Frequently Asked Questions

The upper division (undergraduate) certificates and post-baccalaureate (graduate) certificates are approved by the University System of Maryland and the Maryland Higher Education Commission. These are university issued certificates that are documented on your transcript as a program of study, and upon completion, you will receive a certificate that looks similar to a diploma and includes the name of the certificate program.

Certification (now called licensure) from MSDE is separate from a UMES certificate program. However, we have designed our programs so that by completing the certificate program in CTE from UMES, you will have also completed the four courses required by MSDE for Professional and Technical Education (PTE) licensure. You will need to work with your school system’s certification office and MSDE to submit your official transcripts and obtain your PTE teaching licensure from MSDE.

An endorsement is issued by MSDE and added to an educator’s current teaching license. The UMES certificates in WBL and Career Counseling are separate from the MSDE endorsement. However, if students select CTED 665 or EDTE 467 as their elective in the WBL and Career Counseling certificate program, this will allow them to complete the three courses MSDE requires for the WBL Coordinator endorsement while also completing the certificate program at UMES. You will need to work with your school system’s certification office and MSDE to submit your official transcripts so MSDE can add the WBL Coordinator endorsement to your current teaching license.

Our certificate programs have undergone a rigorous review and approval process by the University System of Maryland and the Maryland Higher Education Commission. A university issued certificate from UMES becomes documented on your official transcripts as a specialized program of study, allowing employers to see you earned a certificate in this unique and specialized area. You can list the state approved certificate that you earned on your resume, demonstrating to employers and school systems that you possess specialized knowledge and skills that uniquely qualify you for related openings. Additionally, upon completion of the certificate program, you will receive a certificate that looks similar to a diploma and includes the University seal with the name of the certificate program.

Students who already completed courses at UMES with the same course number (ex. CTED 607) as those required for the current certificate programs can apply those courses toward earning their certificate, pending they met the minimum course grade required for certificate programs. If students already completed all four courses required for a certificate they are not eligible to apply those courses toward the certificate, they must still have certificate courses remaining to be completed at UMES to transfer into a certificate program.

All potential transfer courses are subject to evaluation and approval by UMES. Students are eligible to transfer in a maximum of three credits toward a certificate program pending approval after the evaluation conducted by UMES.

All certificate courses must be completed within five calendar years from the end of the semester or summer session in which the coursework being applied toward the certificate began. Applicable courses completed at UMES prior to 2024 can be counted toward a certificate if all other certificate program requirements are fulfilled within seven calendar years of the completion of any pre-2024 UMES courses.

UMES offers competitive tuition rates with payment plan options available. For more information please visit this link and see the section titled “Off-Site/Satellite Sites” and look under Part-Time students.

Most CTE graduate, WBL endorsement, and PTE licensure courses are offered in an online synchronous and asynchronous format with condensed winter and summer courses also available. The EDTE 445 or CTED 655 courses for the WBL endorsement require in-person attendance for industry visits in the Baltimore region (or a local cohort location) during the condensed summer session. These in person industry visits are required to meet the COMAR regulations for the WBL endorsement. We work with students to make our courses accessible to those at a distance. Please contact us for more details to discuss course options and a plan of study.

Yes, we offer both.

Courses typically range from 16 week semesters (fall and spring) to condensed 10 week summer sessions as well as more intensive one week summer or winter sessions. Our courses are designed specifically with full time working teachers in mind. The semester long classes help to provide a manageable course workload for full time working teachers.

Before applying or enrolling, please use our contact form on the home page to contact the correct person so they can ensure you are enrolling in the correct courses. Also see our enrollment page for more information.

Before applying or enrolling, please use our contact form on the home page or the list below to contact the correct person so they can ensure you are enrolling in the correct courses. Also see our enrollment page for more information.

Undergraduate and Graduate courses – JoAnn Eliff (jenorris@umes.edu)

Program questions and other inquiries – Dr. Tyler Love (tslove@umes.edu)

Yes, you do not need a bachelor’s degree to take courses. Students can take classes at the undergraduate level.  Contact JoAnn Eliff at jenorris@umes.edu for more information on the undergraduate level courses and programs we offer.

Our courses are specific to CTE, WBL and Career Counseling, and T&E.

No, they are approved by the University System of Maryland and the Maryland Higher Education Commission for university credit. They meet the COMAR regulations for licensure and endorsement from the Maryland State Department of Education.

Yes, we offer undergraduate and graduate level courses for teaching licensure. Please see our CTE Certificate (PTE Licensure) page for more details.

No, but certain courses are only offered during specific semesters as indicated on the CTE Certificate (PTE Licensure) webpage. Please pay close attention to the deadline specified on your MSDE evaluation which indicates when the PTE licensure requirements must be met. It is important to look ahead at UMES’s CTE Certificate (PTE Licensure) course schedule for upcoming semesters. Please contact us to set up a plan of study with you.

Yes, we offer all three courses required to earn the Work-Based Learning endorsement from the Maryland State Department of Education. We offer these courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Those courses can also be completed as part of the Certificate in Work-Based Learning and Career Counseling.

No, but certain courses are only offered during specific semesters as indicated on the WBL and Career Counseling Certificate webpage.

Career and Technology Education Studies at UMES has a special scholarship program for teachers who live out of state but teach in a Maryland school system. After you register for courses in HawkWeb please notify our office of your out of state status and what courses you registered for. We will submit the forms to help you obtain a scholarship to adjust your tuition to the in-state rate.

Our office at BMI does not handle financial aid directly. You will need to call the main campus at 410-651-6172 or visit the UMES Office of Financial Aid webpage.

Visit UMES’s Military and Veteran student webpage. Call 410-651-6172 or email Stephanie Hallowell.

UMES honors tuition remission for University System of Maryland (USM) retirees, current USM employees (some restrictions apply), and spouses and dependent children of USM employees. Please visit the Tuition Remission webpage from UMES’s Department of Human Resources to review the eligibility criteria and required forms for tuition remission.

Courses are tailored toward working teachers, offered synchronous online at night and sometimes on Saturdays, asynchronously online, and some courses are offered in person in various locations around the state.

Courses are evaluated on a case by case basis, contact us to request a transfer evaluation. A maximum of six graduate credits can be considered for transfer into UMES toward the Master’s in CTE degree.

Faculty with terminal degrees in CTE related fields, experienced K-12 teachers, and K-12 administrators teach in our program. Please see the bios of our faculty and staff on this webpage.

If you are a new student, as soon as you receive your student ID number from our office go to https://my.umes.edu/. Click on “New Student? Creat an account.” You will create a username (first initial, middle initial, last name is preferable) and a password (use UMES criteria) that will allow you access to HawkWeb, Canvas, etc. It may take several hours (or overnight) before your account is activated. Once activated, go to www.umes.edu/MyUMES and login. If you need further assistance with setting up your account please go to https://help.umes.edu or call the help desk at 410-651-8324.

If you are a current or former student and you already have an account but forget your login information, please go to https://my.umes.edu/. Click on “Forgot Password”. If you continue to encounter issues please go to https://help.umes.edu or call the help desk at 410-651-8324 if you need further assistance.

Term activation is required before you can register for courses during any semester. Your advisor (Dr. Love) will term activate you. If you have not been term activated and are trying to enroll in courses please contact us. If you skip a semester you will need to request that you be term activated for the semester when you are readmitted. Not being term activated is the reason why many error messages occur when you first attempt to register for classes. Our office can help you to resolve this issue.

After you register for courses in HawkWeb please notify our office of your out of state status and what courses you registered for. We will submit the forms to help you obtain a scholarship to adjust your tuition to the in-state rate. This can take about three weeks. When you register and arrange for payment for classes, you must use the “deferred payment” option. This allows you to pay part of your tuition up front and the remaining balance over the rest of the semester. It also provides time for your tuition to be adjusted to the in-state rate. Once the tuition rate is adjusted you can pay the balance due (or you may continue to pay using the deferred payment plan). This process must be completed for each semester that you live out of state. If at any time you move in-state please submit the Change of Information form and the Residency Petition form to the Registrar’s Office. You must also change your Driver’s License to be considered in-state (you need a valid Maryland Driver’s License for one-year before you are considered an in-state student).

You are responsible for making your payments in a timely manner and having your tuition paid in full by the end of the semester. When you sign up for the payment plan your bill will be split into four payments due on first of each month of the semester. There is a small fee to use the deferred payment plan. You can pay using your credit card or a bank account through HawkWeb. No payment plan is available for summer session courses. More information can be found at the UMES Bursar’s (Student Accounts) webpage. Please contact us if you have questions about setting up the deferred payment plan.

If you made a payment and HawkWeb says that your tuition is unpaid, this typically means that you did not press the yellow CONFIRM button after making your payment in HawkWeb. This is a required step and indicates that agree to pay your tuition. You are not officially paid or registered until you complete this step. If you are told your tuition is unpaid return to HawkWeb where you will see a message in a dialogue box telling you that you need to confirm your payment. Directions on how to complete your payment confirmation can be found at the Bursar’s (Student Accounts) Office webpage.

That is a decision made by each individual school system. Please contact your school system’s Human Resource Department to obtain accurate information before you register for a class. During the course registration process it is important that you make and save copies of your registration and payment information because your school system may require these process your reimbursement. It is also likely that you will need to order an official transcript from the UMES Registrar to submit to your school system for reimbursement.

Yes. If the course start date has already passed then you will be responsible for a percentage of the tuition based on how far into the semester you dropped the course. Those percentages can be found on the UMES Registrar’s Withdrawal and Reimbursement of Fees webpage.

Official transcripts can be ordered online directly from the UMES Registrar website. It may take up to two weeks after the end of a semester before final grades appear on a transcript. If you have any outstanding tuition or fees to be paid, your grades may not be posted. At any time you can obtain a copy of your unofficial transcript in HawkWeb. Keep in mind unofficial transcripts may not be accepted by school systems for reimbursement, many require official transcripts to be sent directly (electronically) from the University to the school system.