- The Murphy Institute's LEAP to Teacher program will host free virtual preparatory workshops for the CST multi-subject early childhood and childhood. Part 3 of the multi-subject test is also needed for Adolescent Students With Disabilities Certification. The workshops are open to all CUNY students. For more information about test prep with the Murphy Institute, send an e-mail or call 646.313.8532.
- Announcement
- Frequently Asked Questions
Tests Required for First Initial Certification if You Are Not Already Certified in New York State
Be sure you check the requirements for your certification area. Certification rules and procedures may change or be revised over time.
If you are not certified in NY or another state or country, and if you want certification related to your college educator preparation program at Brooklyn College, check the list for the first certification title you will be eligible for under the list for “approved teacher preparation program.”
If you are applying for certification related to your dual certificate college program, for your first certification area, check "Pathway: Approved Teacher Preparation Program" and for your other certificate, check "Approved Teacher Preparation Program—Additional Certificate."
To check if your program leads to certification, refer to either the undergraduate program list or the graduate program list.
School District Leader candidates may be eligible for an Emergency COVID-19 title if they completed all program requirements other than the assessment requirement in the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 academic year. The SDL tests will be required in order to get a recommendation for professional certification for all other academic years. More information, see page 21-22 in this document (pdf).
If You Have New York State Certification and Will Be Applying for Certification to Teach Another Age Group or Subject
If your certification is in effect (that is, it is valid, not expired, revoked, etc.), you should not need to complete the new certification tests unless you are applying for certification to teach another age group or subject.
- If you will not be completing a master's degree that leads to certification for the new certification area you want, follow these instructions.
- If you will be completing a master's degree that leads to certification for the certificate you want, you can check requirements under the heading "Pathway: Approved Teacher Prep Program—Additional Certificate." For more information, read the information below.
For more information contact the certification officer.
Test Information and Resources
New for Students With Disabilities Grades 7–12 Generalist Teachers/Candidates
- Updated: April 6, 2020 (Board of Regents Acts on Series of Emergency Regulations to Ease the Burdens on Educators, Students and Professionals in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic). Effective July 1, 2021, all special education teachers who teach one or more subject areas in a special class (self-contained class) in grades 7–12, with some or no students under alternate assessment, must either: be certified in each subject area that they teach, or meet the teaching experience requirement for the statement of continued eligibility (SOCE) and have an active SOCE application in the TEACH online system in each subject area that they teach. A students with disabilities generalist grades 7–12 teacher can teach as a consultant teacher, resource room teacher, integrated co-teacher, or special class teacher – all students under alternate assessment. More information: Special Education Teaching Assignments and Certification and December 2019 memo: Subject Area Certification Requirement. As of April 6, 2020, the deadline was extended to July 1, 2021.
- If you have 18 credits in biology, chemistry, earth science, English, math, physics social studies, or a language, you can apply for a subject area extension. Contact us if you have a total of 18 credits (undergraduate and/or graduate) in one of those subjects and we will help you get a subject area extension.
SBL: School Building Leader assessment and SDL: School District Leader assessment. School District Leader candidates may be eligible for an Emergency COVID-19 title if they completed all program requirements other than the assessment requirement in the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 academic year. The SDL tests will be required in order to get a recommendation for professional certification for all other academic years. More information, see page 21-22 in this document (pdf).
PRAXIS II: for professional certification, speech-language pathology only.
Complete Your Mandated Workshops
Workshops are a required component of your program. If you have not taken the workshops, you can refer to this workshop information. Your workshops must be verified by the certification officer before your recommendation for certification can be entered by Brooklyn College. These workshops are not test prep workshops.
Complete Your Fingerprint Clearance Documentation
For complete instructions on how and when to get fingerprint verification required for fieldwork, student teaching, or other college-related work in NYCDOE schools, you will need to follow the Fingerprint Verification Requirement instructions. Fingerprint records on TEACH do not confirm current security clearance status and are needed only for NY State certification. Fingerprint/security clearance status for college students can be confirmed only after you follow the Fingerprint Verification Requirement instructions.
After your fingerprint records have been processed, check your TEACH account to check if your fingerprint status is posted there. Look for a line that states "We have received your fingerprint information from NYC" or "Your DCJS and FBI Records Have Been Received," which may appear above the "fingerprinting" header. If you see this note, then your records have been received and you do not need to follow up. Your current clearance status will not be posted there.
If you see a note on your TEACH account that states "Teach does not have your fingerprint information. " and if you already processed your fingerprint records with the NYCDOE, then you need to release your New York City records so they can be posted on your TEACH account. New York State Education Department.
To release your records, print, sign, and send this form OSPRA 104 form (pdf) to the email address on the form.
If the information in section two of the OSPRA 104 form does not apply to you, you can leave it blank. Allow about one month for your records to be processed, and then check your TEACH account to be sure your fingerprint records were received. When you see this note, then your records have been received and you do not need to follow up. Your current clearance status will not be posted there.
Pay for Your Application for New York State Certification
Certification Processing Time
After your "graduation" date, you may need to allow at least three weeks for the degree to be recorded by the Registrar's office. You can check your CUNYfirst account to see if your degree has been recorded. Degree Audit will send you an email when your degree is recorded. Your degree must be recorded and your mandated workshops must be done before the Certification Officer can add your "institutional recommendation" for certification to your TEACH account.
Spring term graduation data may be recorded in CUNYfirst starting about the 3rd week of June.
Summer term graduation data may be recorded in CUNYfirst starting about the 3rd week of September.
Fall term graduation data may be recorded in CUNYfirst starting about the 3rd week of January for Dec. 31 records or the 3rd week of February for Feb. 1 records.
After you have confirmation from the Registrar’s Office that your degree was awarded/education is completed, you can contact the Certification Officer who will check that your mandated workshops and education are recorded. After that, the Certification Officer will add the “institutional recommendation” to your NY State TEACH account to confirm your education and certification title with the NY State Dept. of Education Office of Teaching Initiatives (OTI).
If you need priority processing by the college: After your grades are in, you can request a statement of graduation using this form and then send the statement to the Certification Officer . If the statement indicates that your degree will be complete subject to the satisfactory completion of courses for which you are registered, please request another statement when your grades are recorded on CUNYfirst.
When to Apply for Certification
Expedited processing by the NY State Dept. of Education Office of Teaching Initiatives (OTI): The Human Resource Director for the school who is hiring you can request the state to expedite your certification processing. Information about Expedited Service Requests.
If a school can hire you as a substitute teacher before your certification is confirmed, that may help you start work while you wait for your certification records to be confirmed. Information about NYC DOE Substitute Teaching.
How to Apply
- You can see instructions on this document (pdf).
- You can watch this videowhich explains how to apply and how to check your application.
- How to check the status of your application (pdf)
- Go to your TEACH account, Login to TEACH > TEACH Online Services
- Before you apply, go to Inquiry Links, Account Information. Check if your workshop data, fingerprint data, certification test data, and all other data is complete.
- If you do not have your "institutional recommendation" related to your college program for certification yet, and if your degree has been awarded, you can contact the certification officer. Your degree may be confirmed three or more weeks after your "graduation"/degree completion date. You can check your CUNYfirst account to see if your degree records have been confirmed.
- If you have your certification test scores reports and if your scores are not recorded on your TEACH account, you can contact NYSTCE (Pearson) at: (800) 989-8532. All account information in your NYSTCE (Pearson) account must match exactly what is listed in your TEACH account.
- When you are ready to apply, go to Online Application, Apply for Certificate.
- Verify and update your profile. If you have nothing to update, you should be able to click "next" to get to the next page.
- Select your certificate. Refer to the Student Information Sheet (pdf) if needed for instructions including your application program code.
- NYC Teaching Fellows and Teach for America: your first certificate will be Transitional B.
- Internship certification: please see the details and requirements on the career page.
- Initial Certification: If you have fewer than three years of experience.
- Professional Certification:
- You need a master's degree in the content area of the initial certificate or in a closely related subject area.
- Application program code: you can use the the Student Information Sheet (pdf) to find the code that matches your master's/graduate level degree.
- If you do not have a master's/graduate level degree in the same subject, there will not be an application program code. Refer to these instructions.
- You need three years of related experience. Refer to Experience Requirements for Certification.
- If you have professional certification already or not, if your employer did not send in a work experience form recently, please ask your employer to send it in. For experience completed within the state of New York, the preferred method for an employer to verify it is by entering a Superintendent Statement onto TEACH. If the employer cannot enter a Superintendent Statement, they need to send the appropriate Verification of Paid Experience Form found here.
You may need one year of mentored experience. - You will need INS Permanent Residence or U.S. citizenship. You should not need to send information about this to the state unless you are asked.
- After you have your first professional certificate, the experience requirement should be satisfied for any future professional classroom teaching certificate applications.
For Students with Disabilities grades 7-12 generalist teachers/candidates:
- Effective July 1, 2021, all special education teachers who teach one or more subject areas in a special class (self-contained class) in grades 7-12, with some or no students under alternate assessment, must either: be certified in each subject area that they teach, or meet the teaching experience requirement for the statement of continued eligibility (SOCE) and have an active SOCE application in the TEACH online system in each subject area that they teach. A students with disabilities generalist grades 7-12 teacher can teach as a Consultant Teacher, Resource Room Teacher, Integrated Co-Teacher, or Special Class Teacher – All Students Under Alternate Assessment.
- If you have 18 credits in biology, chemistry, earth science, English, math, physics social studies, or a language, you can apply for a subject area extension. Contact us if you have a total of 18 credits (undergraduate and/or graduate) in one of those subjects and we will help you get a subject area extension. More information: Special Education Teaching Assignments and Certification and December 2019 memo: Subject Area Certification Requirement
Students in the School Psychology, Counseling and Leadership programs:
- School psychologists and school counselors: Select provisional and/or permanent certification as appropriate. If you only see the option to apply using the individual evaluation option, you can start the application process but should not pay for the application until the application is manually fixed. After your application is recorded, you can send an email to the New York State Education Department Office of Teaching Initiatives (OTI) tcert@nysed.gov and ask for the application “pathway” to be changed to “approved teacher preparation program.” Subject "pathway change/certificate change. Include your full name on your TEACH account, date of birth or the last four digits of your Social Security number, the application that you would like changed, and the change you want. After your application has been manually changed, you can go to your TEACH account, Payment links, and pay the $50 application fee.
- School counseling only: for permanent certification: two years of experience plus education (such as the advanced certificate program at Brooklyn College), and INS Permanent Residence or U.S. citizenship are required. Permanent School Counselor Certificate requirements will change on Feb. 2, 2023 as described in this newsletter.
- School psychology only: for permanent certification: two years or experience and INS Permanent Residence or U.S. citizenship required.
- School District Leader candidates only: When you apply, be sure to use the Approved Teacher Preparation Program application "pathway." Apply for professional certification, not Transitional D certification.
- School Building and School District Leader candidates: You will need to order official transcripts to be sent to the New York State Department of Education Office of Teaching Initiatives (OTI) unless you ordered them to be sent in 2017 or afterward. OTI will need not need Brooklyn College transcripts to confirm your Educational Leader program but will need transcripts to confirm your other master’s degree, including transfer credits. This is standard procedure. Instructions for sending transcripts http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/certificate/transcripts.html
- For School Building Leader, Initial certification, Paid, full-time Admin/PPS/Classroom Teaching experience - 3 Yrs is required. If you already have a valid Permanent or Professional certificate, you should be credited the 3 years of experience. If not, your employer needs to send in a Paid Experience verification form http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/certificate/form.html
- For School Building Leader, Professional certification, you will need three years of acceptable administrative experience, with at least one year of building-level administrative experience. Verification of experience must be submitted directly by the employer(s).
- Information on experience requirements http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/certificate/exp/leadership-school-building.html
- Employers located in New York have the option of entering an electronic Superintendent Statement on to your TEACH account. This is the preferred method of verifying experience. However, if the employer cannot verify experience using this method, they can submit this form instead: http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/pdf/ot-verifexper-sbl-sas.pdf
- For School District Leader, Professional certification: Paid, full-time Admin/PPS/Classroom Teaching experience - 3 Yrs is required. If you already have a valid Permanent or Professional certificate, you should be credited the 3 years of experience. If not, your employer needs to send in a Paid Experience verification form http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/certificate/form.html
What's Next
Certification processing time: please see the information in the section above "Pay for your Application for New York State Certification"
Initial (or Provisional) Certificates
Initial (or provisional) certificate effective dates are posted after your application is evaluated. Initial (or provisional) certification is valid for five years. You will not automatically receive a printed initial or time-limited certificate, since the certificate will be confirmed on your account online. For more information, click here. You can print out or take a screen shot of your account status by going to your TEACH account. Certification can also be confirmed by going to the "Certificate Holder Lookup" link on the OTI site. Initial and provisional certificates are valid for five years.
Be sure not to let your initial or provisional certification expire. Make sure to review the information on related programs that meet the requirements for professional certification, and check this information about the mentored experience requirement. Your mentored experience can be sent to your state by the NYC DOE. You can write to this address to ask them to send that information for you: mentoringverification@schools.nyc.gov They will need your file number.
You will also need to complete the work experience requirement, have INS Permanent Residence or U.S. citizenship, and any other requirements needed at the time of your application and evaluation.
If your certificate is going to expire soon or has expired, you will need to apply for a time extension and/or initial reissuance (or provisional renewal) certificate.
You may need to complete new requirements if your certificate expires. Be sure to check the requirements for certification well before that time since rules and procedures are subject to change.
Refer to this memo (pdf) for information about expired certification. The time validity of an expired Provisional Pupil Personnel Service Initial or Transitional certificate may be extended for three years.
Professional (or Permanent) Certificates
For teaching titles: After completing three years of relevant paid experience, a relevant master's degree, and any other requirements needed at the time of your application such as INS Permanent Residence or U.S. Citizenship, you should be eligible for professional certification.
School psychologists and school counselors who complete the advanced certificate programs: After completing two years of relevant paid experience , and any other requirements needed at the time of your application such as INS Permanent Residence or U.S. Citizenship, you should be eligible for permanent certification. Note that the School Counseling program will be revised in fall 2021.
New information for school counselors: School Counselors who have an expired Provisional School Counselor certificate and apply for a Permanent School Counselor certificate prior to February 2, 2023 have the flexibility to meet the Permanent School Counselor certificate requirements prior to such date, regardless of whether their Provisional certificate was in effect when all requirements were met. In addition, candidates who hold a valid Provisional School Counselor certificate and apply for a Permanent School Counselor certificate must meet the requirements for the Permanent School Counselor certificate prior to February 2, 2023 or while under a Provisional School Counselor certificate that was in effect after such date.
You can pay for your professional (or permanent) NY State teacher certification application close to the time you complete your requirements and need your certification to be processed. Allow about three months for your professional certification application to be evaluated after your requirements and documents are complete. Application instructions.
Work experience verification required. If you have professional (or permanent) certification already or not, and if your employer did not send in a work experience form previously, it is needed for any new applications. For experience completed within the state of New York, the preferred method for an employer to verify it is by entering a Superintendent Statement onto TEACH. If the employer cannot enter a Superintendent Statement, they need to send the appropriate Verification of Paid Experience Form.
Mentored experience: If you worked in a NYC DOE school, you can contact the NYC DOE Certification office to request that they send your mentored experience information to the state. You can call the NYC DOE Certification office at 718 935 2462 or write to mentorverification@schools.nyc.gov. They will need to know your file number.
A printed certificate will be sent to you, and you can verify your effective dates on your TEACH account. Certification can also be confirmed by going to the "Certificate Holder Lookup" link on the OTI site.
For all teaching titles: After you have your professional certification, you must complete 100 hours of Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) during the five-year registration period. You must also register with the New York State Department of Education Office of Teaching Initiatives (OTI) every five years. You can earn CTLE hours at the UFT and/or an approved sponsor.
All Certificate Holders
Any change of name or address for a certificate holder must be updated in the TEACH system within 30 days.
