What I wish I knew about ABCTE (in PA)! You won't believe this!

[@donisecheeks7732]

Very Very helpful young lady! It all seems to amount to a one year grad school vs paying for 3-4 years grad school and still having to pay for extra fees. People like me, grandma's full of vitality and knowledge don't have time for more school. Time isn't on our side. Your info was spot on easy to follow and eye-opening! 🎉

[@jttasb]

Thank you for sharing all of your experiences in getting certified through ABCTE!

[@marandiamack89]

This is a lot. I’m so happy Wisconsin doesn’t require all of this for American Board.

[@sashagumbs09]

I love this video! So thorough! Looking forward to getting my special ed cert❤️

[@MrsGiaNia]

Thank you for the valuable inside information your opinion and experience was very helpful to me making the decision to go this route instead of graduate program that is in the best interest for my career or financial goals.

[@gabrielespinoza616]

Melanie thank you so much for all this information. I feel so overwhelmed by all these requirements. Thank you for the information though. I was under the impression that the $1900 was all I needed to start teaching. I'm wondering if I can go ahead and talk to schools in my state (SC) to see if they can hire me while completing the ABCTE because it seems really hard to find a job without a license.

[@mcsmedia8081]

I just stumbled upon your channel! I found American Board last year and last month I made the financial commitment to do the program. I purchased the math program as my core subject area and I think I am going to add the English subject area as well.

[@MelanieLudy]

That's awesome! Congratulations! If you can wait, I would get certified with your state first before adding another. In PA, it would've cost me an extra $900 to get another ABCTE course and test, but I could take another state test for about $300 once I was already certified. Something to look into.

[@Blissx7]

How long did the refresher course prep take??? I’m looking to starting the ABCTE ASAP! Thank you!! I’m in the NEPA! Love this video and loved making a connection!

[@MelanieLudy]

Hey! Congratulations! I did the course in about 3 months. It's all self paced. And the course is broken down into chapters and lessons but when I did it there was just a pdf "textbook" and two practice exams. It was really on me to sift through all of the possible material and kind of decide what I wanted to study, and have my own practice questions. The "textbook" didn't really have a lot of practice problems and I found that particularly challenging for science. Good luck!

[@jordyngaines2350]

So helpful! Thank you Melanie :)

[@MelanieLudy]

Yay! So glad it did!

[@danielhutchinson6158]

Thank you. Grateful.

[@TheLawlbreaker]

Not all states require placement; emergency licenses are being more and more common as well.

[@FR12320]

Very helpful, thank you! You explained very well and showed all the hidden costs! My question is that I have 4 years bachelors and 2 years masters degrees (computer science), will the 2 graduate courses with $3300 fee be exempted as I already have taken advanced Maths courses in university?

[@MelanieLudy]

It's going to depend on your specific institution. They wanted me to have courses from THEIR university and they had to be two specific education courses. I just got lucky and had taken those already from their school. My guess would be no, because they were Math and Computer science courses instead of education courses. The head of the ABCTE program at the University should definitely be able to answer that question before you apply or buy anything though. Best of luck and thank you!

[@murfnturf23]

Sounds like too much shit just to get a job.

[@MelanieLudy]

It's a lot for sure, but if the reward is worth the work....

[@oo88oo]

Master’s in what? Education?

[@christophermesser8697]

This is so much worse than using ABCTE in Wisconsin. There is no requirement for student teaching in Wisconsin when using ABCTE. All of that sounds crazy!

[@marandiamack89]

Hi, I’m doing American Board for Wisconsin. Any advice?

[@johnleahey5075]

@@marandiamack89I’m currently in your same spot. Any pointers you’ve picked up so far?

[@katelynkarpinski7526]

Any advice on the PTK?

[@butterscotchsky1514]

Hi Melanie! I’m currently, studying for the PTK portion of the American Board program. Hoping to receive my certification in elementary ed. 💁‍♀️ Do you recall how difficult the PTK test was, and do you have any specific advice for studying for the multiple choice and writing portion? Thank you!

[@MelanieLudy]

Hi! I don't remember it being too difficult. For the writing portion, definitely do a few of the prompts they offer, and do them timed. I remember running out of time during the actual test. Good luck!

[@butterscotchsky1514]

Sounds good. Thank you!

[@GreenerSideOfSam]

Hello! I’m looking into getting certified in the English for private school so that I can teach in any state. Do you have any advice for that? 😊

[@prettynatural1973]

Thank you

[@casslias783]

Where in PA are you? I’m about 45 minutes outside Philadelphia. I’m planning on starting the program, just nervous about the finding a placement part.

[@MelanieLudy]

I'm also about 45 minutes out from Philly. And that was definitely my biggest concern as well. My recommendation would be to sign up on www.pareap.net/ for jobs you're interested in. Also, Charter schools, and private religious schools if that's your thing, have a FAR more flexible definition of who qualifies as a teacher and can have a higher number of uncertified people than regular public schools. You would technically count as certified with your Temporary Teaching Permit (TTP) but many schools are uncertain of it. Charters, and private religious schools, are far more willing to take the chance. Good luck on your journey!

[@casslias783]

@@MelanieLudy thanks so much!

[@joshchilibean9523]

If I don't go through this program are the alternatives harder or more expensive do you think?

[@MelanieLudy]

So if you don't do this program, your options are pretty much go back and get a whole new bachelor's degree and then have to take all of those classes and take a whole semester off of work pretty much to do your student teaching. Or, you could do trial by fire and do Teach for America or a similar program. They will get you certified but you're going to be doing the job in a tough school while you figure it out.

[@MelanieLudy]

Given the alternatives, ABCTE was still the better option for me because I couldn't afford all the extra schooling and taking a whole semester off to student teach.

[@TanyaJo]

@@MelanieLudy I was looking at I teach but this seems to be less. How long did the whole program take?

[@SuperKnsh]

So you became a fully certified teacher this way?

[@MelanieLudy]

Yes. I studied, took the test and then completed the mentoring program to get certified. ❤

[@SuperKnsh]

@@MelanieLudy that’s awesome! Is the mentoring process long or hard? What does that consist of? I’m sorry if you already mentioned that.

[@MelanieLudy]

Mentoring process is about 12 weeks, but the kicker is you have to get hired with an emergency certification, which you apply for once you're hired and you've passed your test, rather than a normal certification. You then teach full time with your emergency cert for the first 12 weeks while they mentor you. But that mentor really only sees you 4 times over the 12 weeks. It's really going to be on the school that hires you to do the bulk of your training. So while you are looking for jobs a school with a strong induction/training program would be really helpful.

[@MelanieLudy]

The mentorship from Point Park consisted of four online trainings and 4 observations. You then did a reflection on each online training and observation. The hardest part is getting hired with the emergency cert, and then learning how to teach.

[@SuperKnsh]

@@MelanieLudy thank you!

[@jaimellj4]

Is the point park program online?

[@MelanieLudy]

Yes! The courses I took at Point Park were fully online. I think they offer some hybrid and in-person options though if that is more your style. This is the Masters program I did: www.graduateprogram.org/point-park/programs/ma-in-curriculum-instruction-teaching-leadership-concentration/ When you are getting mentored by Point Park, they will come to your school and see you teach though.

[@michaelp8856]

you need a certification just to understand and get a certification.

[@austinwilde1167]

Great video! Does anyone know if all these extra costs apply to Wisconsin?

[@phazon100]

I miss you

[@mikerwriter]

Thanks for the informative video, but I have to wonder whom you imagine to be your audience. It's clear that you are a hard worker, but you complain an awful lot about simple, basic things that any teacher needs to be capable of. Is it really so hard to read 247 pages of a chemistry text, if you want to be a chemistry teacher? Is it really that awful to need to gather necessary paperwork requirements? Most of all, why are you so afraid of accepting financial responsibility? As for the total cost, it's more expensive in Pennsylvania, but only because Pennsylvania has higher standards. There are 12 other states with much less expensive alternative route options, using ABCTE. The financial upside to paying the extra fees for Pointe Park and mentoring is that average teacher salaries are much higher in PA, so it's a much better investment than say, West Virginia or Arizona. I'm quite sure you could have avoided the extra hassles if you had done the reading before you signed up. Good luck in your classroom. Teaching is it!