Health Teacher (P-12), M.S.Ed.
School of Education
Program Overview
The program fully prepares you for employment as a health teacher. It serves many practicing education professionals looking for advanced training and professional growth and development. The program offers courses on mental health, nutrition, personal health, sexuality, and stress management, among many other topics. With a strong emphasis on connecting with community-health partners, professors coordinate among teachers, community agencies, and community resources to achieve a complete school-community health education program.
Program Details
The program information listed here reflects the approved curriculum for the 2026鈥�27 academic year per the 今日吃瓜 Bulletin. Bulletins from past academic years can be found here.
Program Description
NYSED Program Code: 27318
The master of science degree in education, health teacher program serves New York metropolitan area residents, many of whom are professionals practicing in the field of education and come to 今日吃瓜 for advanced training and professional growth and development. Graduates typically find or continue employment in public and private schools and other community settings. NYS Dept. of Education recommends that Health education in the junior and senior high school grades be taught by teachers holding a certificate to teach health. The profession of health teacher is licensed by the New York State Education Department. Therefore, program requirements are subject to change. All students should consult with the School of Education about the current requirements.
Contact
Laura Blitzer, Program Coordinator
Matriculation Requirements
Applicants must offer 18 credits in courses in the health sciences or equivalent courses in other fields.
Applicants must also offer (a) or (b) or (c):
- (a) New York State Initial Certification in teaching physical education or health for all grades;
- (b) courses in education that meet the New York State Education Department (NYSED) standards for the pedagogical core. These courses include study of the following: history of education and philosophy of education or principles of education or educational sociology; educational psychology or developmental psychology or psychology of adolescence or adolescent development; classroom management; teaching students with special needs and English language learners; six credits in literacy and language acquisition; curriculum development and methods of assessing student learning; uses of technology in the classroom; methods of teaching health for all grades; current NYSED requirement for field experience.
- (c) an undergraduate degree with an appropriate major or appropriate course work (including introduction to health, human physiology, health counseling, health appraisal or the physiology of health and disease, occupational health or first aid, evaluation or statistics, human sexuality, health and human ecology or environmental health, and drugs and society).
Applicants must have a minimum undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of 3.00. A minimum GPA of 3.00 in graduate courses is required to maintain matriculation.
International applicants for whom English is a second language are required to pass the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a score of 550 on the paper-based test or 213 on the computer-based test or 79 on the internet-based test before being considered for admission.
Applicants who have not completed all the specific course requirements are given individual consideration and may be admitted with conditions, with the approval of the HNSC and SEED health teacher program coordinators.
General matriculation and admission requirements of Graduate Studies are in the section “Admission.”
Program Requirements (30 Credits)
A minimum of 30 credits is required for the degree.
Applicants must apply for either Option A, B, or C. Candidates for either Options B or C will be interviewed as a part of the admission process.
All students must take SEED 7320T, preferably in the final semester of study.
The program of study must be approved by the HNSC and SEED Health Teacher Program Coordinators.
Option A (30 Credits)
Students with initial certification to teach health or physical education or dance education must take:
a) All of these: SEED , SEED or , and SEED , and
(b) 6-12 elective credits in Education from among the following: SEED , SEED , SEED , and
(c) 12-18 credits in HNSC or related subjects at the graduate level with permission of the HNSC or SEED Health Teacher Program Coordinators.
Option B (30-31 Credits)
Students with initial certification to teach in an area other than health or physical or dance education must take:
(a) SEED , , , SEED , and
(b) 6-9 additional credits in SEED from among the following: SEED , SEED , SEED , SEED , or or other elective courses approved by the SEED Health Teacher program coordinator, and,
(c) 12-18 credits in HNSC or related subjects at the graduate level with permission of the HNSC and SEED Health Teacher Program Coordinators.
(d) All students, including those with certification(s) in an area other than physical education or Dance education must complete a supervised student teaching experience course, either SEED or SEED , and a performance assessment course, SEED .
Option C (31-37 Credits)
Students who already have a master’s degree in health or an allied field but no initial certification in teaching health must take all of the following:
(a) SEED , SEED , and SEED
(b) SEED ,
(c) CBSE or SEED聽,
(d) SEED ,
(e) SEED , SEED , SEED and SEED ,
(f) SEED
(g) SEED
Students must also take 6 credits in HNSC or related subjects or in education at the graduate level with permission of the HNSC or SEED Health Teacher Program Coordinators.
Admissions Requirements
- Fall Application Deadline: July 15
- Spring Application Deadline: November 15
Supporting Documents for Matriculation
Submit the following documents to the Office of Graduate Admissions:
- Transcripts from all colleges and universities attended. Applicants who earned a bachelor’s degree outside the United States need to submit a course-by-course international transcript evaluation. See Graduate Admissions for more information.
- Two letters of recommendation
- 搁茅蝉耻尘茅
- Photocopy of New York State or other state teaching certificate (if already certified)
- On a separate page, attach a brief biographical statement of 500 to 1,000 words describing your reasons for pursuing the specific graduate program to which you are applying and your future professional goals.
Interview with department.
This program does not accept nondegree applicants.
Required Tests
- TOEFL (paper, computer, internet): 500, 213, 79
Fingerprint Verification
All students accepted to the School of Education are required to submit fingerprint verification before signing up for most education classes. Fingerprint verification is required for work in New York City Department of Education schools if you already have fingerprint records or not. Follow these instructions.
I-20 Submission Deadlines
F-1 students who are not currently in the country should submit their I-20 by the following dates to allow sufficient time for visa processing and to meet the semester start date.
- July 15 for fall admission
- December 5 for spring admission
More Information
Refer to the instructions at Graduate Admissions.
The Support You鈥檒l Find
今日吃瓜 is an integral part of the cultural and artistic energy of New York City. Our faculty members in the Department of Secondary Education and Health and Nutrition Sciences offer incomparable expertise and tremendous talent, and each brings a unique perspective to their teaching and mentoring in and out of the classroom.
Internships and Employers
Students complete internships in public and private schools throughout the New York City region as well as across the United States. The internship is a supervised experience designed to hone the requisite skills and knowledge to work as a health teacher.
