NYSTCE Certification Exam Waiver Process Now Available
At its February 2025 meeting, the Board of Regents adopted amendments to Section 80 of the Commissioner’s regulations, establishing a waiver process for the content knowledge certification examination requirement. This applies to candidates seeking a certificate in the classroom teaching service, educational leadership service, school counseling, or an applicable extension under Section 80.
Candidates who score within 0.5 standard error of measurement (SEM) of the passing score on a required Content Specialty Test (CST) may apply for a waiver, provided they fulfill one of the following criteria:
Option 1: Achieve a satisfactory level of performance on a NYSTCE portfolio assessment to demonstrate their depth of subject matter knowledge on the NYSTCE CST for which they did not pass, when available (in development).
Option 2: Achieve at least a 3.5 cumulative grade point average or its equivalent in the program leading to a baccalaureate, or a graduate degree culminating in at least 30 semester hours, at an institution of higher education that is accredited by an institutional accrediting agency recognized for this purpose by the United States Department of Education or a higher education institution that the Commissioner deems substantially equivalent. For information regarding this option, please see our website: NYSTCE Certification Exam Waiver
The Department is now accepting waiver applications under Option 2, while development continues on the NYSTCE portfolio assessments for Option 1.
The Board of Regents also adopted regulatory amendments to allow the Department to identify examinations other than the NYSTCE examinations that could be used to satisfy certification requirements. The Department will now begin the process of identifying acceptable alternative examinations, and additional information will be forthcoming in the near future (in development).