Overview
Graduate School of Education Offers Multiple Routes for Students to Become Teachers, Administrators, and Advocates
Alliant International University (AIU) has five colleges, with campuses in various California cities and accredited programs in several other countries, all of which prepare students for professional careers. Alliant International University was officially formed in 2001 by the combination of the California School of Professional Psychology (CSPP), founded in 1969, and United States International University (USIU) founded in 1967. Its history, however, goes back more than the forty years since USIU's founding as USIU was the successor to two other institutions - California Western University, founded in 1952, and Balboa College, founded in 1924.
The Graduate School of Education trains professionals who make a difference in the lives of others through teaching, counseling, leadership, advocacy, administration, management, and community work. GSOE expands and extends its curricula with multicultural content and focuses on assessment, instructional technology, mentoring of diverse populations, neuropsychology, and wide-ranging community service. At the core of its professional practitioner model is the cohort structure, which supports student achievement through advanced studies and provides a professional support system of colleagues throughout their career.
TeachersCHOICE's Reality-Based Education Leverages the Skills, Experiences, and Capacities of Each and Every Student
AIU's Graduate School of Education (GSOE) at has developed a set of reality-based teacher education programs called TeachersCHOICE, based on the understanding that students bring many different skills, experiences, and capacities to a teacher-preparation program. Programs focus on pragmatic skills development and professional practice.
TeachersCHOICE programs offer multiple routes to the preliminary teaching credential, including standard intern programs and intern teaching programs with early completion option and special education. The GSOE's credential programs are subsumed in master's programs and lead to a Preliminary Multiple or Single-Subject Credential (English, math, and science), English, and California teaching credential. The Master of Arts in Education (M.A.E.) with a teaching emphasis is offered at the Mexico City campus as well as online.
Dedicated Educators Deliver Worlds of Knowledge in Small Classes and Special Programs and Through Personalized Teaching
The program's comprehensive design includes four major components, beginning with students' completion of the four California Teaching Performance Assessments. The tasks are interrelated yet discrete, and are sequenced throughout the program in response to the design of increasing complexity. The wide-ranging curriculum touches on everything from technology and cross-cultural studies to leadership in higher education and K-12 leadership. Students participate in weekly seminars, peer/supervisor workshops, and specific Saturday seminars held over two semesters. This preparation gives students an introduction to and thorough preparation for the California Teaching Performance Assessments, as well as highly advanced course work in strategies to advance student learning. Students must also pass identified course work (3 units of online instruction) in instructional and educational technology.
Special Early Completion Option (ECO) and a Two-Year Follow-Up Program Offer Customized Approaches and Solid Support
The early completion option (ECO) for interns can be pursued on the Sacramento, San Diego, Fresno, Los Angeles, and San Francisco campuses. This accelerated intern program (nine months) lets students challenge course work and receive credit through the PRAXIS Teaching Foundations Examination. Students are able to teach full-time while attending the program weekly. The program is for high achievers and those with some teaching or education knowledge who crave a hands-on experience and a high degree of support. The curriculum covers all state-mandated elements and is accredited by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC).
A unique feature of TeachersCHOICE is a two-year follow-up program that supports graduates as they enter their teaching careers. A combination of group support, structured mentoring, and interaction with experienced master teachers is offered to all program graduates as they solidify their skills and gain essential experience in the classroom.
Financial Aid, Work-Study, and Assistantship Stipends Help Students Defray Costs on Their Way to Successful Careers
Most students interested in school-based financial aid pursue college work-study. Students work as teaching or research assistants to core faculty members. They can work on campus in a number of departments, including admissions and field placement. Stipends are available for assistantships.
Alliant ranked first in international students in a 2007 nationwide survey. Alliant was ranked highly, as well, for awarding doctorates to minority women and minorities. Alliant International University has students from almost every state and more than 400 international students from almost seventy countries, including Botswana, Portugal, Iceland, Greece, Cameroon, and Turkey. They go on to careers including many in education and educational policy, prepared by Alliant's GSOE to make a difference.
Campus Cities Offer Varied Living Styles, Cultural Riches, and Recreational Options to Balance the Rigorous Academics
Alliant Sacramento is easily accessible from all major thoroughfares in the metropolitan Sacramento area. The small class sizes at the Sacramento site offer an opportunity for students to have greater individual interaction with the professors and each other.
Alliant's San Francisco's campus is right on the Bay, with dynamic Pier 39's dining, entertainment, and galleries just across the street. The city's music, food, art, and politics provide a dynamic backdrop to graduate studies.
The ambience on the Fresno campus is friendly and warm, true to its Central Valley location. Blessed with abundant sunshine and mild temperatures, the region is one of the fastest growing in California.
The Los Angeles-area campus is in Alhambra, conveniently located just a few miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Famous Venice Beach and Malibu are just minutes away.
The San Diego campus is in a dynamic, multicultural location, a vibrant, metropolitan city with a laid-back, small-town feel. From the beautiful beaches to the inland mountains, the views are spectacular, and San Diego has a climate unmatched for mildness nationwide.
