University of Arkansas - ABA Degree Programs

ABA Programs Offered at the University of Arkansas

The University of Arkansas appears in our ranking of the 20 Most Affordable Online ABA Graduate Certificate Programs.

The University of Arkansas offers several ABA and special education programs for both undergrads and graduate students. A popular choice is the online Applied Behavior Analysis graduate certificate program. The founders of this program looked at the task list released by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB) and designed a curriculum to work with that list. Majors spend 12 months in the program and take 21 credits of classes on professional ethics, concepts and principles of ABA, and behavior assessments and interventions. With their certificates, students qualify to take the board’s licensing exam.

Through the university’s Bachelor of Science in Education (BSE) program, undergrads can learn the basics of working with students who have disabilities, including those with autism and others that are on the spectrum. Majors typically take eight semesters of classes and spend the first semester taking general education courses and a class called Family Relations. Classroom Learning Theory, Language Development for the Educator and Survey of Exceptionalities are courses they take in the second year. The university allows students to do internships in their last year and lets them choose between working with kindergarten through sixth-grade students or those in seventh through 12th grades.

In the University of Arkansas Master of Education (MED) in Special Education, students can become better equipped at working with those who have disabilities. Though this is an online program, it includes an offline practicum in which students need to pick a school or location where they will work for course credit. The university designed this program to work with the ABA certificate, but students can also earn certificates in dyslexia therapy, educational examiners and other fields. The courses that they take include ABA and Classroom Management for Teachers, Curriculum Development and Instructional Planning, Legal Aspects of Special Education, Inclusive Practices for Diverse Populations and Teaching Students with Disabilities in Core Areas.

About the University of Arkansas

The University of Arkansas is a large public university that rates as the flagship university in Arkansas and the head institution of the school system of the same name. Established in 1871, it quickly adopted the nickname of The Hill because the campus was high up on a hill and looked down over the surrounding town. The Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences as the first department that opened on the campus in 1905, but it was followed by other departments in engineering, education, law, and business. It also added an Honors College for the top incoming freshmen. Known by other names such as UA and U of A, enrolling at the university now features more than 27,000 students.

University of Arkansas Accreditation Details

U of A has accreditation from several specialty organizations, including the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) and the American Bar Association (ABA). Students in the applied behavior analysis and special education programs take classes accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Preparation (NCATP). Some of their courses may have accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) too. The primary accreditation held by UA that lets students use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) comes from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC).

University of Arkansas Application Requirements

UA does not allow undergrads to declare a major in education until their sophomore years. Undergrads can use the Common Application or the U of A application, both of which charge them the same $40 application fee. Those who apply by the priority November first deadline will get a response within a few weeks. The university also has a November 15 priority scholarship deadline and a December first priority financial aid deadline by which it encourages students to apply for help. U of A accepts around 68% of its annual applications and requires both high school transcripts and a standardized test score. Those with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher in the university can apply to the special education program at the end of their freshmen or beginning of their sophomore year.

Students with an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher and either a degree or experience in education can apply to the U of A MED in Special Education. UA also accepts students who earned the same GPA in the last 60 credits of undergrad classes they took and those who have a graduate degree. The application process asks for a PRAXIS score or a score from the content area of the GRE or another test. Prospective students also need to submit three reference letters and the online application.

Tuition and Financial Aid

Grad students in the ABA certificate program pay $430.69 per credit hour. The university expects them to pay fees every semester too that include a $30 off-campus education fee and a $2.91 library fee, both of which UA charges per credit hour. Graduate students pay the same tuition and fees in the MED program. They can apply for one of the two scholarship and grant programs that UA offers. One is the Teacher Opportunity Program that awards grants to those who lived in Arkansas for at least 12 months and have a license from the Department of Education in the state. Students have until July first to apply to the program and must have a minimum GPA of 2.5 to renew the award. Teaming for Transition is another program for grad students that provides funds to those who want to teach after working in another field.

Undergrads attending U of A pay $9,384 every year as a resident. Nonresidents will find that their cost of fees and tuition increases to $25,873 a year. Though the university offers different room and board packages, undergrads spend an average of $11,300 a year to live on-campus. The financial aid that they can get after using the FAFSA includes various scholarships. U of A must receive a transcript, test score, and application by the beginning of November to consider a student for any of these awards. Some scholarships have other requirements that students can view online such as an essay or writing sample. The undergrads enrolling in the special education programs in ABA at the University of Arkansas can also get loans and grants every year and/or qualify for work-study.