Literacy Specialist Program
One Degree, Two Licenses
Complete your Literacy Specialist master's degree or sixth-year diploma in just 18 months, and also earn institutional endorsement for both of Connecticut's 102 and 097 certifications. (If you already have your 102 and wish to only complete coursework toward your 097, please see the information below about the Graduate Certificate in Literacy Leadership).
This hybrid program is also built to accommodate your busy schedule — engage in weekly online discussions and attend one in-person Saturday a month at UConn Hartford. Although specific position titles vary widely by school district, teachers who hold the 102 license are certified to provide and/or support expert and intensive reading instruction and intervention.
Apply by December 17, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. ET for Spring 2026 enrollment.
Attend an Info Session
Learn more about the Literacy Specialist program at an upcoming virtual information session:
Plan of Study
The hybrid schedule for 102/097 coursework organizes learning opportunities that match the nature of the content by creating a mixture of intensive weekend experiences and online follow-up for classroom application, reflection, and discussion. It also allows professionals to move through the course sequence within 18 months, rather than the typical 30 months, without giving up summers or devoting more than one evening at a time to course attendance. Note that two intensives fit within a single semester.
Visit the Neag School of Education's website to learn more about the certification process once the program is complete.
Spring 2026 Cohort Sample Schedule
Note: All dates are subject to change. More schedule details can be viewed in this document.
Spring Semester
- EDCI 5100 Primary Reading
- EDCI 5135 Teaching Literacy in Secondary School
May Semester
- EDCI 5110 Teaching Writing
Summer Session I
- EDCI 5140 Content Area Reading & Disciplinary Literacy
Fall Semester
- EDCI 5145 Classroom Assessment of Reading Difficulty
- EDCI 5150 Clinical Assessment of Reading Difficulty
Winter Session
- Children’s Literature
Spring Semester
- Advanced Reading Clinic (6 credits)
- EDCI 5160 Organizing and Supervising Reading Programs
Summer Session I
- Practicum in the Supervision of Reading Programs (6 credits)
How to Apply to the Literacy Specialist Program
Complete the online application to the UConn Graduate School.
- When applying, under Intended Program please select:
- Level of Study: Masters OR 6th Year Certificate
- Academic Areas: Education
- Program: Curriculum and Instruction MA OR Curriculum and Instruction 6th Year Certificate
- Concentration: Literacy Specialist Program-MA OR Literacy Specialist Program-6th Year Certificate
- Campus: Hartford
- Entry Term: Spring 2026
Upload the following materials to the application:
- Transcripts of all collegiate work completed to date, graduate and undergraduate.
- This must indicate a course equivalent to EPSY 5108: Teaching Students with Special Needs in the Mainstream, which is a prerequisite for this program.
- For International Transcripts: Prospective students with international transcripts must get a Course-by-Course transcript evaluation by one of the approved evaluators listed on the Connecticut State Department of Education website. If your degree is a 3-year bachelor’s degree from India, Canada, Australia, Sri Lanka, Scotland or certain other countries, the UConn Graduate School will not consider the degree to be equivalent with a 4-year U.S. bachelor’s degree, even if the degree has been evaluated as a 4-year degree by an outside credential evaluator.
- 2 Reference Letters
- Personal Goal Statement
- TOEFL (for international applicants whose native language is not English)
- Resume/Vita
- Evidence of K-12 or Other Relevant Teaching Experience
Cost and Aid
Information about costs for graduate programs can be found on UConn's Office of the Bursar website.
Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grants
Those completing UConn's Literacy Specialist Programs as part of as master's degree are eligible to apply for a TEACH Grant through the federal government. The TEACH Grant is a federally-funded program created to help pay college costs for students completing a teacher preparation program. These grants are available to eligible graduate students who agree to serve as full-time teachers in specific high-need fields at a Title I school.
If students do not satisfy the conditions of the Agreement to Service, the TEACH Grant will convert to an unsubsidized Direct Stafford Loan with interest accrual from the date of disbursement.
Please visit the Federal Student Aid website for more information.
Graduate Certificate in Literacy Leadership
UConn's graduate certificate program in Literacy Leadership is designed for educators interested in obtaining Connecticut's 097 Reading and Language Arts Consultant certification. Those who already hold a 102 license can apply for this advanced certificate focused on leadership that includes coursework leading to the 097. This hybrid, 12-credit program can be completed in two semesters (approximately 6 months).
Those who hold the 097 license are certified to design and supervise reading programs at the school or district level. The 097 license is an administrative license for those who have worked for at least one year as a Remedial Reading and Language Arts Teacher.
Apply by December 17, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. ET for Spring 2026 enrollment.
Sample Plan of Study
- EDCI 5150: Clinical Diagnosis and Correction of Reading Difficulties (3 credits) OR EDCI 5155: Advanced Reading/Language Arts Clinic (3 credits)
- EDCI 5160: Design, Management and Supervision of Reading Programs (3 credits)
- EDCI 5092: Practicum (6 credits)
Visit the Neag School of Education's website to learn more about the certification process once the program is complete.
How to Apply to the Graduate Certificate in Literacy Leadership
Complete the online application to the UConn Graduate School.
- When applying, under Intended Program please select:
- Level of Study: Certificate
- Academic Areas: Education
- Program: Literacy Leadership Graduate Certificate
- Campus: Hartford
- Entry Term: Spring 2026
Upload the following materials to the application:
- Transcripts of all collegiate work completed to date, graduate and undergraduate.
- This must indicate a course equivalent to EPSY 5108: Teaching Students with Special Needs in the Mainstream, which is a prerequisite for this program.
- For International Transcripts: Prospective students with international transcripts must get a Course-by-Course transcript evaluation by one of the approved evaluators listed on the Connecticut State Department of Education website. If your degree is a 3-year bachelor’s degree from India, Canada, Australia, Sri Lanka, Scotland or certain other countries, the UConn Graduate School will not consider the degree to be equivalent with a 4-year U.S. bachelor’s degree, even if the degree has been evaluated as a 4-year degree by an outside credential evaluator.
- 2 Reference Letters
- Personal Goal Statement
- TOEFL (for international applicants whose native language is not English)
- Resume/Vita
- Evidence of K-12 or Other Relevant Teaching Experience
Graduate Certificate in Literacy & Deaf Education
UConn's Graduate Certificate in Literacy and Deaf Education is a 12-credit program designed for educators who support the literacy development of deaf and hard of hearing students. Courses primarily meet online with several opportunities for face-to-face experiences throughout the year.
The program is designed to offer educators an opportunity to extend their knowledge of literacy development for deaf and hard of hearing students through collaboration with colleagues enrolled in the program and with affiliated professionals. Courses are designed for those preparing to work with deaf and hard of hearing students, as well as current classroom teachers, special education teachers, teachers of the deaf, and other professionals.
Visit the Department of Curriculum and Instruction website to learn more about the certificate program and how to apply.
Other Programs
The Center also is affiliated with degree programs in Bilingual and Bicultural Education at the master’s, sixth-year, and doctoral levels at UConn’s Neag School of Education.
For more information, please visit the Neag School’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction website.