Certification

Applicants from Other States - Program Completers (Conditional Initial Certificate)

Important

The Office of Teaching Initiatives can not determine eligibility for certification until an application has been submitted, and a review of your credentials has been completed.

New York State does not pre-approve educator preparation programs completed in other U.S. States or Territories.

 important

A one-time Conditional Initial certificate is available to individuals who completed a comparable school building leader/principal preparation program at a college located in another U.S. State or Territory and possess a valid comparable educator certificate/license from another U.S. State or Territory in the subject in which they are applying. 

If you do not possess a valid educator certificate/license in another U.S. State or Territory, refer to the requirements for the Initial Certificate.

If your Conditional Initial certificate has expired, refer to: Initial Certificate

Classroom Teachers

Please note that the edTPA is no longer a requirement for certification as of April 27, 2022. In addition, the Conditional Initial certificate is no longer available on that date as this accommodation is no longer needed. Please see the announcement about this certification change for more information.

To receive a Conditional Initial (1-year) certificate, you must satisfy the requirements below:

  • Submit an application and fee for a certificate Conditional Initial (1-year) certificate
  • Possess a valid2, comparable3 , certificate in another U.S. State or Territory in the subject of the application.  
  • Complete a comparable1  approved teacher preparation program, in the subject of the application, at a college in another U.S. State or Territory that would lead to an institutional recommendation for certification in the state the college is located
  • Bachelor’s degree
  • 2.5 cumulative GPA in a Bachelor’s or higher degree
  • Educating All Students Exam (EAS)
  • Content Specialty Test (CST) in your subject area
  • Complete all required workshops
  • Fingerprint Clearance
how to apply   Certification Requirements

 

School Building Leaders
(Principal, Assistant Principal, and all other single building administrators)

To receive a two-year Conditional Initial certificate, you must satisfy the requirements below:

  • Submit an application and fee for a certificate two-year Conditional Initial certificate
  • Possess a valid2, comparable3 , certificate in another U.S. State or Territory in the subject of the application.  
  • Complete a comparable.1 approved principal-level school administration program at a college in another U.S. State or Territory that:
    1. Would result in a recommendation for principal-level certification in the State the College is located.
    2. Includes at least 21 semester-hours of graduate level coursework in school leadership, plus a comparable administrative internship
  • Bachelor’s degree
  • Master's degree
  • At least three years of Classroom Teaching or Pupil Personnel Service experience.
  • Complete all required workshops
  • Fingerprint Clearance
how to apply   Certification Requirements

School District Leaders
(Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, and all other District-wide administrators)

A Conditional Initial is not available for this title.  Please refer to the following page for more information: Initial Certificate

School District Business Leader

A Conditional Initial is not available for this title.  Please refer to the following page for more information: Initial Certificate

Pupil Personnel Titles
(Social Worker, Psychologist, Counselor, etc)

A Conditional Initial is not available for this title.  Please refer to the following page for more information: Initial Certificate

 

1. Program must be similar to a New York State-registered teacher preparation program completed at a New York State College/University. Comparability based on Official Compilation of Closed, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York (8 CRR-NY 52.21External Web Site). ↩
2. Certificate must be active in the state of issuance.↩
3. A “regular” certificate, in an equivalent subject area and similar grade-level, that has no limits/restriction. A list of acceptable-level certificates can be found at: http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/certificate/levelcert.html.↩
Last Updated: May 1, 2022