Application for Admission

UECH Block Applications are now closed.

As of September 14, 2020, students may no longer be admitted to the UECH major program due to program restructuring.

UECH Eligible Block Application Semesters

UECH students are eligible to apply to the blocks in Fall semester only.  If accepted, the student will start the Blocks in the following Spring semester.  Please consult advisor and program coordinator if out of sequence regarding options for application term.

BLOCK ADMISSION APPLICATIONS ARE DUE THE SIXTH FRIDAY OF EACH SEMESTER, AT 4:00 PM, TO BEGIN THE MAJOR PROGRAM THE FOLLOWING SEMESTER.

Selection of Candidates

Acceptance into the Unified Early Childhood Studies major is selective. The number of students admitted to each cohort is limited in order to maintain a high quality program. Students must meet all the admission requirements to be accepted.  Applicants are selected according to their rank in the application process.

ALL essential components listed below must be completed correctly and submitted on time in order for the application to be accepted.

Selection Criteria

Program applicants must have the following to be considered:

  1. A declared teacher education major
  2. A 2.7 Cumulative GPA, including transfer credit
  3. A 2.7 Major GPA
  4. Have completed/In progress, a total of 45 credits. The following courses must be completed or in progress:  SPED 4433, EDUC 1100, EDUC 1101, ECH 2010, ECH 2025, ECH 2015, and the majority of your liberal education coursework.
  5. Have attempted a Basic Skills Exam Option: Taken the NES Essential Academic Skills, ACT Plus Writing, SAT, MTLE (prior to 6/9/2016) OR Praxis (prior to 9/1/2010)  [Required scores]
  6. Minimum of three letters of recommendation
  7. Have a demonstrated commitment to working with children. This includes 30 hours in supervised settings during the past 2 years; preferably 15 hours in an early primary (K-3) setting and 15 hours in an early childhood (birth-age 5) setting.
  8. A complete application to the program submitted to TK20 by the due date.  
Application Components to be uploaded into TK20

In order to better prepare for your application completion we strongly recommend that you collect these documents as soon as possible to be ready when the application period opens.  All documents must be in electronic format  (.pdf, .doc/.docx, .jpg, .png).  The Multimedia Hub in the library can assist with scanning physical documents into a digital format. 

APAS Report or Post Post Bac Contract

  • APAS Report
    • Instructions on how to download the “printer friendly report version”.pdf.  Instructions also guide you through using Adobe Reader’s highlight tool.  Use the highlight tool to indcate the following requirements on your APAS:
    • Cumulative GPA & Major GPA are both 2.7 or greater, including transfer credit
    • Cumulative Credits (completed and in progress):  Must be a minimum of 45 credits
    • Required pre-block courses (grades must be C- or better)
      • SPED 4433
      • EDUC 1100
      • EDUC 1101
      • ECH 2010
      • ECH 2025
      • ECH 2015
  • Post Bac Contract

Tentative Planner

  • Download the tentative planner and add the terms in which you plan to be in each block and any outstanding coursework remaining during the blocks. Once completed, make sure to save the tentative planner.

Cover Letter

This letter should be professional in nature, signed by you, and must include a personal statement describing the reasons you consider yourself a good candidate for the Unified Early Childhood Studies Program. You must also directly address each of the essential qualifications, highlighting your strengths in meeting or exceeding the qualifications. You may also describe other qualities and skills you would bring to the early childhood profession. For example, you may include descriptions of experiences that have led to your interest in the early childhood profession, personal qualities that would serve the profession, philosophical statements describing your ideas about young children or education at this time, etc. Your letter should be professional and free of errors.

Cover letter should be addressed to:

Unified Early Childhood Studies Faculty Committee
UMD Department of Education
150 EduE
412 Library Drive
Duluth, MN 55812-3029

3 Letters of Recommendation

You must have at least three signed letters of recommendation. The letters should verify the required minimum of 30 hours of experience with children aged Birth-Pre-K and K-Grade 3.  Preferably, this  would be a supervisor who has observed you working with young children. Other letters may come from employers, professors, and other people who know you in another context. However, they must be able to address such areas as your character, attitudes, and work ethic.

Test score report

You are required to upload your official score report showing evidence of having taken one of the PELSB approved Basic Skills Exam options.

Accessing Scores

  • NES Essential academic skills (reading, writing, math) taken 6/9/2016 to the present would have been emailed to you in a .pdf report or is accessible in your online account
  • ACT PLUS Writing: Get ACT Scores
  • SAT:  Get SAT scores
  • MTLE taken before 6/9/2016 would have been emailed to you in a .pdf report or is accessible in your online account at MTLE
  • Praxis I (prior to 9/1/2010):  official score report mailed to student.

Block Admission Notification

Block admission decisions will be sent to students' UMD emails.