3. GET CERTIFIED

The most important thing you'll need to know when considering a career as a teacher is how to get certified. Certification is to teaching what the Series 7 Exam is to Wall Street - without getting your certification, you can't be a teacher (at least in a public school… but private schools are increasingly requiring certification too).

Every state has its own requirements, so your first step should be to talk to your state Board of Education and find out what your state's specific certification requirements are. While requirements vary by state, all states do require:

  1. A bachelor's degree
  2. Completion of an approved teacher training program
  3. A prescribed number of subject and education credits
  4. Supervised practice teaching

One cool thing about certification: as of 2000, 39 states (plus the District of Columbia) have an agreement that permits certification reciprocity. This means that if you get certified in one of those 39 states, your certification counts for all 39 states. These states include:

Alabama
Arkansas
Arizona
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Washington DC
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan Mississippi
Montana
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia


Certification will usually be granted by the state board of education or a certification advisory committee. Teachers may be certified to teach the early childhood grades (usually nursery school through grade 3; the elementary grades (grades 1 through 6 or 8); or a special subject, such as reading or music. In most states, special education teachers receive a credential to teach kindergarten through grade 12. These teachers train in a particular specialty, such as teaching children with learning disabilities or behavioral disorders.

Since each state has different requirements for certification the best way to proceed is to contact the education department or licensing office in your state. You can get more information by reading Requirements for Certification, an annual publication, or The Manual on Certification and Preparation of Educational Personnel in the United States published by the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification.

There are several avenues toward certification:

College programs
Full-time graduate school
Night school
Emergency credentials

College programs

Many universities offer education programs that will help prepare you for a career in the classroom, including giving you your certification and teaching experience. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education publishes an annual list of accredited schools, colleges, and departments of education.

A few things to consider when choosing a teacher's program:

  • Think about whether you want to teach in a specific setting (urban, rural or suburban), and then choose a university in that area. Much of the program will involve teaching in the local schools so you can get a feel for the local environment.

  • Think about what size college or teacher education program would be most comfortable for you.

  • Verify with the state department of higher education that the teacher education program you're interested in is state approved and accredited.

  • Ask about what kinds of opportunities you'll get to observe different classrooms and schools. You want to make sure you get plenty of experience and variety outside of the university.

Once you're in an undergraduate college, most universities make you wait until you're in your junior year to apply for admission to the teacher education program. Entrance requirements usually include personal interviews, 2 years of arts and sciences courses, a set minimum GPA, and tests. Two-year college students should check with the admissions counselor at the 4-year institution to which they will transfer to assure they are taking courses that will be accepted for credit toward graduation.

Traditional education programs are generally split into grade-related sections: early childhood, secondary to middle, and high school. The program for kindergarten and elementary school teachers include courses designed specifically for those preparing to teach in math, physical science, social science, music, art, and literature, as well as prescribed professional education courses, such as philosophy of education, psychology of learning, and teaching methods.

Full-time graduate school

Getting a masters degree isn't absolutely necessary to becoming a teacher, but some schools require that you either have one or are on your way to getting one (a master's degree in education requires at least one year of course work, emphasizing study in a particular subject area). For private schools, a masters degree in a certain subject is often all it takes to teach that subject, whether you're a certified teacher or not.

If you don't mind the extra schooling, a master's degree could help you inch up the education ladder towards, say, a career in school administration. Many teachers choose to work toward a master's after they've already been teaching for a few years. If you majored in something other than education in college, going to graduate school provides a focused path toward certification, since most grad programs are geared toward state requirements.

Of course, if you are already a certified teacher, you can head back to school to get a master's degree in a subject you'd like to teach. Most schools have a pay scale that is based on education and experience level, so having a master's - whether in education or, say, anthropology - can earn you a higher salary (maybe $1,000- $2,000 more). And many schools will help pay for your education.

Night school

This is all fine and dandy, but what if you've already graduated college and you're stuck with a degree in women's studies? Or, even worse, communications? Don't worry. There are ways to get certified in teaching without having to start college all over again. Most universities offer weekly night graduate programs that lead toward certification in two to five years (time varies depending on how often you take classes). The major disadvantage to this, obviously, is that it takes a long time, meaning you'll be stuck with that $20,000 a year teaching position at a private school until you're certified to work at a $30,000 public one.

Emergency credentials

Believe it or not, there are many public schools out there that don't have enough teachers and are desperately looking for new recruits. For such cases, most states can issue emergency credentials to college graduates who want to teach but who have not met the state's minimum requirements for regular credentials. These are given under the pretense that the teacher will eventually take all of the required courses for valid certification (so the teacher must take classes outside of work while they are teaching). It's a great shortcut to getting into the classroom.

Some states also offer alternative teacher certification to college graduates who lack teacher education training but have some experience in subject areas where teachers are needed. Provisional certificates have been offered to compensate for this shortage, and these teachers are given a specified time to complete requirements.