The requirements for teacher certification and licensing are determined by state departments of education. Licensing is the process by which a government agency grants a license to an individual who has met certain requirements. Certification is the process by which an individual with certain qualifications is recognized. For information on the requirements for obtaining a license and certification, please contact the state department of education in the state where you wish to teach.
Currently, there is no certification program that is accepted in all states. Some states offer reciprocity for certifications obtained in other states. Contact your state department of education to ask about reciprocity.
If you have credentials from overseas, you may need to seek credential evaluation services to become certified as a teacher in the U.S. Degree, diploma, and credit recognition are not performed or regulated by the federal government. Recognition is not usually done by state or local governments either. In many cases this work is delegated to private credential evaluation services and the resulting evaluations are recognized as valid. For more information on this topic, please see the foreign qualifications page.
If you are a teacher serving in a low-income or subject-matter shortage area, it might be possible for you to cancel or defer a portion of your federal student loans. Eligibility requirements are determined by the type of loan(s) the teacher has borrowed:
Perkins Loan Teacher Cancellation: If you have a loan from the Federal Perkins Loan Program, you may be eligible for loan cancellation for full-time teaching at a low-income school or in certain subject areas. Eligible teachers apply for Perkins loan forgiveness from the office that administers the Perkins loan program at the college or university that holds his or her loan.
Stafford Loan Forgiveness: If you received a Stafford loan on or after October 1, 1998 and have taught full-time for five years in a low-income school, you may be eligible to have a portion of the loan cancelled. This applies to FFEL Stafford Loans, Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans, and, in some cases, Consolidation Loans. Eligible teachers apply for Stafford loan forgiveness through the lender or servicer of his or her loan.
Learn more about Teacher Loan Forgiveness, eligibility requirements, and how to apply. You may also be eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness.
Note: You may not receive a benefit for the same qualifying payments or period of service for Teacher Loan Forgiveness and Public Service Loan Forgiveness.
The Troops to Teachers program provides assistance, including stipends of up to $5,000 or bonuses of $10,000, to eligible members of the armed forces so that they can obtain certification or licensing as elementary school teachers, secondary school teachers, or vocational/technical teachers and become highly qualified teachers in high-need local education agencies (LEAs). In addition, the program helps these individuals find employment in high-need LEAs or charter schools.
Members of the armed forces who wish to receive the program's assistance for placement as an elementary or secondary school teacher must have a baccalaureate or advanced degree, and their last period of service in the armed forces must have been honorable. In selecting members of the armed forces to participate in the program, the Department of Defense must give priority to those members who have educational or military experience in science, mathematics, special education, or vocational/technical subjects and who agree to seek employment as teachers in high-need LEAs in a subject area compatible with their educational backgrounds.
To apply for this program, visit the Troops to Teachers website. The program is administered by the Department of Defense's Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES).
The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) supports teachers, principals, school leaders, and other educators as they help to launch the problem-solvers and innovators of the future. OESE supports State and local efforts to implement evidence-based teacher development programs, enhance professional development for new teachers, and encourage alternative routes to teaching certification through grants to states, local education agencies (LEAs), institutes for higher education (IHEs), or other organizations. Resources can be found on their Educators page.