Berkeley School of Education

Students must obtain a minimum C grade (2.0 gpa) in the core course for it to count for the Minor.

2023 Update:

Beginning Summer 2023, EDUC W190 / W190A / 190AC will be phased out as the required core course for the Education Minor.

For the core course requirement, all students will now choose between:
EDUC 130: Knowing and Learning in Mathematics and Science 
Or 
EDUC W140 / 140AC: The Art of Making Meaning: Educational Perspectives on Literacy and Learning in a Global World. 

EDUC W190A/190AC/W190

The department will still recognize EDUC 190 as fulfilling the core course requirement of the Education minor, if the course is taken through summer 2025 After summer 2025, EDUC 190 will be recognized as an elective and only EDUC 130 and EDU 140 will count toward the core course requirement. 

Educ 190: Critical Studies in Education, is currently offered fall, spring and summer semesters. It examines how learning environments can empower and disempower individuals and explores the role of education in the social construction of hierarchy, inequality, difference, identity, and power. It embodies a democratic philosophy and practice, creating a learning community that encourages students to take responsibility for their own education and learn through theory, experience, and dialogue.

There are three versions of the core course: EDUC W190A, the online version; and EDUC 190AC, a hybrid version; and each are 4 units, offered fall and spring semesters. Both include a project that counts as 1 unit of fieldwork for the minor. EDUC W190 is the online version of the core course offered in the summer semester, is only 3 units and does not have the equivalent of 1 unit of fieldwork for the minor.

EDUC W190 is the online version of the core course offered in the summer semester, is only 3 units.

Three (3) units of minor approved field work are required of all Education minor students. Students may complete all 3 units in the same field studies program or may enroll in two or three separate programs. Please note:

• EDUC W144 - Practicum in Education - Students may choose to do some or all of their field units through this course, which has an online reflection component. EDUC W144 is offered all three semesters, is a variable unit course (meaning students may enroll in 1, 2 or 3 units of fieldwork within one semester), and can be repeated multiple times. A wide variety of education related fieldwork is possible through this course, including research, interning and suggesting your own placement. Students need to contact the course instructor to discuss about possible placements in advance of the start of the semester. A list of practicum sites currently partnering with EDUC W144, along with the hours required per unit, is listed in the document at the bottom of this page. List of EDUC W144 Approved Sites

• EDUC 197 - Field Studies - This course has several programs from which to choose. All sections of EDUC 197 are described in the Quicklist and Descriptions (see below). To obtain the class number for the program/section in which you are interested, contact the site coordinator for that program/section. As EDUC 197 is a variable unit course, students may enroll in 1, 2 or 3 units of fieldwork within one semester. Forty-five (45) hours of fieldwork per semester is equivalent to 1 academic unit, 90 hours for 2 units, etc. Students who wish to continue a field program for units in a subsequent semester, may enroll in the same field program in a future semester. EDUC 197 is P/NP grading. List of EDUC 197 Approved Sites

• EDUC 140AC and W140A, two of the minor electives, each have an equivalent of 1 unit of minor approved fieldwork within the 4 units of the course. If you choose either of these electives, you would only need 2 more units of fieldwork.

• Fieldwork outside the School of Education: There is one minor approved field studies program outside of the School of Education: the Youth Mentorship Program through Asian American Studies 197. Check the Education minor approved list of fieldwork as well as each semester's course list (see below) for this program.

• Summer Field work: EDUC W144 is offered in the summer with a variety of placements available. You may also request a specific placement by contacting the instructor.

• Petitioning field units: Occasionally, students have already completed or want to complete a unit bearing field program that is not on the Ed Minor approved list, and use those units for Education minor field units. Students in this situation should contact the Education minor advisor as soon as possible to discuss the petition process. Please note that field experiences that are not unit bearing cannot be petitioned. All petitions must be submitted and approved prior to graduation.

• Questions? Contact BSE's Undergraduate Advisor, 2121 Berkeley Way, 4th floor; (510) 643-9303 or bse-ugrad@berkeley.edu.

Students are required to complete three (3) elective courses chosen from the Education minor Approved Course List (see PDF below). The document below lists all the courses that are currently approved for the minor. However, not all the elective courses on this list are offered every semester. Therefore, course lists for each semester are also posted below and should be reviewed carefully before selecting courses for a specific semester.

Please note the following elective course policies:

• Elective courses must be offered for at least 3 units.

• A maximum of two (2) graduate level courses in Education may be used to meet the elective requirement.

• Beginning Fall 2023: Graduate level courses in Education may be used to meet the elective requirement, even if they are 2-unit courses. 

• Students who have completed or plan to complete an Education course as part of a Berkeley Education Abroad program, may be able to have it count toward the Education minor elective requirement. The course must be in the Education Department of the university abroad and equivalent to 3 semester units. There also may be courses offered outside an Education Department at an abroad university that have significant Education content that could be petitioned to count as an Ed Minor elective. Notify the Undergraduate Advisor if you would like to take advantage of the study abroad option.

• From time to time, a course may be offered on campus that has significant educational content but is not on the minor approved course list. If you have found such a course and would like to have it considered for one of your electives for the minor, please contact the Undegraduate Advisor about petitioning the course. A syllabus will be required.

Organizational categories have been created for Education minor electives, at the initiative of other Education minor students, to assist those who want to select courses with similar themes. Using these categories is optional. Keep in mind that this is not a complete list; it will be updated periodically. You can find the list of categories and the associated courses on the list Organizational Categories. If you have suggestions, comments or questions about these categories and/or the courses within them, please contact BSE's Undergraduate Advisor. 

• All minor requirements must be completed by your degree date. Courses completed after your degree date can not be used for the Education minor. If you anticipate getting an Incomplete in a course required for the minor, you can remove yourself from the current degree list by the end of the semester and add yourself to the degree list when you expect all requirements to be complete.

• All course work must be taken at Berkeley. 

• Three (3) of the five (5) courses taken for the minor must be upper-division (courses numbered 100 and above). Please note that the three units of required field work are considered as one of the 5 courses.

• EDUC 190 and all elective courses for the minor must be taken for a letter grade.

• Courses for the minor must have a minimum overall grade-point average of 2.0.

• EDUC 98/198 and EDUC 199 may NOT be used to satisfy any requirement for the Minor.

• Overlap policy - Only one (1) course may be used to satisfy course requirements for both the student's major and the Education minor OR between the Education minor and a second minor. In other words, out of the five required courses for the Education minor, four of them must be distinct and not being used by any other program at Berkeley. Please note that per L&S policy, no courses in the Ed Minor may overlap with another L&S minor requirement.

Contact the Undergraduate Advisor: School of Education, 2121 Berkeley Way, 4th floor; bse-ugrad@berkeley.edu