National Louis University (Chicago, Elgin, Skokie: credit, lawyers, house)

[skipcromer]

Does anyone have any information on National Louis University. I have not been able to find much out about them other then what is on their website. I also checked to make sure that they are accredited as well. I am a recent college grad looking to become a secondary education teacher. So far, National Louis is the best option for me and my schedule (including UIC and Depaul.) I would like to find out more about the school from a neutral party before deciding.

Any info would be helpful.

Skippy

[At1WithNature]

I think it is a good school for education. Perhaps, it is on the same tier as a Roosevelt university.

[chet everett]

NLU has a pretty user friendly web site:

National-Louis University | Accreditation NLU Open House | National-Louis University

I do not know how the costs compare, but I do know that there are MANY options for people to get a teaching certificate.

DePaul does not make a big marketing effort for its courses that offer JUST a certificate, but that is an really good option. DePaul University School of Education: Centers and Initiatives (http://education.depaul.edu/AboutUs/CentersInitiatives/index.asp - broken link)

UIC is far more bureaucratic, and not much cheaper when you factor in all the extras that they require.

Loyola has a ton of options: Loyola University Chicago-

Governor's State has a path targeting alternative certification: Alternative Route to Teacher Certification

I think they and Northeastern might be the least costly way to get what you need: Northeastern Illinois University :: Departments & Programs

You should also check the Fellows programs and teach for America:
Chicago Teaching Fellows :: Help Chicago's students compete. Level the playing field.

Teach For America - Placement regions - Chicago - Overview


Roosevelt and Dominican,Benedictine, NorthCentral, St. Francis, Lewis, Elmhurst, Wheaton and St. Xavier are additional options:
Roosevelt University - College of Education- - Future Students (http://www.roosevelt.edu/education/default.htm - broken link)
School of Education: Dominican University (http://www.dom.edu/academics/soe/index.html - broken link)
Lewis University - Chicago Campus - Academic Programs
University of St. Francis » Academics
Benedictine University (http://www.ben.edu/programs/education_health/ - broken link)
North Central College - Graduate Certificates
Education Links (http://www.sxu.edu/Administrative/Counsel_Career_Svcs/Career_Planning/Links/education.asp - broken link)
Elmhurst College: Education

I personally think that too few people "test drive" Universities -- all of them take a LARGE pile of your dough and too many then make YOU jump through their hoops. I had good luck at DePaul taking classes that I wanted and getting credits I needed without 'extras'...

[UICJohn]

What would you like to know? I graduated from there in December.

[At1WithNature]

Is it a decent school? Will employers take it seriously when they see the school's name on a resume? How is it compared to Roosevelt?

[UICJohn]

National-Louis University is a fully accredited university. They are incredibly well known in the education field. I have spoken to several administrators who have mentioned that they look highly upon a resume that has National-Louis University on it. However, when it comes to other fields, I would say to check out another college. National-Louis University offers B.A., M.A.T., and PhD in education. I especially like the fact that they have so many campuses. With locations in downtown Chicago, Wheeling, Elgin, Skokie, and Lisle, it's pretty convenient.

Of course I have had a few issues with it as well. My advisor was not helpful at all and even told me to take a class that I didn't need and I didn't find that out until half way through the semester. I got a Type 03 Certificate with my M.A.T. degree, which is a K-9 degree. However, many of the classes I took for that were geared more towards lower elementary and I was very focused on middle school level.

It's a little costly, but very good education repuation.

[chet everett]

When you apply to teach in a high school there are a whole host of things that the principal & department head will care about.

First, you had better more than just the minimum credits in your subject area. If it is Special Ed or ESL you get a little slack, but any subject area, including health / PE all the way up to the sciences with AP level classes they are not going to be happy to hire somebody that relies on having the answers printed in the 'teachers guide'.

Second they want somebody that is super organized and has demonstrated the ability to take charge of classroom of teenagers. If they can get this info from first hand observation of your student teaching you are miles ahead, but there are others ways that they will pick up on this.

Thirdly they want someone that is going to do all the little stuff well, from monitoring study halls to sponsoring a club to dealing with parents. Any evidence (again from student teaching) and you go to the top of the chart.

Way way way down on the list is where you went to school.

If you are talking about getting a Masters or EdD and a supervisory certificate then you also are competing for an administrative job and the criteria is quite a bit different. The "alumni network" is not that different than for lawyers , and if the superintendent is an Illini grad and you are too that is big plus, but if he / she got their EdD from Loyola and you did too that is big plus.

[skipcromer]

Originally Posted by At1WithNature

Is it a decent school? Will employers take it seriously when they see the school's name on a resume? How is it compared to Roosevelt?

I think its funny you are asking these questions when in another thread you felt quite comfortable saying both these schools were better than certain public universities.

Well done...

[adamtrip]

I am currently in the MAT program for elementary education. I have heard from a few different schools that I have observed in that they highly regard National-Louis for their education program. My advisor told me that some schools around here acutally seek out National-Louis grads. Not sure if that's true or not, but I sure do hope so. I am about half way through and feel that it is a great program.

UIC John, I also am focusing on middle school. I took the middle level endorsement courses and will also have endorsements in math, business, and social science. Were you able to find a job teaching middle school?

[Mamama Mia]

It was first founded in the 1800's, the first school in the nation to focus on early childhood education, then it became The National College of Education and was one of the first teacher's colleges in the country to offer a four-year program culminating in the bachelor of education degree. It was the first Illinois institution to offer the bachelor's degree for elementary teachers, very forward thinking, a different approach than the Normal schools.
They have a great reputation and a N-L grad should have the credentials to be hired by any school district.
Best of luck!