Office of Teaching Initiatives

Substitute Teaching

The New York State Education Department does not issue substitute teaching certificates. Substitute teachers fall into one of the three following categories.

1. Substitute teachers with a valid teaching certificate can work in any capacity, for any number of days. If they are employed for more than 40 days by a school district or BOCES in a school year, they must be employed in an area for which they are certified.*
   
   
2. Substitute teachers without a valid certificate, but who are working towards certification (taking college coursework) at a rate of not less than six semester hours per year, can work in any capacity, for any number of days, in any number of school districts. If they are employed for more than 40 days by a school district or BOCES in a school year, they must be employed in the area for which they are seeking certification.*
   
   
3. Substitute teachers who do not hold a valid teaching certificate and are not working towards certification can work for no more than 40 days in a school or BOCES in a school year. *

*However, these three categories of substitute teachers can exceed the 40-day limit under the following conditions:

• Up to 90 days in a school year, if the district superintendent or the superintendent (for school districts that are not a component district of a BOCES) certifies that the employer has conducted a good faith recruitment search for an appropriately certified candidate and determined that there are no available appropriately certified teachers that can perform the duties of such position; or


• Beyond 90 days in a school year, if the district superintendent or the superintendent certifies that a good faith recruitment search has been conducted, that after 90 days there are still no available appropriately certified teachers who can perform the duties of such position, and that a particular substitute teacher is needed to work with a specific class or group of students until the end of the school year.

Local Requirements

School districts may impose additional local requirements for individuals who are employed as substitute teachers. For example, they may require valid teacher certification, or a college degree, as a condition of employment.

Information Specific to New York City

The New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) requires that substitute teachers employed by NYCDOE hold a NYCDOE substitute teacher license.

More Information

For more information, please see Commissioner’s Regulations Section 80-5.4 Substitute Teachers