Clinical Assistantships

  • Save significantly on your total tuition cost
  • Benefit from individualized mentoring — in your own classroom or at a Naz public school partner
  • Gain valuable experience

Clinical Assistantships are part-time roles in public schools for Nazareth School of Education graduate students who have a base teaching certification. You receive financial support while you engage in an applied research project that supports PreK-12 students. You are supported and mentored by the director of clinical assistants.

Who's eligible: Full-time and part-time Nazareth graduate education students.

A limited number of clinical assistantships are available on a competitive basis for the following graduate programs:

Benefits

Full-time grad studentPart-time grad student

One-year program

 Two-year program
Waive tuition for 6 credits in the fall and in the spring (total: 12) Waive tuition for 12 credits over two years. You can also apply for reimbursement from your district.
Your clinical assistantship project is connected to your graduate program, and you work in a public school two days a week. Your clinical assistantship project is concentrated in your own classroom, and aligned with your graduate studies.

How to apply

  1. Complete the standard graduate admissions process for your program, or the Fast App (by invitation).
  2. Complete the clinical assistantship application and return it to the person indicated on the form
  3. Provide a letter of recommendation from a professional who has observed your teaching.
  4. Be prepared for an interview with program faculty, if needed.

When to apply

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis starting April 1, until clinical assistantships are filled.

Opportunities
  • Work with professionals in your field in a clinical setting.
  • Contribute as a member of a teaching and learning community.
  • Gain experience in navigating and collaborating within school systems and communities.
  • Full-time grad students: Spend about two days a week working in a local public or private school, beginning in the fall. There, you'll support school-based initiatives, children and young adults, and their learning. You can integrate your own inquiry interests.
  • In some programs, you will also have the opportunity to take hybrid courses (partially online) to allow maximum time in schools.

  • Most clinical assistants have been offered positions (often multiple options) in areas of their choice.

  • Clinical assistants are part of a culture of learning that goes beyond the classroom and incorporates schooling. This allows for education opportunities that are invaluable for collaboration and professional development.

Criteria for selection
  • Excellence or exceptional progress during student teaching
  • Caring and professional disposition
  • Undergraduate academic performance
  • Status of certification
Other requirements
  • Full-time grad students: Enroll in 9-12 graduate credit hours during both the fall and spring semesters. Work 2 days per week in an assigned school.
  • Part-time grad students: Enroll in 6 credits each semester. Work on a focus project in your own classroom.
  • Maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 with grades of B or above in all courses.
  • Work for the required number of days per week (program dependent) in an assigned school.
  • Perform successfully in school settings as outlined in the Nazareth School of Education "Professional Behaviors Assessment." (Contact your program director if you have questions.)
Benefits
  • Financial Benefits: The work of a Clinical Assistant in school districts is supported through graduate assistantships. While attending graduate school full time, Clinical Assistants earn 12 credits toward their full tuition. This is often one third of the graduate program! Six credits are distributed in fall and six in spring semesters.
  • Professional Benefits: Through completing this life-changing work, Clinical Assistants are prepared to handle a multitude of challenges and opportunities in their first few years in the profession. Most Clinical Assistants have been offered positions (often multiple options) in areas of their choice. Clinical Assistants are part of a culture of learning that goes beyond the classroom and incorporates schooling. This allows for education opportunities that are invaluable for collaboration and professional development.
Jeffery Garrett

"While in grad school, my clinical assistantship research — under Dr. Kerry Dunn — examined the impact of physical and organizational interventions on the executive functioning skills of sixth-grade students. This experience benefited me immensely. I gained valuable knowledge about how to address executive functioning skills; this is something that I now use in my current role as a special education teacher." — Jeffery Garrett

Are you a teacher who needs a master's degree?

Please reach out to see how this opportunity can benefit you and can pair with any tuition benefits from your employer.

Email: Kerry Dunn, Ed.D., professor of education and coordinator of clinical assistantships