New College of Florida

What you'll study

Year 1 focuses on executive leadership and instructional excellence through courses that blend pedagogy, history and philosophy of education, and leader development. Example Year 1 courses and their emphases include:

• Champion Instruction – Pedagogical Methods that Lead to Outlier Outcomes (EDA 5508): model and identify high-impact instructional practices, classroom environment design, and techniques to support mastery of rigorous objectives.
• Philosophical and Historical Foundations of Education (EDF 5520): study classical liberal arts traditions, major educational philosophies, and the historical development of education in the United States.
• Leadership: Emotional Intelligence, Presence, and Communication (EDA 5503): develop self-awareness, communication presence, and individualized development plans using working-style inventories and one-on-one coaching.
• Philosophy of Education (EDF 5545): examine the purpose of education, rigorous K–12 content, content-specific pedagogy and assessment, and leadership practices that support academic excellence.
• Instructional Leadership as a Liberal Art (EDF 5544): learn coaching models for delivering concise, high-leverage feedback and supporting teachers as they plan and practice instructional techniques.

Courses include liberal-arts readings and cognitive-science informed texts (sample titles listed in course descriptions) to ground leadership practice in classical and contemporary thought.

Entry requirements

Applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited U.S. institution or an international equivalent, with a minimum GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. Required materials include transcripts (official or unofficial), a resume/CV (ideally showing two years of full-time PK–12 classroom teaching; if not, evidence of work with children or teaching), a letter of recommendation from a professor or supervisor (ideally a principal), and a statement of purpose (up to three pages) documenting interest, expertise, and leadership potential. English proficiency scores apply if relevant. GRE scores and up to two additional recommendation letters are optional.

Career prospects

Graduates are prepared for school- and system-level leadership roles. Typical pathways described by the programme include:

• Principal or Assistant Principal — leading a school’s vision, culture, instruction and operations.
• Instructional Coordinator — designing curriculum and supporting teacher practice across classrooms.
• District Administrator — shaping strategy and programs across multiple schools.
• Director/Supervisor roles — overseeing programs, mentoring leaders and influencing policy implementation.
• Teacher or College Professor — continuing in classroom or higher-education teaching with a leadership perspective.
• Education Reform/Policy work — using data and program design to influence systems and expand opportunity.

Scholarships & funding angle (general)

The programme lists multiple financing routes: employer tuition assistance, district partnership agreements, payment plans and scholarships. Tuition is presented transparently on a per-credit basis for residents and non-residents, and the programme encourages exploring employer or district support arrangements.