Educator Certification

Once an educator earns a National Board Professional Teaching Standards Certification (NBPTS), his or her South Carolina Professional Educator Certificate will be upgraded by the Office of Educator Certification, State Department of Education (SDE), to reflect the NBPTS certification and ten year validity dates. The SDE will be notified by the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention and Advancement (CERRA) concerning South Carolina educators who have earned this national recognition. The SDE will mail the certificate to newly certified NBPTS educators within two months of the notification of certification.

The process to renew a NBPTS is explained on the NBPTS Website. The renewal of a NBPTS certificate is processed through the Office of the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards. Additional information on the NBPTS renewal process and state support is located on the CERRA Website.

If a South Carolina NBPTS educator chooses to renew his or her SC professional educator’s certificate instead of the NBPTS certificate at the end of the active validity date, the educator will follow SC’s Renewal Credit Plan. If the educator is employed in a SC public school district, the NBPTS educator will work through the district’s system to renew the SC professional educator’s certificate. If the NBPTS educator is not employed in a SC public school system, he or she will work through the SDE- Office of Educator Certification to renew his or her SC professional educator’s certificate.

All renewal work for a NBPTS educator who is renewing the SC professional educator’s certification (instead of the NBPTS certificate) must be completed during the last five years of the ten year validity of the NBPTS certification. Under the Renewal Credit Plan, any educator who does not hold a Masters degree must earn one half of their renewal credit (60 credits) in graduate level coursework.

Program of Alternative Certification for Educators

The Program of Alternative Certification for Educators (PACE) was established to enable degreed individuals, who otherwise do not meet certification requirements, to gain employment in the public schools in a critical need subject area teaching position and/or in a critical geographic area where teacher shortages exist, as determined annually by the State Board of Education.

PACE requires a three year commitment to the content area and grade level for which you are admitted. Candidates may be evaluated for K-12, middle level, or secondary certification. Individuals who participate in PACE in one of the middle level areas may be required to complete different graduate course requirements.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

An earned bachelor’s degree or above from a regionally accredited college with a major in a South Carolina certification area. Participants can be evaluated for a major equivalent if they have thirty or more semester hours earned in content area coursework, twenty-one of which were earned at the junior or senior level or above; or twenty-four or more semester hours earned in content area coursework at the graduate level.

Participants teaching in subjects designated as critical need by the State Board of Education can teach in any district in the state. Participants teaching in subjects that have not been designated as critical need must teach in a district that has been designated as critical need.

A passing score on the appropriate Praxis II subject area examination(s). Please review this link for changes in Praxis test requirements for PACE related to Special Education - ED, French, and Library Media.
 

CRITICAL SUBJECTS AND DISTRICTS

Effective July 1, 2007, the geographical critical district list has been dissolved. This change allows PACE applicants who meet all admission criteria in one of the approved PACE subject areas to seek employment in any South Carolina public school district. Additional certification areas have been added to the list of PACE approved subjects.

PACE Process for Certification

An initial certificate is issued for three years. Moving from an initial certificate to a professional certificate requires the completion of two requirements. First, a passing score on the appropriate Principles of Learning and Teaching (PLT) Praxis test must be submitted.

Second, the ADEPT formal evaluation requirements are met and the results entered by the local public school district into a teacher's individual database record housed at the Office of Educator Certification. At the conclusion of each school year an automated procedure is activated for teachers with an initial certificate expiring in June of the current year. The process checks for the ADEPT information and for the required PLT test. If the required data is in the file, the professional certificate is automatically issued by the Office of Educator Certification and mailed to the teacher.

The state of South Carolina values teachers from all backgrounds and offers multiple pathways to certification. Many of these lead to full, professional certification, while others are only temporary.

Approved certification pathways in South Carolina

Applying for Career and Technical Education (CTE) Work-Based Certification

Looking to teach others the skills you have as an industry professional? The career and technical education (CTE) work-based certification program enables individuals with industry work experience in certain career and technical fields to be eligible for employment as a 9-12 grade level teacher in a South Carolina public school district.

Alternative Certification Partner Programs

A variety of alternative certification programs allow potential educators holding a Bachelor's (or higher) degree who did not complete a traditional educator preparation program, to obtain certification and teach in South Carolina public schools. 

In addition to the PACE program outlined above, some of the programs you might explore are American Board or  Teachers of Tomorrow, just to name a few!

Specialized Alternative Certificates

Specialized Alternative Certification pathways are designed for candidates with an extensive background in a particular discipline or program. 

This is a pathway you might want to explore if you are experienced in a Montessori program, advanced fine arts or any of the other options outlined on the South Carolina State Department of Education website.

Teachers and administrators transferring from another state must provide their teaching examination scores that were required for certification in the state they were certified. If no exams were required in the state where they were certified, then out-of-state applicants must complete and submit scores from the general professional knowledge examination.

After receiving initial certification in South Carolina, educators can apply to upgrade their certification status. Descriptions of the different types of certifications issued can be found on the Licensure Topics page.

To fulfill needs in critical subjects, individuals may elect to receive certification through the PACE program. PACE allows qualified individuals the opportunity to gain certification while working within the classroom.

The South Carolina Department of Education Licensure Manual outlines the specific steps and criteria that are required to achieve certification in our state.

• Doctorate Degree An applicant shall have a Doctoral Degree in accordance with State Board of Education regulations and shall meet requirements in an initial area of certification.
• Master's Degree + 30 semester hours An applicant must earn 30 semester hours of graduate credit above the master's degree with 21 hours of graduate credit in one area of concentration. These hours may or may not be in the teacher's initial area of certification. The course work must be completed within seven years from the time it was started. Individuals who do not complete the requirements during the seven years must request that the college/university revalidate the course credits before the work can be submitted for credential advancement.
• Master Degree An applicant shall have a Master's degree in accordance with State Board of Education regulations and shall meet requirements for an initial area of certification.
• Bachelor's + 18 semester hours An applicant must have 18 semester hours of graduate credit that he or she earns within seven years from the time the course work is started. Individuals who do not complete the requirements during the seven years must request that the college/university revalidate the course credits before the work can be submitted for credential advancement.

• A "written request" is one that is made on the "Request for Change/Action" form. The form may be submitted via e-mail attachment, fax, or regular mail.
• Documentation may include official transcripts that must be mailed directly to the Office of Teacher Certification from the college or mail to our office by the individual in a sealed envelopment sent to them from the college. Other documentation may include official scores, verification of experience or employment.
• No fee is currently being charged.

If the State Department of Education (SDE) receives the educator’s request and all required documentation between:

• May 1 and November 1: The change in status, if approved, will be effective July 1 of the same calendar year.
• November 2 and April 30: If the educator submitted the request within 45 days of fulfilling the requirements, the change in status, if approved, will be effective on the date that all requirements were satisfied.
• November 2 and April 30: If the educator submitted the request more than 45 days after fulfilling the requirements, the change in status, if approved, will be effective on the date that all information was received by the SDE.