Clinical and Field Experiences

The clinical and field experiences offered by Youngstown State University's Beeghly College of Education (BCOE) are well planned, numerous and diverse. The nature and duration of field based activities vary in the amount of observation and participation according to the specific course and program requirements. All BCOE professional education courses have some field or clinical component(s).

The BCOE Office of Student Services maintains cumulative files containing the collected clinical and field experience evaluations of students written by their course instructors, college supervisors and cooperating teachers. Students should also include copies of these evaluations in their portfolios.

Of all these experiences, the central requirements are the pre-clinical field requirement and the clinical field requirement (student teaching). These are described in more detail below.

I. Pre-Clinical Field Requirement

The pre-clinical field experience is a time intensive experience taken prior to, and pre-requisite for, student teaching. Registration for the following pre-clinical field experiences requires the submission of an application, completion of eligibility requirements, and office approval:

• Early Childhood Candidates should apply for the TEC field experience block two (2) semesters (not including summer) prior to the semester this experience is desired.
• Middle Childhood Candidates should apply for the MCE Internship two (2) semesters (not including summer) prior to the semester this experience is desired.
• Special Education Candidates should apply for the STEP field experience block two (2) semesters (not including summer) prior to the semester this experience is desired.
• Secondary Candidates should apply for the SEDUC 3706 field experience two (2) semesters (not including summer) prior to the semester this experience is desired.

Applications are available online on the Information and Applications page under Resources and Links (above) and submitted in BCOE Room 2101 by:

• September 15 for the Spring semester
• February 15 for the Fall semester

II. Student Teaching Requirement

The progression of field experience culminates into what faculty and students consider the most valuable field experience prior to graduation . . . Student Teaching. Student teaching is the capstone clinical experience for all teacher education program majors.

Registering for student teaching requires the completion of eligibility requirements, the submission of an application, and office approval. Apply for Student Teaching by:

• February 15th for the next Fall Semester
• September 15th for the next Spring Semester

Under no circumstances should the prospective student teacher contact any school system or school district personnel with the intention of securing their own placement.

For details on student teacher application procedures and placement, contact the Administrator of Student Field Experiences.