During their first year on campus, students begin to fulfill Colorado Mesa University essential learning course requirements and take EDUC 115.

Students move through Colorado Mesa University required coursework and take 2 education program prerequisites. By the end of the second year, CMU students will complete 20 field hours as part of their application to the CTE.

Pending their acceptance to the Center for Teaching Education, and depending on their program, students take between 9 and 12 upper division course credits in education. Courses focus on inclusivity, building relationships with parents and students, and understanding assessments and self-expression in preparation for focused disciplines.

​​​​​​​Students spend the first semester in preparation for their field internship by taking method courses designed to dovetail with their increasing role in the internship classroom. During their final semester, students complete the student teaching internship (12 credit hours). 

Prerequisites for acceptance to the Center for Teacher Education include 20 hours of field experience. Once accepted, all licensure programs have state-mandated field hours associated with them. Students fulfill these hours with a regional education partner within the 14 counties on the Western Slope. Distance learning students may complete these hours outside of these partnerships but will meet with a program coordinator for approval.

The Center for Teacher Education at Colorado Mesa University prepares future teachers to work with diverse populations with unique needs, including students in poverty and students with different racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds. All CTE students must take and pass courses which prepare them for this type of classroom experience. Required courses like Teaching to Diversity are comprehensive courses that prepare students to reflect on their own worldview, and to plan and differentiate their instruction to meet the diverse needs of students.

​​​​​​​The Center for Teacher Education follows a team-teaching model. This model fosters collaborative efforts and draws on the strengths of each partner in the development of curriculum and the practice and implementation of effective teaching strategies. The key components of the team-teaching internship model include collaborative teaching approaches, reduced student-teacher ratios, peer support groups at host schools, and increased professional development opportunities.  Students are placed with at least one mentor teacher and assigned a University Supervisor. 

The Center for Teacher Education adheres to the Colorado Teacher Quality Standards by focusing on overlapping performance goals for students. The CTE focuses its education areas on the student’s knowledge of the subject matter, their professional skills, and by fostering a passion for innovation in education. The planned sequence of courses and field experience ensures students are exposed to and are accountable to achieving these standards.