School Administration
The Master of School Administration program, also known as NC State University’s Educational Leadership Academy (NELA), seeks to increase student achievement by preparing and retaining principals in high-poverty, hard-to-staff, and historically low-performing schools. NELA creates a comprehensive leadership development and succession plan for NC high-need school districts. Each component is anchored in research-based best practices in leadership preparation and is designed to meet the specific contextualized needs of schools in NC.
NELA has a grant from the NC Principal Fellows program so the students' program is paid. Graduates must pay back their scholarship loan by serving four years post graduation as an Assistant Principal or Principal in a NC public school. If the graduate works in a high needs school, they can repay their scholarship loan in only two years.
Students complete eight courses plus a paid year-long, full-time internship. NELA is an online program but cohorts do meet in person for certain classes/specialized trainings. Fellows also visit high performing schools and travel to state/national conferences. Students earn a NC school administrator/principal license.
Eligibility
Applicants must submit:
- Four years of successful teaching experience (fourth year can be during the first year in MSA program)
- Continuing NC Teaching License
- Current employment in a K-12 environment
- Undergraduate degree
- Three letters of reference
- Resume
- Purpose or Biographical Statement
- Teaching Philosophical Statement or Educational Platform
- For non-native English speakers, Test of English as a Second Language
Plan of Study
Students complete a total of eight 3-credit courses (24 credit hours) plus a year-long, full-time building-level internship (18 credit hours). Students employed full-time may not enroll for more than 12 credit hours in any one semester.
Career Prospects
Strong school leadership translates into successful student populations and happy teachers. Facilitate a positive, supportive educational environment that honors the needs of students, parents, educators and staff. Use your strengths to impact more than one classroom as you advance your career as an assistant principal or a principal.
The Master of School Administration leads to principalship licensure in North Carolina. Applicants should be aware that licensure is controlled by the state. It is the student’s responsibility to understand and comply with the state’s requirements.