Study information about Master degree course in Education Studies for Special Education

• Programme contents and career perspectives
• Programme structure
• Admission requirements and application

In the Winter Semester of 2008/2009, our university started offering this degree course.

The programme imparts subject-specific and subject-related didactical in-depth studies, based on a Bachelor degree course in Special Education or a comparable degree course. It qualifies students for the subsequent complement of the teaching practice (traineeship) in a special needs school.

The programme of the Master degree course in Education Studies for Special Education is focused on a specialisation of curricular fields of action and support priorities. It offers contents from the three fields of Special Education:

• Education for persons with learning difficulties (support priority: learning)
• Education for persons with impairments in emotional and social development (support priority: emotional and social development)
• Education for the speech and language impaired (support priority: speech and language)

Students choose two of these fields as the focus of their study. The study comprises a deepening of subject knowledge and a preparation for the teaching practice. The Special Education teacher training course conveys the necessary subject-specific and subject-related didactical competencies which are not only required for the planning and teaching of successful lessons, but also for the cooperation of parents or guardians, teachers at other types of schools, and employees of facilities and institutions outside of school.

Besides Special Education as the major with two fields of study, the programme comprises a minor from the Bachelor degree course and a career-oriented phase with courses from general education studies, sociology and psychology.

The successful completion of the degree course in Education Studies for Special Education will provide the graduate with a Master’s degree. This degree is equivalent to the first state examination and qualifies for the subsequent complement of the teaching practice (traineeship) in a special needs school. Accordingly, career perspectives are in teaching the respective support priority at either speech and language and/or- learning and/or emotional and social development special needs schools.

The Master’s degree course of Education Studies for Special Education is based on the Bachelor’s degree course of studies for Special Education. The duration of the Master's programme is four semesters.Overall, the workload of the entire course of study totals 120 credit points. In addition to the following three obligatory subjects, each program of study includes professional practice-oriented parts:

The major subject Special Education with two chosen support priorities of either speech, learning or emotional and social development is credited with 54 credit points (CP) including the profession relevant parts.

The minor subject/teaching subject credited with 30 CP: Possible choices for subject combinations are German, Protestant/Catholic Religion, History, Art, Mathematics, Music, General Science and Social Studies, and Sports. (The minor subject chosen in the Bachelor course of studies must be continued in the master course.)

Professionalisation field/Education Studies credited with 12 CP: This field comprises courses from generaleducation studies (6CP) and sociology or psychology (6 CP).

Practical Parts credited all together with 16 CP: One support diagnostic practical training (P1) over three weeks, a special educational practical training (P2) over 5 weeks (each in one of the chosen subjects), as well as a project with 7 CP. The profession relevant parts are integrated into the major subject Special Education

Overview of the modules for Special Education as a major subject

The Master’s thesis can be written in the major subject Special Education or in one of the chosen fields of Special Education, in the chosen minor subject (with regard to Special Education), or in Education Studies.

The Master’s degree course starts in the winter term. The written application needs to be handed in at the university by July 15^th of each year. The application is only valid for the allocation of the study places of the respective application date.

The admission requirements are a B.A. degree in Special Education or in a comparative course of studies with an overall grade point average of 2.5 or better. Furthermore, you must prove that you have done a practical training in a school and a practical training with relevance to Special Education, both of at least four weeks.  The proof for the knowledge of a second foreign language is usually given in the certificate of the “Abitur” (A-levels).

For more information, read the admission requirements for the Master’s degree teaching post in Special Education at the Leibniz University of Hanover.

All important regulations for the Master’s degree can be found in the menu “Download”.