Teacher Certification Requirements

State-by-state comparison of teacher certification requirements including degree requirements, required testing, interstate reciprocity, and renewal standards.

50 States4 data columnsLast updated: Mar 2025

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State	Degree	Testing	Reciprocity	Renewal
Alabama	Bachelor's required	Praxis or AECTE exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 50 CE hours
Alaska	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
Arizona	Bachelor's required	Arizona Educator Proficiency Assessments	NASDTEC + reciprocity with most states	Every 6 years; professional development
Arkansas	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 60 PD hours
California	Bachelor's required	CBEST + CSET subject exams	Limited (may require additional exams)	Every 5 years; 150 PD hours
Colorado	Bachelor's required	Praxis or PLACE exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; professional development
Connecticut	Bachelor's required	Praxis or CT-specific exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 90 PD hours
Delaware	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 90 PD hours
Florida	Bachelor's required	Florida Teacher Certification Exams (FTCE)	NASDTEC + temporary certificate for OOS	Every 5 years; 6 college credits or 120 PD
Georgia	Bachelor's required	GACE subject exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 10 PLU credits
Hawaii	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
Idaho	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
Illinois	Bachelor's required	edTPA + Illinois Licensure Testing System	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; PD hours vary by level
Indiana	Bachelor's required	CASA + content area exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 90 PD hours
Iowa	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits or equiv.
Kansas	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; professional development
Kentucky	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; PD plan
Louisiana	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 150 PD hours
Maine	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
Maryland	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
Massachusetts	Bachelor's required	MTEL subject exams	NASDTEC (conditional)	Every 5 years; 150 PD points
Michigan	Bachelor's required	MTTC subject exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits or 150 PD hrs
Minnesota	Bachelor's required	MTLE exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 125 clock hours
Mississippi	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 10 CEU credits
Missouri	Bachelor's required	MoGEA + content exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 4 years; 15 PD points
Montana	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 60 renewal units
Nebraska	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
Nevada	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
New Hampshire	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 3 years; professional development
New Jersey	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 100 PD hours
New Mexico	Bachelor's required	NES or Praxis exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; PD dossier
New York	Master's required within 5 yrs	edTPA + CST exams	NASDTEC (conditional)	Every 5 years; 100 PD hours
North Carolina	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 8 credits or 80 PD hrs
North Dakota	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 4 credits
Ohio	Bachelor's required	OAE exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 semester hours or 180 PD
Oklahoma	Bachelor's required	OSAT + OGET exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 75 PD points
Oregon	Bachelor's required	edTPA or equivalent	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; PD units
Pennsylvania	Bachelor's required	Praxis + PECT exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits or 180 PD hrs
Rhode Island	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
South Carolina	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 120 renewal credits
South Dakota	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
Tennessee	Bachelor's required	Praxis or edTPA	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; PD points
Texas	Bachelor's required	TExES subject exams	NASDTEC (review required)	Every 5 years; 150 CPE hours
Utah	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; professional development
Vermont	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; professional development
Virginia	Bachelor's required	Praxis + Virginia-specific exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 180 PD points
Washington	Bachelor's required	edTPA + WEST-B exams	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 150 clock hours
West Virginia	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits or 100 PD hrs
Wisconsin	Bachelor's required	Praxis or WI-specific	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 6 credits
Wyoming	Bachelor's required	Praxis required	NASDTEC Interstate Agreement	Every 5 years; 5 credits

Teacher certification requirements vary by endorsement area and may change. Alternative certification pathways exist in most states. Verify with your state department of education.