Child and Family Studies Major, BS in Health and Human Sciences – Early Childhood Education Teacher Licensure Pre K-3 Track

On August 31, 2026, this endorsement area will be retired by the Tennessee State Department of Education. Thus, as of this date, this program in this catalog will no longer prepare students for licensure. The endorsement area will shift to prepare teachers for the Tennessee Department of Education Early Childhood Education Integrated PreK-3 (birth to grade 3) licensure. Please refer to the 2023 catalog for the Child and Family Studies Early Childhood Education Integrated PreK-3 (birth to grade 3) program of study that prepares students to earn the requirements for this endorsement area.

Program Policies and Progression Requirements

The child and family studies major can provide the undergraduate preparation needed for a student who would like to be licensed to teach early childhood education in the State of Tennessee (PreK-3). The early childhood education licensure option is offered in conjunction with a master’s degree in child and family studies (early childhood education concentration). Upon attainment of junior status (i.e., 60 hours), students will complete the admission to Teacher Education process (see details in the Teacher Education section of this catalog) and simultaneously make application for admission to the MS with a major in child and family studies (see the Graduate Catalog for details). Acceptance into the teacher licensure program is contingent upon acceptance into the department’s master’s program. Students interested in this option should work closely with their advisor to ensure that they understand and meet the Teacher Education program requirements and the requirements for graduate study and that they strictly follow the application process.

uTrack Requirements

Universal Tracking (uTrack) is an academic monitoring system designed to help students stay on track for timely graduation. In order to remain on track, students must complete the minimum requirements for each tracking semester, known as milestones. Milestones include successful completion of specified courses and/or attainment of a minimum GPA. uTrack requirements only affect full-time, degree-seeking students who first entered Fall 2013 or later. uTrack does not apply to transfer students who entered prior to Fall 2015.

Progression Requirements

Students are expected to know the criteria they must meet in order to progress into a practicum (CFS 470 , CFS 472 , CFS 480 , or CFS 490 ) and to regularly monitor their progress in meeting these criteria. Students will not be allowed to progress into the practicum until these criteria are met. If students do not appear able to meet these criteria, they are encouraged to work closely with their advisor to plan an alternative educational program. Specific information on how to apply for the practicum is available from the student’s advisor. Students must work closely with their advisor to ensure that they understand the requirements for progression and that they strictly follow the application process for the practicum experience of their choice.

College of Education, Health and Human Sciences Honors Program

Child and Family Studies majors have the opportunity to participate in the college’s Service Learning Honors Program. For eligibility and requirements, see College of Education, Health and Human Sciences Honors Program .

Requirements for the Bachelor of Science in Health and Human Sciences – Child and Family Studies Major – Early Childhood Education Teacher Licensure Pre K-3 Track

Term 1	Hours	Milestone Notes
¹Arts and Humanities Elective *	3	2.3 cumulative GPA
ENGL 101 * or ENGL 118 *	3
¹Natural Sciences Electives *	3-4
²Psychology/Sociology Elective*	3
¹Quantitative Reasoning Elective (MATH course) *	3
Term 2
¹Arts and Humanities Elective *	3	Natural Sciences Elective*
³CFS 106	3	Quantitative Reasoning Elective*
ENGL 102 *	3
¹Natural Sciences Electives *	3-4
¹Quantitative Reasoning Elective (STAT course) *	3
Term 3
CFS 211 , CFS 220 *	6	Psychology/Sociology Elective*
⁴Intermediate Foreign Language *	3
²Psychology/Sociology Elective*	3
¹Social Sciences Elective *	3
Term 4
⁵Advanced Social Sciences Electives	6	2.75 cumulative GPA
Any HIST Elective	3	CFS 211
CFS 213	3
⁴Intermediate Foreign Language *	3
Term 5
CFS 320 , ³CFS 350 , CFS 385 , CFS 395	13	Intermediate Foreign Language Elective*
³REED 330	3
Term 6
³CFS 351 , ³CFS 353	7	Intermediate Foreign Language Sequence*
³EDPY 401	3	One course from CFS 320 , CFS 385 , CFS 395
³CFS 445	3
³ETEC 486	3
Term 7
³CFS 422 , ⁶CFS 405 *	9	No milestones
³REED 430	3
³SPED 402	3
Term 8
⁷CFS 470	12	No milestones
TOTAL	120

¹	Chosen from University General Education list . At least one of the natural sciences electives must have a laboratory. CFS 210 , CFS 220 , and the courses used to meet the Psychology/Sociology Elective requirement may not be used for the Social Sciences Elective requirement.
²	Select two courses from PSYC 110 , PSYC 220 , PSYC 301 ; SOCI 110 , SOCI 120 *.
³	Early Childhood Education Teacher Licensure (PreK-3) Specialty Area courses.
⁴	Select six hours of the same foreign language at the intermediate level, chosen from the University General Education list .
⁵	A total of 6 hours selected from 300-400 level child and family studies courses or 300-400 level sociology, history, psychology, political science, anthropology, educational psychology, counselor education, or recreation and sports management courses.
⁶	Meets Communicating through Writing (WC) and Communicating Orally (OC) requirements.
⁷	CFS 470 requires a cumulative GPA of 2.75; completion of all prerequisites enforced by the registration system; a minimum grade of C in all child and family studies courses; completed application; student conduct and criminal background clearance. CFS 470 must be completed in one semester.

* Meets University General Education Requirement .

Undergraduates

Graduate Students