The University of Chicago Urban Teacher Education Program, UChicago UTEP, prepares teachers of the highest caliber for Chicago Public Schools while empirically testing a model for urban teacher preparation. Our graduates are classroom-based school teachers who view teaching as a highly intellectual profession and a means for promoting educational equity and social justice. 

UChicago UTEP is a five-year experience that includes a two-year master's degree program:  Elementary and Middle Grades Pathways.  The two pathways meet Illinois's new licensure structure and standards for teaching:  (1)  all core-subjects in self-contained elementary grades 1-6; and (2) specific core subjects in departmentalized middle grades 5-8.  The two-year masters of arts in teaching and licensure program is followed by three free years of post-graduation supports. 

Ninety-two percent of UChicago UTEP graduates are still teaching in Chicago Public Schools or similar urban school districts after five years. This retention rate far exceeds the national norm, where approximately 50% of urban public school teachers leave the profession within their first three years. 

UChicago UTEP is a unit of the University of Chicago Urban Education Institute.