There are a variety of ways to meet the requirements to become a New York State certified teacher. Select the pathway that is right for you.
Pathway:
Approved Teacher Preparation Program
or
Completion of a Comparable Educator Program in another U.S. State
Most candidates who fit this profile are High School graduates who wish to pursue a career in teaching. Your best option is to complete a traditional teacher preparation program, at a college or university in New York State or in another state. Upon graduation from a NYS program, the institution of higher education recommends candidates for Certification. Upon graduation from a program in another state, candidates apply directly to the State Education Department under the Completion of a Comparable Educator Program in another U.S. State pathway.
If you fit this profile, you may obtain Certification by:
This is a general description only. For information on requirements specific to the subject you want to teach, click on the icon below.
Links to More Information
Pathway:
Approved Teacher Preparation Program
Most candidates who fit this profile possess a bachelor's degree and enroll in a graduate program at a college or university in New York State leading to a first teaching certificate, usually including an internship in a K-12 school. Upon graduation from a NYS program, the institution recommends candidates for Certification.
If you fit this profile, you may obtain Certification by:
This is a general description only. For information on requirements specific to the subject you want to teach, click on the icon below.
Links to More Information
3. Candidate Profile:
Career Changers,
Persons Educated Outside the U.S.,
Persons Not Graduated from Teaching Program
Pathway:
Individual Evaluation
Most candidates who fit this profile pursue college study at their own pace in order to fulfill the requirements for a teaching certificate or were educated outside the United States. They then apply directly to the State Education Department.
If you fit this profile, you may obtain Certification by:
This is a general description only. For information on requirements specific to the subject you want to teach, click on the icon below.
Links to More Information
Pathway:
Approved Teacher Preparation Program
(Alternative Certification "Transitional B" Program)
Most candidates who fit this profile have subject matter expertise (baccalaureate degree with an academic major such as mathematics or chemistry for example). They enroll in one of the Alternative Teacher Certification (ATC) Programs offered by college-school partnerships in various locations throughout the State, in order to complete teacher education study. Upon completion of the alternative program, they are recommended for Certification by the college or university.
If you fit this profile, you may qualify for enrollment in an ATC program by:
This is a general description only. For information on requirements specific to the subject you want to teach, click on the icon below.
Links to More Information
Pathway:
National Board Certification
Candidates who fit this profile possess a certificate from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
If you fit this profile, you may obtain Certification in the same or equivalent New York State title by:
Links to More Information
6. Candidate Profile:
Completed a Teacher or Administrator Program in another U.S. State or Territory
Pathway:
Completion of a Comparable Educator Program in another U.S. State
Complete a comparable approved teacher preparation program, in the subject of the application, at a college in another U.S. State or Territory that would lead to an institutional recommendation for certification in the state the college is located.
If you fit this profile, you may obtain Certification if you satisfy the requirements found at:
Applicants from Other States
This is a general description only. For information on requirements specific to the subject you want to teach, click on the icon below.
Links to More Information
Pathway:
Individual Evaluation for Additional Certificate
Candidates who fit this profile are teachers who already possess a New York State classroom teaching certificate and are interested in becoming certified in an additional classroom teaching subject.
If you fit this profile, you may obtain an additional certificate by:
If your first certificate was issued as the result of completion of an approved program or a professional license we will not have an official transcript of your college coursework on file. Please submit official transcripts of all completed coursework from all colleges you have attended.
This is a general description only. For information on requirements specific to the subject you want to teach, click on the icon below.
8. Candidate Profile:
NYS Certified Teachers seeking to teach another subject while completing requirements for the certificate
Pathway:
Individual Evaluation (for Supplementary Certificate)
Candidates who fit this profile are teachers who already possess a New York State classroom teaching certificate and are interested in teaching another subject while completing requirements to become certified in the new classroom teaching subject.
If you fit this profile, you may obtain a supplementary certificate by:
This is a general description only. For information on requirements specific to the subject you want to teach, click on the icon below.
Pathway:
NYS Professional License
This is a general description only. For information on requirements specific to the subject you want to teach, click on the icon below.
10. College Professors with a Master’s or Higher Degree and Two Years of Teaching Experience at the College Level.
Pathway:
IHE Professor Experience
Candidates who fit this profile are college professors who have a Master’s or higher degree in the content area and wish to teach in a New York public school.
If you fit this profile, you may obtain Certification by:
Links to More Information
