The Exceptional Student Education (ESE) B.S. is an accelerated degree program. The ESE Program offers a comprehensive, streamlined curriculum designed for motivated students to complete their bachelor’s degree in three years and their master’s degree in year four. This innovative 3+1 pathway blends rigorous coursework, field experiences, and graduate-level preparation, allowing students to enter the workforce earlier with advanced credentials and specialized expertise in serving students with exceptionalities.
Students in the accelerated ESE program may take 9 hours of graduate courses as senior scholars during their B.S. that may be applied towards total credit hours in the M.Ed. Exceptional Student Education program. The program Plan of Study provides a regimented course sequence with lighter summers.
The Exceptional Student Education program also provides students with a community-embedded teacher preparation program that culminates in certification in Exceptional Education K-12 with Reading and ESOL endorsements. The ESE program is appropriate for students interested in employment in K-12 settings working with students with disabilities. Exceptional Education is a critical shortage area, and students may be eligible for funding under the TEACH grant. Information can be found at https://www.ucf.edu/financial-aid/types/grants/teach/
This program prepares students for state-regulated professional licensure or certification. For more information on how this program may prepare you in that regard, please view the licensure disclosure for the Exceptional Student Education BS program.
Restricted Electives
Capstone Requirements
Electives
Foreign Language Requirements
Admissions
- State University System foreign language admission requirement: two years in high school or one year of college instruction in a single foreign language. (This requirement applies to those students admitted to the University without the required two units of foreign language in high school.)
Graduation
- Pass all applicable sections of the Florida Teacher Certification Examinations: General Knowledge Test (GKT); Professional Exam (PE); and, the Exceptional Student Education Subject Area Exam (SAE). See http://www.fldoe.org for test dates and test sites. Effective January 1, 2015, only examination results earned by educators within 10 years prior to the date of application for a new Florida Educator's Certificate with the Florida Department of Education may be acceptable for certification eligibility requirements (SBE Rule 6A-4.002)."
Additional Requirements
Required Minors
Departmental Exit Requirements
- Achieve a minimum overall 2.5 GPA within the major.
- Achieve a minimum 2.5 GPA in the education core coursework
- Achieve a minimum 2.5 GPA in the specialization coursework
- Achieve a minimum overall 2.5 GPA
- You must upload key assignments using the Via by Watermark platform. Key assignments are then assessed by faculty to provide evidence of candidate proficiency in all Florida Educator Accomplished Practices. All teacher education candidates, Lifelong Learning majors, and Early Childhood Development and Education majors (all ECDE tracks) are required to complete all Via requirements in order to be cleared for graduation. See https://ccie.ucf.edu/sll/
- Complete ESOL standards assessment tracking requirements in Via for the ESOL endorsement
- Pass all applicable sections of the Florida Teacher Certification Examination. See http://www.fldoe.org for test dates and test sites. Effective January 1, 2015, only examination results earned by educators within 10 years prior to the date of application for a new Florida Educator's Certificate with the Florida Department of Education may be acceptable for certification eligibility requirements (SBE Rule 6A-4.002)
University Minimum Exit Requirements
- A 2.0 UCF GPA
- 42 semester hours of upper division credit completed
- 30 of the last 39 hours of course work must be completed in residency at UCF.
- A maximum of 45 hours of extension, correspondence, CLEP, Credit by Exam, and Armed Forces credits permitted.
- Complete the General Education Program, the State Writing and Math Requirement, and nine hours of Summer credit.
Total Undergraduate Credit Hours Required: 120
Additional Information
Honors In Major
Related Programs
Certificates
Related Minors
Advising Notes
Transfer Notes
Acceptable Substitutes for Transfer Courses
Program Academic Learning Compacts
- Program Academic Learning Compacts (student learning outcomes) for undergraduate programs are located at: https://oeas.ucf.edu/about/academiclearningcompacts/
Plan of Study
General Education Requirements:
One Florida state core course is required in each of the Five Foundations.
SWR - State Writing Requirement class (must earn C- or better; four courses required)
SMR – State Math Requirement class (must earn C- or better; two courses required)
CL – Civic Literacy Requirement Course option (one course required)
PR – Course has at least one prerequisite. Prerequisites must be satisfied prior to enrollment. Refer to the UCF Undergraduate Catalog for prerequisite
Freshman Year - Fall (15 Credit Hours)
- Communication Foundation 1: ENC 1101 - Composition I Credit Hours: 3 (SWR)
- Mathematics Foundation 1: MAC 1105C - College Algebra Credit Hours: 3 (PR) (SMR)
- Humanities Foundation 1: Select One (3 Credit Hours)
MUL 2010 - Enjoyment of Music Credit Hours: 3 (SWR)
THE 2000 - Theatre Survey Credit Hours: 3 (SWR)
PHI 2010 – Intro to Philosophy Credit Hours: 3 (SWR)
- Natural Sciences Foundation 1: PSC 1121 - Physical Science Credit Hours: 3 (PR)
- Social Sciences Foundation 1: PSY 2012 - General Psychology Credit Hours: 3
Freshman Year - Spring (15 Credit Hours)
- Communication Foundation 2: ENC 1102 - Composition II Credit Hours: 3 (PR) (SWR)
- Humanities Foundation 2: Credit Hours: 3
- Natural Sciences Foundation 2: BSC 1005 - Biological Principles Credit Hours: 3
- Mathematics Foundation 2: STA 2014 - Principles of Statistics Credit Hours: 3 (SMR)
- EDF 2005 - Introduction to the Teaching Profession Credit Hours: 3
Freshman Year - Summer (12 Credit Hours)
- Communication Foundation 3: SPC 1608 - Fundamentals of Oral Communication Credit Hours:3
- Social Sciences Foundation 2: POS 2041 - American National Government Credit Hours: 3 (CL)
- Humanities Foundation 3: Credit Hours: 3
- Elective 1 Credit Hours: 1-3
Sophomore Year - Fall (15 Credit Hours)
- EDF 2130 - Child and Adolescent Development for Educators Credit Hours: 3
- RED 3012 - Basic Foundations of Reading Credit Hours: 3
- EDG 4410 - Teaching Strategies and Classroom Management Credit Hours: 3
- TSL 4080 - Theory and Practice of Teaching ESOL Students in Schools Credit Hours: 3
- EEX 4601 - Introduction to Behavior Management Credit Hours: 3
Or EEX 6612 Methods of Behavioral Management
Sophomore Year – Spring Winter Intercession (3 Credit Hours)
- EDF 4467 - Learning Theory and Assessment Credit Hours: 3
Sophomore Year - Spring (15-16 Credit Hours)
- EDF 2720 - Children in Schools: Legal, Ethical and Safety Concerns Credit Hours: 3
- EEX 4070 - Teaching Exceptional Students Credit Hours: 3
- Methods Content Area Course I: Select One (3 credit hours)
Elementary Content Area Course: MAE 3310 - Elementary Mathematics for Teaching I Credit Hours: 3
or
Secondary Content Area Course: MAE 4360 - Mathematics Instructional Analysis Credit Hours: 4
- RED 4519 - Diagnostic and Corrective Reading Strategies Credit Hours: 3
- EEX 3243 - Techniques for Exceptional Adolescents-Adults Credit Hours: 3
Sophomore Year - Summer (12 Credit Hours)
- TSL 4240 - Issues in Second Language Acquisition Credit Hours: 3
- Elective 2 Credit Hours: 3
- Elective 3 Credit Hours: 3
- Elective 4 Credit Hours: 3
Junior Year - Fall (15 Credit Hours)
- EEX 3221 - Assessment of Exceptional Students Credit Hours: 3
Or EEX 6295 Assessment and Curriculum Prescriptions for the Exceptional Population
- EEX 3241 - Methods for Academic Skills for Exceptional Students Credit Hours: 3
Or EEX 6061 Instructional Strategies Pre-K-6
- EEX 4763 - Technology for Classroom Teachers of Students with Special Needs Credit Hours: 3
- LAE 4314 - Language Arts in the Elementary School Credit Hours: 3
- Methods Content Area Course II- Select one course from the Elementary OR Secondary Content Area:
Elementary Content Area Courses (3 Credit Hours)
MAE 3311 is a preferred Elementary Content Area course. Credit Hours: 3 or
SCE 3310 - Teaching Science in Elementary School Credit Hours: 3 or
SSE 3312 - Teaching Social Science in the Elementary School Credit Hours: 3 or
LAE 3414 - Literature for Children Credit Hours: 3
Secondary Content Area Courses (3 Credit Hours) or
SCE 4360 - Science Instructional Analysis Credit Hours: 4 or
SSE 4361 - Social Science Instructional Analysis Credit Hours: 3 or
LAE 4361 - Literacy Strategies in a Digital Age for Middle and High School Credit Hours: 3 or
LAE 4464 - Survey of Adolescent Literature Credit Hours: 3
Junior Year – Spring Winter Intercession (3 Credit Hours)
- EEX 4932 Registered Behavioral Technician Preparation Credit Hours:3
Junior Year - Spring (15 Credit Hours)
- EEX 4066 - Curriculum, Theory and Instructional Strategies for Students with Special Needs Credit Hours: 3
- RED 4942 - Practicum for Assessment and Instruction of Reading Credit Hours: 3
- EEX 4941 - Internship Credit Hours: 9
