Master of Education in Reading

Improve a Child’s Future Through the Power of Reading

Across the country, students are falling behind in reading — a concerning trend that impacts not only their lives but society on a broader scale. Competent literacy skills are associated with greater earning potential, increased access to professional opportunities and higher self-esteem.

Make a positive impact in a child’s academic, social and emotional development with a Master of Education in Reading from The University of Texas at Tyler. Gain the skills to strengthen a student’s ability to read and write through accurate evaluation assessment, evidence-based instruction and a personalized approach to meet each child’s unique needs. Our top-ranked online program advances your career and allows you to make a meaningful difference in a young person’s life.

Why Earn an MEd in Reading From UT Tyler?

As an educator, you’re thinking about specializing your skills for a curriculum development or leadership position at your school. Or, you now want to teach in a different capacity with the opportunity to work one-on-one with students as a literacy coach. Whether you seek to be more effective in your current role or use your education to pivot your career, the MEd in Reading at UT Tyler allows you to support the literacy skills of your community successfully.

The University of Texas at Tyler’s program stands apart in more ways than one:

Online and Time-Efficient: Opt to attend part-time or full-time and learn from any location with our 100% online course offerings. Choose to begin your master’s program in any semester and complete the degree in 24 months — or at your own pace.
Performance-Based: Hit the job market with a comprehensive literacy educator portfolio demonstrating your real-world experience. Conduct action research in education settings and participate in field experiences in literacy instruction, coaching, diagnosis and intervention.
Highly Effective: Prepare for the TEA Reading Specialist exam while meeting the requirements for your degree. Our students boasted a 100% pass rate for the 2022 exam. You can also earn a UT Tyler Literacy Coaching Certificate or a Dyslexia Certificate during your studies.
Nationally Recognized: Best Accredited Colleges ranked our program as #15 in the “Best Online Master's in Reading and Literacy Programs” category.
Dedicated Faculty: Learn from faculty who have years of teaching and research experience in literacy pedagogy and bring their expertise to our innovative curriculum. Through small class sizes and one-on-one interactions, they guide your success toward career-building opportunities.
Affordable: Advance your career at a fraction of the cost for comparable programs in other institutions. Based on 2023-2024 tuition rates, in-state tuition is approximately $10,020 for the entire program when taken over six semesters! Financial aid like scholarships and grants further offsets the cost of your education.

Curriculum

The Master of Education in Reading consists of 36 credit hours and aligns with the International Literacy Association’s Standards for the Preparation of Reading Professionals. Classes develop advanced proficiency in data analysis, literacy and teaching theory, new and emerging instructional technologies, reading and writing pedagogy, policy and other issues that impact a child’s literacy life. The program is heavily experiential, requiring seven courses focused on field experiences and action research in a school or education setting.

Through this approach, all students strengthen their abilities in:

Appropriate reading instruction and evaluation across different age groups.
Implementing, modeling and providing accurate literacy assessments in accordance with students’ needs.
Promoting literacy by recognizing the unique traits of individual students, including their primary language, reading difficulties, reading disabilities, dyslexia and other conditions that may affect their ability.
Creating inclusive, productive and constructive learning environments that apply up-to-date pedagogical approaches.
Collaborating with other educators and staff to design tailored learning plans, incorporate useful materials, integrate digital technologies, and set adequate benchmarks.
Developing and implementing innovative, research-based curriculums.
Applying their knowledge to different educational settings and audiences.

The demanding, hands-on curriculum also prepares you for TEA Reading Specialist certification. Focus your studies to match your career goals with one of our three options :

Master's degree in reading with a Reading Specialist Certification and UT Tyler Literacy Coaching Certificate (36 Credit Hours): must complete requirements within six calendar years.
Master's degree in reading with a Reading Specialist Certification and UT Tyler Dyslexia Certificate (36 Credit Hours): must complete requirements within six calendar years.
Reading Specialist Certification Only: requires two years of classroom teaching experience, a standard teaching certificate, a master's degree, completion of required coursework and state examination.

Review All MEd in Reading Course Descriptions

Careers in Reading Education

The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects demand for instructional coordinators — which includes reading specialists — to grow 7% in the next decade. Moreover, as current reading specialists retire or pivot to other careers, the need to hire professionals who can face current challenges with innovative approaches based on the latest research is expected to surge. Apply the competencies you learn through the program in a wide variety of educational settings, including K-12 classrooms, colleges, professional schools, community programs, tutoring, student support services, instructional material development companies and government agencies.

Graduates of the program can find jobs as:

Curriculum specialists
Dyslexia specialists
Instructional support teachers
EL teachers
Literacy coaches
Reading specialists

How to Apply

Graduate Admission Requirements

Option 1 - Texas Residents Only

To be admitted to the Master of Education in Reading program, an individual must:
Hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution.
Hold a Texas Teacher Certification (any field).
Submit a Texas teaching service record and any other documents required by Texas governing units.
Submit official transcripts from all institutions attended.
Complete an admissions interview.
Submit a written goal statement and initial philosophy of literacy statement.
Have an appropriate GPA in a degree plan as set by the Texas Administrative Code and other administrative units.
Have a 3.0 overall GPA or a 3.25 or higher for the last 60 hours, or submit GRE scores that equal or exceed a 158 for verbal and a 162 for quantitative.
Demonstrate commitment to their chosen field of study.

Applicants seeking only the Reading Specialist certification must also hold a master's degree from an accredited institution.

Option 2 - Texas Nonresidents & International Students Only

Hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution.
Hold a teacher certification (any field).
Submit your teaching service record and any other documents required by Texas governing units.
Submit official transcripts from all institutions attended.
Complete an admissions interview.
Submit a written goal statement and initial philosophy of literacy statement.
Have an appropriate GPA in a degree plan as set by the Texas Administrative Code and other administrative units.

Admission is determined based on GPA and, if necessary, satisfactory scores on the GRE in combination with the GPA and a successful admissions interview.

For consideration for admission to the program, the applicant must either have a 3.0 overall GPA or 3.25 or higher for the last 60 hours or submit GRE scores that equal or exceed a 158 for verbal and a 162 for quantitative. Applicants must additionally have a successful admissions interview and demonstrate commitment to their chosen field of study.

Application Instructions

To be admitted to the UT Tyler Master of Education in Reading program, a prospective student must complete the following steps.

First:

Start by applying through our online application.
After you have your student ID, submit a Goal Statement and a Philosophy of Literacy Statement at the provided link.
Goal Statement: Write a one-page, single-spaced biographical statement that includes your teaching experience, professional goals and reasons for pursuing this MEd in Reading degree.
Initial Philosophy of Literacy Statement: Write a one-page, single-spaced statement that captures your thoughts, views and ideas about literacy and its teaching.

Then:

Send all of the following directly to the Office of Graduate Admissions at ogs@uttyler.edu:
All OFFICIAL academic transcripts reflecting the reception of a bachelor's degree and any other undergraduate and graduate coursework.
If required, send official scores (obtained within the past five years) on the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) directly to the Office of Graduate Admissions.
Copy of your teacher certification (any field).
Copy of your complete teaching service record from all districts. (Can be obtained from your district’s Human Resources office.)

Finally:

This program requires an admission interview. Within a week of receipt of all admission documents, you will receive an email with a link to our online scheduling system. Once you receive this email, you may schedule a Zoom admission interview. You must wait to receive this email to schedule the admission interview.

Notes

If your GPA is high enough to waive the GRE requirement, your official transcripts have been reviewed. Until then, the GRE remains on your to-do list.

Deadlines

The MEd in Reading program accepts applications for fall, spring and summer admission.

Applications and application materials must be submitted and received by the following deadlines:

Aug. 15 (Fall)
Dec. 20 (Spring)
April 15 (Summer)

Tuition

Based on 2023-2024 tuition rates, in-state tuition is approximately $10,020 for the entire program when taken over six semesters! Financial aid, including scholarships and grants, is available.

Criminal History Acknowledgement:

As required by Texas HB1508, applicants need to be aware of the following:

In order to receive a reading specialist certification, you must pass a criminal history background check.
If you were convicted of an offense considered not appropriate for a reading specialist, you could be ineligible to earn this certification from the state of Texas.
You have a right to request a criminal history evaluation letter from the Texas Education Agency. The Agency currently charges a $50 fee for this criminal history evaluation.

For more information, learn more about the Preliminary Criminal History Evaluation.

Transfer of Credit/Experiences

In compliance with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and in accordance with the policies of the UT Tyler Graduate School, transfer of graduate credits from an accredited institution is limited to six hours for the master’s degree. All transfer credits must have been completed with a grade of “B” or better, completed within the last seven years and approved by the degree-granting program. Transfer credits should be evaluated and approved during the first semester. The course being transferred into a degree program should be a direct equivalent to the one within the certification/degree program. Students who have extended work experiences that cover related class content should reach out to their advisor and director of the school to determine if those work experiences apply toward the program’s requirements. Students should work with their advisor to have their transcripts evaluated.

UT Tyler graduate student using a computer in a computer lab

Interested in New Technologies? Our Students Can Help

Learn how new media literacy tools can help you level up literacy instruction through free three-minute mini-literacy instructional demonstration videos created by our students.

View Videos