Ways to Meet Subject Matter

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California Education Code requires that all candidates for a teaching credential must demonstrate they are proficient in the subject matter area of their intended credential

Subject matter proficiency may be demonstrated through one of the following options:

  1. Completion of a subject matter program approved by the commission.
  2. Passage of a subject matter examination (the California Subject Examination for Teachers or CSET)
  3. Through a major that matches a subject matter in which the commission credentials candidates (see more information below).
  4. Successful completion of coursework at one or more regionally accredited institutions of higher education that addresses each of the domains of the subject matter requirements.
  5. Through a combination of coursework and CSET so that all domains are met.

More information from CTC: https://www.ctc.ca.gov/educator-prep/subject-matter-requirements

Meeting Subject Matter through Major

With the passing of AB 130, it is possible to meet subject matter through a major that matches the majors specified in the legislation.

  • The major match should be done by the approved teacher education program where you will be completing your credential as the credential analyst of that institution must verify the major match when recommending you for a credential at the end of your program.
  • The majors (BA/BS/MA/MS) must have been conferred by a regionally accredited university and the academic degree major must match the subject area of the credential being sought.

This option is currently available for candidates who have completed an academic degree in a major that exactly matches one of those identified in the law as indicated below:

Subject Matter for Multiple Subjects: Liberal Studies degrees as well as Liberal Studies degrees that include any focus or concentration in the title are the only major that qualifies for the major match with multiple subjects.  Examples include, but are not limited to, Liberal Studies: Urban Education and Liberal Studies: Elementary Education. Subject Matter for multiple subjects may be used for a multiple subjects credential or for an Education Specialist credential.

Education Specialist Credential (Special Ed) may meet subject matter for multiple subjects or any of the single subject credentials below.

Single Subject Credentials: The major must be an exact degree/credential subject match in one of the subjects named in Education Code section 44257(a). The credential areas that the CSUDH  Teacher Education Division offers are:

  • Art
  • Dance--TED does not currently offer the credential but working on submitting to CTC
  • English
  • World Language (in any of the languages for which there is a credential. For example, a major in Spanish would meet subject matter for World Language: Spanish)
  • Mathematics
  • Music
  • Physical Education (May say Kinesiology if it also says Physical Education as part of the degree.
  • Science (including Biology, Chemistry, Geoscience or Earth and Space Science, and Physics)
  • Social Science—Right now, BA must say “Social Science.” History is not approved at this time. Candidates will need to do transcript review when it is available.
  • Theater-- TED does not currently offer the credential but working on submitting to CTC

At this time, the Commission will also accept applied majors in the single subject credential areas (e.g., Applied Mathematics, Applied Physics) and exact majors in one of the single subject areas that may have additional modifiers (e.g., Biology: Environmental Biology; Art: Art History; and Physical Education: Kinesiology).

Download the directions and form below for the major match. The directions will include the link to upload your transcripts to a secure Dropbox. Please, plan ahead as processing may take several weeks.

Subject Matter Through Major Instructions
Subject Matter Verification through Major

Meeting Subject Matter through Coursework Review

Coursework may now be used to meet subject matter for a particular credential type (such as multiple subjects, English, math etc.) instead of CSET or an approved subject matter program. A combination of CSET and coursework may also be used; however, the domains covered by a particular CSET subtest must ALL be met by coursework in lieu of taking that subtest.

Please read the directions carefully and then upload your folder with all required materials to the Dropbox included in the directions.

Directions:

IMPORTANT: This subject evaluation form is only valid in the College of Education at CSUDH for
admissions and for a credential application at CSUDH.

PLAN AHEAD: the review may take 6-8 weeks. Some reviews are sent to other departments for review and most reviews take 1-3 hours to complete.

Course Review for Subject Matter Worksheets:

Multiple Subjects

Multiple Subjects Worksheet

Single Subject

Art
Biology
Chemistry
Dance
Earth and Space Sciences
English
Math (Foundational)
Math (Full credential)
Music
Physical Education
Physics
Science (Foundational)
Social Sciences
Theatre
World Languages