Early Childhood Education | School of Education

Are you interested in teaching children from birth to age 8 (third grade)? The Early Childhood Education (ECE) program will prepare you to work in a variety of early care and education settings.

Why Early Childhood Education?

Rigorous preparation for employment in a variety of settings, and to work with culturally and linguistically diverse children and families.
Ability to attain a degree with or without state certification, and easy access to add-ons such as English as a Second Language (ESL) and Bilingual certification.
Real-world, classroom-based field experiences in a variety of classroom settings in Milwaukee and the surrounding metropolitan area.
Flexible and accessible scheduling options that include day and evening sections of each program course, summer and winter break offerings, and full and part-time options.
Innovative teacher education curriculum taught by highly-qualified faculty.

Who Should Consider the Program?

Traditional undergraduates or transfer students.
Career changers who already hold a bachelor’s degree.
Those who hold an associate’s degree in ECE and would like to complete a degree and state certification.
Those who would like to attain Master’s level credits with certification, or a Master’s degree.

Undergraduate Program

Program Sheet

Undergraduate Program Sheet (PDF)

Admission Criteria – With or Without Certification

Teacher candidates are admitted to the ECE major upon declaring the major or transferring from another institution. Candidates can be admitted to the certification track(s) of the major upon:

Successful completion of 40 credits.
Completion of UWM competency requirements in English and Mathematics.

Post-Baccalaureate Program

Program Sheet

Post-Baccalaureate Program Sheet (PDF)

Admission Criteria

Candidates must hold a Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university and have earned a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA. Contact a program advisor listed below for information about the application process. Applications must be received by December 15 for the Post-Baccalaureate program.

Post-Baccalaureate Program Application (PDF)

Explore the Program Further!

Students who already hold a bachelor’s degree can earn their teaching certification by successfully completing our post-baccalaureate teaching certification program. It’s possible that coursework completed as part of your bachelor’s degree could be applied towards our program. Please complete the web form below to find out if any of your previous course work can be used to fulfill certification requirements.

Request for Transcript Evaluation Form

Graduate Program

Please contact Dr. Nancy File, Program Chair and Kellner Professor for more information at eceprogram@uwm.edu. This is a focus area in the Curriculum and Instruction MS Degree program. See C&I Master’s degree program.

PTT Grant Project

UWM Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers National Professional Development Grant Project: May 2012 – April 2017

PTT (Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers) is focused on the preparation and support of teachers and early childhood personnel so that they are able to effectively educate young children who are dual-language learners. For more information, please visit the UWM Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers National Professional Development Grant Project webpage.