Alaska Teacher Colleges and Degrees Online Guide

This guide to Alaska teacher preparation programs is meant to provide aspiring teachers with the most relevant options for pursuing teaching degrees in Alaska. There are quite a few well-known colleges and universities in the state that offer programs focused on preparing new teachers for a long career in the educational sector. For more information, scroll down to find lists of top-rated teaching programs, a table of accredited, state-approved teacher preparation programs, and student reviews. Whether you’re entering college for the first time or looking to change your current career, our guide to teaching schools in Alaska can help you find a program that fits your individual needs and personal career goals.

Quick Facts

• There are 6 colleges and universities with teacher degree programs in Alaska.¹
• 4 colleges and universities offer an associate’s degree in education.*¹
• 3 colleges and universities offer a bachelor’s degree in education.*¹
• 4 colleges and universities offer a master’s or advanced degree in education.*¹
• No schools ranked in Kiplinger’s Best College Values 2019.²
• No schools ranked in Princeton Review’s Great Schools for Education Majors 2020.³
• No schools ranked in US News & World Report’s Best Graduate Education Programs 2019.⁴
• 2 schools ranked in US News & World Report’s Best Online Graduate Education Programs 2019.⁵
• 3 not-for-profit teacher programs are accredited by the NCATE, TEAC, or CAEP.

*For not-for-profit colleges and universities with teacher degree programs.

Top-Ranked Schools with Education Programs in Alaska

US News & World Report’s Best Online Graduate Education Programs 2019

• University of Alaska-Fairbanks (#177)
• University of Alaska-Southeast (#194)

School Programs for Becoming a Teacher in Alaska

Comparison of Teacher Preparation Programs

We have designed the following table to help you compare teacher preparation programs in Alaska according to various factors. All of the schools included are not-for-profit institutions approved by the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development for the preparation of teachers. Completing a state-approved teacher preparation program is an important step towards earning licensure.

While accreditation from the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) is not a requirement for licensure, it is included in the following table as CAEP provides a highly-regarded accreditation that is accepted in many states. Read more about the CAEP, NCATE, and TEAC accrediting bodies. We have also included rankings from the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ), a research and policy group that scores teacher preparation programs at the national level using key standards chosen to measure students’ preparation for success in teaching. For further information on the NCTQ’s program rankings, please see the notes below the table.

You will also find data on teacher preparation program enrollment, completion, and licensing exam pass rates by institution for the 2017-2018 academic year in this table. These data points are collected from annual US Department of Education records under Title II (Teacher Quality) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which provides for reporting that holds institutions and state departments of education accountable for increasing academic achievement through improvements in teacher quality.

Programs that are not ranked, or for which data is not available, in a given category are denoted as “-“.

*The NCTQ rated undergraduate elementary teaching programs in 2016 and undergraduate secondary teaching programs in 2017 by national percentile based on their overall scores on the NCTQ’s standards for teacher education. Schools that do not provide data on all key standards or that fall below the top 50% of schools nationally are not included by the NCTQ in their ratings. Visit the NCTQ website for more information on its standards and methodologies.
**Net price is per year for undergraduate tuition as calculated by the National Center for Education Statistics based on the cost of attendance (tuition, books, room and board, and related expenses) for students who qualify for in-state tuition and fees, less the average financial aid award (including grants and scholarships).

Profiles of Well-Known Schools

University of Alaska Fairbanks: The University of Alaska Fairbanks is home to the School of Education which confers degrees across the entire postsecondary spectrum including bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees. The School categorizes its degrees into five categories; Elementary, Secondary, Graduate, Counseling and Special Education. UAF has also recently offered an online iteration of their Special Education graduate degree completely online. The Master of Education in Special Education is an accredited degree consisting of 36 credits that are available 100% via the internet and is open to students regardless of where they live. UAF School of Education continues to strive to prepare educators that are effective professionals ready to teach within the culturally diverse state of Alaska and beyond. Many of their graduates stay within Alaska’s borders so the programs take on a distinctive Alaska flair due to the uniqueness of the state.

University of Alaska Anchorage: The University of Alaska Anchorage is the state’s flagship university and has been educating the state’s future teachers, counselors and administrators since 1954. The College of Education is one of the largest school’s on campus as Education is the second most popular major behind nursing. The University of Alaska Anchorage is unique in that it offers extended pathways to degrees by offering two-year associate’s degrees not typically offered at most universities. The most popular education degree continues to be Elementary Education which prepares students to be classroom instructors at the K-8 levels. Other majors available at UAA include undergraduate and graduate offerings in postsecondary education (including specialty areas such as reading, history, math, science, etc.), counseling, administration, special education and school psychology.

Schools with Teaching Degree Programs in Alaska

Alaska Pacific University
4101 University Dr
Anchorage, AK 99508
(907) 561-1266
www.alaskapacific.edu

University of Alaska Anchorage
3211 Providence Dr
Anchorage, AK 99508
(907) 786-1800
www.uaa.alaska.edu

University of Alaska Fairbanks
Signers Hall
Fairbanks, AK 99775-7480
(907) 474-7211
www.uaf.edu

University of Alaska Southeast
11120 Glacier Hwy
Juneau, AK 99801-8697
(877) 465-4827
www.uas.alaska.edu

An asterisk (*) denotes a two-year or certificate program in education. While a two-year degree will not qualify graduates for teacher certification, it can be a good starting point for a teaching career. To learn more about what you can do with this degree, see our guide to associate’s degrees in education.

References:
1. National Center for Education Statistics College Navigator: https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
2. Kiplinger’s Best College Values: https://www.kiplinger.com/tool/college/T014-S001-best-college-values-college-finder/index.php#Tile
3. The Princeton Review. The Best 385 Colleges, 2020 Edition. The Princeton Review, 2019.
4. US News & World Report Best Graduate Education Schools 2019: https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-education-schools/edu-rankings
5. US News & World Report Best Online Graduate Education Schools 2019: https://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/education/rankings
6. Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP): http://caepnet.org/provider-search
7. National Council on Teacher Quality Teacher Preparation Program Review: https://www.nctq.org/review/home
8. US Department of Education 2018 Title II Reports: https://title2.ed.gov/Public/Home.aspx