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Program Overview

What is the SLAT certificate?

The Certificate in SLAT documents that the student has solid grounding in second language acquisition and teaching and in a specific second language and its structures. The certificate is easily added to a major in Linguistics, second languages, international studies, and English, but it is designed to be useful and accessible to students in any major.

 Why get the SLAT certificate?

This certificate allows you to teach in private schools, language institutes, and community-based language programs.

Some of the courses constituting the undergraduate Certificate meet requirements for the Oregon State ESOL/Bilingual Endorsement and the University of Oregon College of Education 5th-Year Integrated Licensure ESOL/Bilingual program; but the goals of the Certificate are quite distinct and this certificate does not license you to teach in Oregon public schools. However, to the extent that requirements overlap, this certificate will provide an advantage for those students wishing to subsequently enroll in these other licensure/endorsement programs, allowing them to accelerate their work in these programs or to take more advanced courses.

It provides an excellent preparation for applying to state licensure programs (e.g. University of Oregon Middle/Secondary program).

Since the certificate offers solid grounding in the structure of some second language and provides knowledge about the cognitive and socio-cultural process of language acquisition and appropriate pedagogy for working with second language learners, it greatly strengthens any future K-12 second-language-teaching license.

The certificate is a valuable credential for applying to language teaching positions overseas.

SLAT certification is an excellent complement to the UO International Business Communication program.

How can I use the SLAT certificate?

Students should be aware that across the US and abroad, standards for specific programs in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) and Second Language Acquisition and Teaching (SLAT) vary widely, and there is no accrediting body specific to certificates. Therefore, on your résumé/C.V. or in your presentation letter, you should specify how much course work you did for the SLAT and add a few sentences about the practical work you did in your internship. Note that the UO SLAT certificate requirements are among the highest for second language teaching certificates.

Can I get a certificate in more than one language?

Yes! You must complete the language-specific requirements and an internship experience for each language. Consult your SLAT advisor for more information.