Mathematics Education

University Admission Requirements

A student applying to this program must:

• Have earned a four-year bachelor's degree or its equivalent from a college or university that is accredited by the appropriate regional accrediting association, or do so by the time of program matriculation.
• Submit unofficial transcripts from each college or university other than Illinois State at which graduate, undergraduate, or non-degree credit was earned. The unofficial transcript should be easily readable and clearly indicate degree(s) awarded, courses and course grades for each term.
• If admitted, official domestic transcripts can be emailed from the university to GraduateAdmissions@IllinoisState.edu or mailed in a sealed envelope to: Illinois State University, Graduate School, 208 Hovey Hall, Campus Box 4040, Normal, IL 61790-4040.
• If admitted, official international transcripts can be emailed directly from the international institution to InternationalAdmissions@IllinoisState.edu or mailed in a sealed envelope to: Illinois State University, International Admissions, Campus Box 6180, Normal, IL 61790-6180.

International students can learn more about specific application requirements by visiting the Graduate School Admission Requirements.

Additional Program Admission Requirements

GPA

You must have a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale for the last 60 hours of undergraduate coursework or any previous work in a master’s program.

The Grade Point Average (GPA) of all undergraduate credentials earned in the United States that are used for graduate degree admission evaluation is calculated by the last 60 hours of undergraduate work. International credentials are evaluated by using cumulative GPA (CGPA) in lieu of the GPA from the last 60 hours of undergraduate work.

Application Materials

A student applying to this program must:

• Submit a current resume
• Submit an academic writing sample that demonstrates your ability to analyze or synthesize literature relevant to mathematics education
(e.g., a course paper, published article, conference paper)
• Submit three letters of recommendation
At least one of these letters should come from a university faculty member who can comment on your academic work and potential as a PhD student.
• Read the Overview of the PhD program and the review the Mathematics Education research groups at ISU. Upload an essay that addresses the following topics:
Goals – What are your professional and academic goals? And how will the Mathematics Education PhD program at ISU prepare you to reach those goals?
Teaching – Our program focuses on preparing you to teach future mathematics educators. With this in mind, we expect that you will have prior mathematics teaching experience at the PreK-12 level. Briefly tell us about a prior teaching experience at this level that will help us get to know you as a teacher.
Research – Although you do not need to pre-select a research group to work with, your work in the PhD program will require you to engage in mathematics education research. Explain how your potential research interests would align with at least one of the research groups existing in our department.

English Proficiency

Non-Native English-Speaking Countries

If your country of origin is a non-native English-speaking country, you must submit either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) or Duolingo English scores that you’ve taken within the past two years.

We require the following minimum scores:

• TOEFL internet-based (iBT): 100
• TOEFL Essentials: 10
• IELTS overall band score: 7.5
• Duolingo: 130

Please visit https://illinoisstate.edu/academics/mathematics-education-doctorate/ for assistantship minimum requirements.

English Proficiency for Graduate Teaching Assistantships

The State of Illinois requires non-native English speaking teaching assistants to show proof of English Proficiency. The minimum criteria for English proficiency are:

• TOEFL iBT minimum speaking score of 26
• TOEFL Essentials minimum speaking score of 9
• IELTS score of 8.0 overall
• Duolingo English Test minimum Conversation score of 140

Optional GRE

The GRE is optional for admission to the PhD program in mathematics education. Our typically admitted students’ GRE scores are around the 50% percentile for the verbal and quantitative sections and a 3 – 4.5 for the writing section.

Application Deadlines

• Fall (August) Term — June 15
• Spring (January) Term — October 1
• Summer (May/June) Term — April 1

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