WGU Ranked Among Top 1% of Teacher Prep Programs by National Council on Teacher Quality

The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has again ranked WGU Missouri and its parent university Western Governors University as having one of the best Teachers College programs in the nation. The online, nonprofit school maintained its status as a top teacher prep program, earning higher scores than 99 percent of the university’s peers.

Out of 2,481 programs included in NCTQ’s annual Teacher Prep Review, WGU was one of just 17 schools to earn the highest overall quality score for its undergraduate secondary programs. For this latest report, NCTQ switched to a percentile ranking system, but the results affirm the university’s status among the teacher education programs in the country, with its competency-based programs earning a spot in the 99th percentile.

“WGU’s teaching programs continue to be exemplary at preparing skilled teachers to succeed in the classroom, ensuring the success of our K-12 students,” said Kate Walsh, NCTQ President. “WGU once again is a top-ranked undergraduate secondary teacher-prep program, providing its students not only with sufficient content knowledge, but also with the tools necessary to establish a positive learning environment in the classroom.”

NCTQ’s quality standards emphasize the importance of both helping teachers achieve subject mastery and training them in teaching methods specific to that subject. WGU’s undergraduate secondary programs received “A” grades for secondary content in the sciences, secondary coursework methods, student teaching, classroom management, and secondary practices.

"We are proud to see that our efforts for preparing well-qualified teachers continue to be recognized,” said Dr. Angie Besendorfer, Academic Vice President, WGU’s Teachers College, and Chancellor of WGU Missouri. “WGU’s program focuses on demonstrating mastery of the skills and knowledge that teachers need to excel, ensuring that all graduates are classroom-ready on day one. We are hopeful to have an impact in schools across the nation through the quality of our graduates.”

WGU prepares teachers for licensure in all 50 states, and 98% of WGU students pass their Teacher Performance Assessment (as required by their state) within 90 days of completion of their demonstration, or student, teaching. WGU’s Teachers College, which has graduated nearly 26,000 students to date, is one of the largest producer of STEM teachers in the country, conferring 11 percent of the nation’s bachelor’s and master’s degrees in STEM teaching.

“WGU is an important provider of new teachers in critical shortage areas, including STEM,” said Besendorfer. “It is excellent to be recognized for the quality of our programs by a third party. This is great news for schools across the nation.”