is titled "Research" and contains a synopsis of the research the candidate conducted as part of the AEE 620 class. The other is titled “Enhancing Student Learning through Family Involvement.” At the Master’s level this information is incorporated into several different sections of the portfolio, particularly in section 9. For the 6th year student, there is a separate section where the candidate will document in detail how he/she has accomplished this. The application process involves submitting a letter of application stating career goals and objectives, a professional resume Return to the Graduate Degrees page |