Mathematics – Mathematics Education

[1] Introduction

The Master of Arts (MA) in mathematics education features mathematics courses developed to increase the mathematical content knowledge of secondary teachers and prepare candidates for teaching in the community college or pursuing further graduate studies. The program is designed so that a teacher can complete the required courses by attending two consecutive summers and enrolling in evening courses during the intermittent fall and spring semesters or by attending full-time for a year including both summer terms. For those candidates considering more advanced graduate studies, a thesis option is also available to expose candidates to research methods in mathematics education.

[2] Program Admission Requirements

To be admitted to the MA degree program in mathematics education one must have

  1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution;
  2. Adequate preparation in mathematics;
  3. At least a 2.70 GPA; and
  4. Achieve satisfactory scores on the General Test of the Graduate Record Exam.

[3] Degree Requirements

All MA Graduate Students: To obtain the MA degree in mathematics education, a candidate must earn 30 graduate hours in mathematics within six years. Electives must be approved by a candidate’s graduate advisor.

Thesis Option: For the thesis option, a candidate must take at least six thesis hours for research. At the end of the thesis hours, a candidate must produce a written thesis and present results.

Non-Thesis Option: For the non-thesis option, the six additional elective hours may be selected from graduate courses in mathematics and may include courses at the 5000 level with the approval of the candidate’s advisor. All non-thesis option candidates for the MA degree will be required to pass three comprehensive examinations in courses selected from their program of study.

Required courses for all MA graduate students:

MATH 6305 Foundations of Mathematics
MATH 6307 Advanced Topics for Mathematics Educators
MATH 6310 Algebraic Structures
MATH 6350 Modern Geometry
MATH 6370 Differential Calculus
MATH 6375 Integral Calculus

Required courses for all MA graduate students if not successfully completed as an undergraduate:

MATH 5371 Introduction to Probability
MATH 5372 Introduction to Statistical Inference

Required courses for the thesis option:

MATH 6V96 Thesis (variable credit; 6 hours required)

[4] Financial Aid

Graduate Teaching Assistantships are available for fall/spring. Each assistantship includes a full-tuition scholarship for nine credit hours per semester during the academic year. In addition, there is a stipend of $9,000 for nine months. Graduate Assistants are expected to enroll in nine credit hours and work 20 hours per week in the department. Applications for the graduate program and assistantships are available at the UCA’s Graduate School website: https://uca.edu/graduateschool/.

[5] Graduate Courses in Mathematics (MATH)

Follow this link for MATH course descriptions: course link.