Application instructions for Bachelor of Education

The Bachelor of Education is a highly competitive, limited-access professional program. You should ensure that you meet and, wherever possible, surpass the basic course prerequisites or co-requisites for admission into this program.

 

Only applications that are complete by the December 9th deadline will be reviewed by MSVU’s Faculty of Education for admission.

Documents received after the application deadline will not be considered.

The B.Ed. degree only has one intake per year in September only.

If you are applying for both the Elementary and the Secondary program, please submit separate applications, and application fees, for each program.

When your application reaches the Education Faculty, it will be reviewed according to the following criteria:

1. UNDERGRADUATE DEGREE: Completion of an undergraduate degree is required for admission to the Bachelor of Education program. Applicants completing the final year of an undergraduate degree may apply. If conditionally accepted, the undergraduate degree must be completed before beginning the B.Ed. program.

2. GRADES: The grade standard for admission into the B.Ed. program is a ‘B’; however, MSVU does not simply select the students with the highest undergraduate grades as grades are only one indicator of academic success in post-graduate professional study.

3. UNDERGRADUATE COURSE WORK: Applicants to the B.Ed. – Elementary program should have completed:

  • 1.0 unit (6 credit hours) in university social studies coursework from any one or combination of the following disciplines – History (with a preference for local or Canadian History), Geography, Political Science, Anthropology, Sociology, Economics, Law, Classics, African Canadian Studies, Mi’kmaq Studies, Acadian Studies and/or Philosophy
  • 1.0 unit (6 credit hours) in university science coursework from any one or combination of the following disciplines – Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Geology/Earth Sciences, Oceanography, Interdisciplinary Study in Science and Environmental Studies
  • 1.0 unit (6 credit hours) in university Mathematics coursework with a preference for a course in fundamental concepts of math (MATH 2462 & 2463 will fulfill this requirement)
  • 1.0 unit (6 credit hours) in university English coursework if undergraduate degree is delivered in English or 1.0 unit (6 credit hours) in university French coursework if undergraduate degree is delivered in French
  • 0.5 unit (3 credit hours) in Developmental Psychology, Child Psychology, or Educational Psychology (EDUC 3452 offered at MSVU will fulfill this requirement)

Applicants who are missing some of these academic requirements (a maximum of 2.0 units/12 credit hours)may be considered for conditional acceptance providing these courses are completed by a deadline/s determined by the Faculty of Education.

4. REFERENCES: Three references [one (1) academic and two (2) general suitability for teaching] are required. Referees should be from persons who are not related to the applicant, who are familiar with the applicant’s recent experiences as they pertain to the education profession, should know the applicant in some professional or other responsible capacity, and should respond to the questions asked of them as fully as possible.

5. EXPERIENCES (COVER LETTER AND RESUMÉ): A one-page cover letter must accompany your resumé. Your resumé should include the nature and amount of experience you have had in areas relevant to teaching. This experience may include paid or voluntary work in elementary schools, but other experience with young people such as mentor, tutor or counselor will be considered.

6. INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS: Official transcripts issued in a language other than English must be accompanied by an English translation signed by a notarized translator.

Applicants submitting transcripts for studies completed outside of North America (Canada and United States) must contact World Education Services (WES) to request a Course-by-Course Credential Assessment of their transcript/s. The results of the transcript assessment are to be sent directly from WES to the Admissions Office before the January 26th deadline to be included in the application.

7. ENGLISH LANGUAGE TESTING REQUIREMENTS (ESL): If your first language is not English, official transcripts, with acceptable scores must be submitted with the application. Please refer to English Test Score Requirements for details.

Candidates who are admitted to the program will be required to submit completed Criminal Records checks, with the Vulnerable Sector Search, and Child Abuse Registry checks by deadline dates that will be provided by the Faculty of Education.

The deadline for the completed application is Monday, December 9th, 2025.

Questions? E-mail: education@msvu.ca

Only applications that are completed by the December 9th deadline will be reviewed by MSVU’s Faculty if Education for admission.

Documents received after the application deadline will not be considered.

The B.Ed. degree only has one intake per year in September.

If you are applying for both the Elementary and the Secondary program, please submit separate applications, and applications fees, for each program.

When your application reaches the Education Faculty, it will be reviewed according to the following criteria:

1. UNDERGRADUATE DEGREE: Completion of an undergraduate degree is required for admission to the Bachelor of Education program. Applicants completing the final year of an undergraduate degree may apply. If conditionally accepted, the undergraduate degree must be completed before beginning the Bachelor of Education program.

2. GRADES: The grade standard for admission into the B.Ed. program is a ‘B’; however, the Mount does not simply select the students with the highest undergraduate grades; as grades are only one indicator of academic success in post-graduate professional studies.

3. UNDERGRADUATE COURSE WORK: Applicants to the B.Ed. Secondary program will need to identify a first and a second teachable field (subject field). Teachable fields (subject fields) are made up of specific disciplines taught in the Nova Scotia public school system. Below are the teachable fields (subject fields) offered in the Secondary B.Ed. program at Mount Saint Vincent University (and their related disciplines):

  • Business Education
  • English
  • Family Studies (Candidates should contact the Faculty of Education before applying.)
  • French
  • Mathematics
  • Science- Related Disciplines: Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Studies, Geology/Earth Sciences, Oceanography, Physics
  • Social Studies- Related Disciplines: Acadian Studies, African Canadian Studies, Anthropology (second teachable only), Classics, Economics, Geography, History, Law, Mi’kmaq Studies, Political Science, Sociology
  • Visual Arts (see Important Note below)

Minimum academic requirements for first and second teachable fields (subject fields): First Teachable Field: 5.0 units (30 credit hours) in a first discipline (normally major concentration). Second Teachable Field: 3.0 units (18 credit hours) in a second discipline (normally minor concentration).

Important information regarding related teachable disciplines:

  • The first and second teachable disciplines must be in different teachable fields. For example, an applicant cannot have a first teachable discipline in Biology and a second teachable discipline in Physics, as both are under the teachable field of Science. The same also applies for the teachable field of Social Studies. An applicant cannot have a first teachable discipline in History and a second teachable discipline in Sociology. Both History and Sociology are Social Studies disciplines.
  • For a first or a second teachable field in Business Education, applicants must have a combination of courses from among Business Administration, Commerce, Marketing, Accounting, Finance, Organizational Behaviour, Secretarial Arts.
  • For a first or a second teachable field in Family Studies, applicants must have a combination of courses from any two of the following three key theme areas: Family Studies, Nutrition and Consumer Studies. Candidates should contact the Faculty of Education before applying.
  • For a first or a second teachable field in French, applicants are expected to be competent in reading, writing, listening and speaking. Students will complete a practicum in a French Immersion class setting.
  • For a first or a second teachable field in Visual Arts, applicants should have courses such as painting, ceramics, drawing, pottery, and/or sculpture, printmaking and photography.

IMPORTANT NOTE: B.Ed. applicants applying to the Secondary program with Visual Arts as a 1st teachable and Social Studies as a 2nd teachable: Only 1.5 unit (9 cr/hrs) of course work in Art History can be used toward History as a Social Studies discipline. The remaining required course work must be in pure History.

NOTE: Applicants who are missing some of these academic requirements (a maximum of 2.0 units/12 credit hours) may be considered for conditional acceptance providing these courses are completed by a deadline/s determined by the Faculty of Education

4. REFERENCES: Three references [one (1) academic and two (2) general suitability for teaching] are required. Referees should be from persons who are not related to the applicant, who are familiar with the applicant’s recent experiences as they pertain to the education profession, should know the applicant in some professional or other responsible capacity, and should respond to the questions asked of them as fully as possible. Referees should email their reference form directly to bed.documents@msvu.ca or enclose the form in a sealed envelope signed across the seal and either return it to the applicant for inclusion in their application package or mail it directly to the Admissions Office at MSVU.

5. EXPERIENCES (COVER LETTER AND RESUMÉ): A one-page cover letter must accompany your resumé. Your resumé should include the nature and amount of experience you have had in areas relevant to teaching. This experience may include paid or voluntary work in secondary schools, but other experience with young people such as mentor, tutor or counselor will be considered.

6. INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS: Official transcripts issued in a language other than English must be accompanied by an English translation signed by a notarized translator.

Applicants submitting transcripts for studies completed outside of North America (Canada and United States) must contact World Education Services (WES) to request a Course-by-Course Credential Assessment of their transcripts. The results of the transcript assessment are to be sent directly from WES to the Admissions Office before the January 26th deadline to be included in the application.

7. ENGLISH LANGUAGE TESTING REQUIREMENTS (ESL)
If your first language is not English, official transcripts with acceptable scores must be submitted with the application. Please refer to English Test Score Requirements for details.

Candidates who are admitted to the program will be required to submit completed Criminal Records check, with the Vulnerable Sector Search, and Child Abuse Registry checks by deadline dates that will be provided by the Faculty of Education.

The deadline for the completed application is Monday, December 9th, 2025.

Questions? E-mail: education@msvu.ca

1. Online Application for Admission Form: Complete all sections of the Application for Admission form. See the Apply Now section.

2. Application Fee: Submit a non-refundable application fee of $40 CAD for domestic applicants and $80 CAD for international (Visa) applicants. You can pay this application fee online with a Visa or MasterCard after you have submitted the online Application for Admission form.

3. Submit your Supporting Documents: Please refer to the Upload Bachelor of Education Application Supplementary Documents web page for step by step instructions on how to complete and submit your supplementary application documents.

4. English Language Testing Requirements: If an applicant’s first language is not English, official reports with acceptable scores must be submitted with the application. Please refer to English Test Score Requirements for details.

5. Interviews: Please be advised that applicants may be short listed and invited to participate in an interview with the Faculty of Education. The interview will focus on your aspiration of becoming a teacher, experience, and commitment to education.

6. If you wish to apply to the Elementary and Secondary programs, you must submit a separate Application for Admission form and supplementary information package and pay the fees for each program.

The online application for the September 2025 intake will be available on October 4, 2024.

To be considered for admission, please submit all documentation by Monday, December 9th, 2025. Documents received after the application deadline will not be considered.

The above deadline does not apply to the Bachelor of Education NSTC and the Non-Degree program.

If you have questions about the application process, please email admissions@msvu.ca.

For program specific questions, please contact education@msvu.ca.