Placements for all field experiences in the MAT-E program are made by the Clinical Coordinator in the Office of Clinical and Field Experience. Placements are made in order to meet certification requirements for the State of Maryland.

Internship I

1. The Clinical Director/Coordinator, in collaboration with university, district and school representatives, tentatively assigns the candidate a suitable PDS placement for Internship.  Factors to be considered are the grade level needed by the students, available mentor teachers, and PDS needs and availability.  The candidate provides information about personal circumstances that might impact the placement, but no guarantee can be made that the information will influence the internship placement.  Candidates will be notified individually of his or her assignment prior to the Internship I semester.
   1. MAT-ELEM majors are placed in primary grades (1, 2, or 3), and intermediate grades (4, 5 ) depending on the candidate preference and placement availability. 
2. All preliminary contacts of the schools and the mentor teachers are made by the Clinical Director/Coordinator in the Office of Clinical and Field Experiences. Any requests for placement changes must be submitted in writing to the Clinical Director/Coordinator.
3. Candidates must follow their placement county’s policies on fingerprinting and TB tests. Some counties require additional fingerprinting/background checks or TB tests beyond the program requirements. Candidates should check with the Office of Clinical and Field Experience and their PDS site coordinator (if their school has one) regarding any additional requirements.

Internship II

1. The Clinical Director/Coordinator, with university, district and school representatives, tentatively assigns the candidate a suitable placement for internship.  Factors to be considered are the grade level needed by the students, available mentor teachers, and partnering counties' needs and availability.  The candidate provides information about personal circumstances that might impact the placement, but no guarantee can be made that the information will influence the internship placement.  Candidates will be notified individually of his or her assignment prior to the Internship II semester.
2. Each candidate will continue his/her second internship within the same parterning school as his/her first internship, if possible, in order to provide continuity of placement. If this is not possible, the intern will be placed in another appropriate partnering school in order to meet certification requirements or to gain additional experiences with diverse students.  
   1. MAT-ELEM majors are placed at grades 1, - 5, depending on the candidate preference and placement availability.
3. All preliminary contacts of the schools and the mentor teachers are made by the Clinical Director/Coordinator in the Office of Clinical and Field Experiences. Any requests for placement changes must be submitted in writing to the Clinical Director/Coordinator.
4. Candidates must follow their placement county’s policies on fingerprinting and TB tests. Some counties require additional fingerprinting/background checks or TB tests beyond the program requirements. Candidates should check with the Office of Clinical and Field Experience and their PDS site coordinator (if their school has one) regarding any additional requirements.

Relationships

Candidates will not be placed for a field experience in a classroom with a family member (children, parent, sibling, spouse, aunt/uncle, cousins, etc). Placement in a school where a family member is a faculty or staff member will be avoided, when possible. Candidates will be asked to disclose any family relationships in partner school districts to their program coordinator. Any relationship conflicts will be cross checked during Internship I and II placement procedures, but it is the responsibility of the intern to alert the Office of Clinical and Field Experience of a conflict. The program coordinator and the Clinical Director/Coordinator will determine appropriate next steps for a change in field experience if a conflict is identified.