Educator Certification

•  Click here for access to your New York State Teaching Certification TEACH account 

The Brooklyn College Teacher Preparation Program leads to New York State teacher certification.

All students seeking New York State teacher certification must apply and pay a fee to be certified. Your program advisors and certification officer are available to support you with your questions on certification, testing and other matters in your transition from student to teacher.

Please refer to this website often and be sure to check your email for updates that are sent. 

If you are not already receiving email from Brooklyn College at your preferred email address, you can manage your subscription to Brooklyn College eAlerts in BC WebCentral @ http://portal.brooklyn.edu. Look for the "BC Student E-mail Subscriptions" channel on the "My Info" tab.

You must complete all of the following steps for certification. Complete the following steps in any order:

Before you graduate, you must file for a graduation audit.

Complete the instructions given in your degree audit letter. Follow the schedule below. Your graduation must be confirmed by the registrar and Faculty Council for the official graduation date listed in order to be eligible for the dates listed for NY State teacher certification .

*Refer to new effective date information.

Teaching Fellows, call 718.951.4800, and the Secondary Education office will advise you on the steps needed.

All other students: at least a month or two before you graduate, go to the New York State TEACH site, create an account or verify and update your existing TEACH account. Check that your required certification status is posted on your TEACH account.

Complete Your Certification Tests

Be sure you are completing the correct requirements for your certification area.

• Search certification requirements

Your "pathway"/application type will be "Approved Teacher Preparation Program" if you are completing a Bachelor's or Master's program leading to NY State teacher certification. If you have questions, you can confirm your pathway with the Certification Officer. Links, resources and updates:

• NYS Certification Exams and Practice Material
• New Testing Requirements (pdf) for first initial certification
• NYS Certification Exams - Overview
• CUNY teacher certification exam support resources
• Educating All Students informational video 
• edTPA informational video
• edTPA retake guidelines 
• edTPA retake instructions and costs
• Follow CUNYTeachered on Twitter
• Test preparation materials posted by NYSTCE
• Resources and information from the New York State Education Department 
• Guidance on  videotaping requirements for teacher candidates 
• FAQs about tests including the edTPA handbook needed for each certification area 
• “Safety Net:” Any candidate who applies for and meets ALL of the requirements of an initial certificate on or before June 30, 2015, except he/she does not receive a passing score on the edTPA, may either (1) take and pass the ATS-W after receipt of his/her score on the edTPA and prior to June 30, 2015, (2) or if the candidate had previously passed the ATS-W on or before April 30, 2014 (before the new certification examination requirements became effective) and the candidate has taken and failed the edTPA prior to June 30, 2015, the candidate will be issued an initial certificate. (This paragraph also applies to Transitional B program candidates pursuing their initial certificate). The same safety net exists for Transitional C certificate holders (career changes and others holding a graduate academic or graduate professional degree) who apply for and meet all requirements for a professional certificate, except the candidate does not receive a passing score on the edTPA. Click here for more information. VOUCHERS: If you fail the edTPA and choose to take the ATS-W instead of retaking the edTPA, you may request a test voucher code to take the ATS-W at no cost. To apply for a voucher code, send an e-mail with your (i) name as it appears in your TEACH account, (ii) last five digits of your Social Security Number, (iii) date of birth, and (iv) your current email address to edtpaatsw@mail.nysed.gov with a short statement that an ATS-W test voucher code is requested. Upon receipt of this email and verification of your edTPA score, you will receive a test voucher code in an email to be used when registering for the ATS-W. Please note that there are no eligibility requirements for this voucher except that you must have already taken and failed the edTPA as noted above.  Note that you will need to check the submission dates and score report dates both for the edTPA and for the ATS-W if you will be allowing time to use the “safety net” because you need to pass the ATS-W before June 30, 2015, as well as ALL of your other certification requirements. You will also need to allow time to get a voucher.

Students who are applying for first initial certification are now required to complete the following tests:

• edTPA: You will complete the tasks during student teaching. Data for this assessment will be provided and processed through the Tk20 system as your Integrated edTPA platform provider System. The edTPA is not a required assessment for speech-language pathology.
• EAS: Educating All Students test
• ALST: Academic Literacy Skills Test
• CST: Content Specialty Test. Candidates who do not  pass the current CST(s) for their field before the new tests are implemented will be required to take and pass the new test(s). The New York State Education Department recommends that any candidate with an anticipated graduation date after December 2013 wait to take the new exams. Refer to the test schedule. The CST is not required for speech-language pathology. The new multi-subject tests were released on Sept. 22, 2014. Click here for more information about the multi-subject tests. If you are working towards the Students with Disabilities Grades 7-12 Generalist certification, and if you have not already completed the requirements for that application, you will  be required to take the Multi-Subject: Secondary Teachers (Grade 7 – Grade 12) examination, now in effect (as of September 22, 2014).
• SBL: School Building Leader assessment and SDL: School District Leader assessment. Only for candidates for this program. Click here for updated info. Note that the EAS test is required for School Building and School District leader certification. 
• PRAXIS II: for professional certification, speech-language pathology only. 

If you already have your first initial New York State certification:

If your first initial certification is in effect (that is, it is valid, not expired, revoked, etc.) you will not need to complete the new certification tests unless you are applying for certification for a different subject. If you are applying for certification in a new subject, you will need to complete the CST examination for certification in that content area.

If you did not meet requirements for your first classroom teaching certificate prior to May 1, 2014:

For teaching candidates who need further information on how to proceed: click here. You can also contact the Certification Officer for further information.

Complete Your Mandated Workshops

Check that your mandated workshops are posted on your TEACH account if this is your first initial certification. If you have not taken the workshops, refer to the workshop link. Your workshops must be posted on your TEACH account or verified by the certification officer before your recommendation for teacher certification can be entered by Brooklyn College.

New DASA Workshop

Effective December 31, 2013 all applicants for Certification are required to complete this workshop and in the case of persons completing State registered programs leading to Certification after December 31, 2013, the training is a required component of the programs. Refer to this link: DASA (Dignity for All Students Act)  

Complete Your Fingerprint Clearance Documentation

Check that your fingerprint clearance has been posted on your TEACH account. If not, refer to the link for fingerprint clearance for instructions. 

Complete Your Application for New York State Teacher Certification

Complete and pay for your application using your NY State TEACH account:

• Verify and update your profile.
• Select your certificate. Refer to the Student Information Sheet for details, including your program code.
• Choose the correct certificate type:
  • Initial Certification: Teaching less than three years.
  • Professional Certification: For this you must have three or more years of paid teaching experience (for teaching certificates) and a master's degree in the content area of the initial certificate or in a closely related subject area.  You also need one year of mentored experience. For your professional certification teaching requirement, for most certificates, experience earned in a public or approved nonpublic preschool or elementary, middle, or secondary school is included. Claimed experience may be in any grade or subject. Experience that is not full time may be credited on a prorated basis. Teaching assistant experience is not applicable to this requirement.  Teachers working as substitutes in numerous districts may wish to have each district verify the experience by providing a short letter on district letterhead. Click here to check your requirements.
• Candidates who are applying for additional certification (something other than your bachelor's or master's program) can refer to the links for further instructions.
  • Educational Preparation: Select "Approved Teacher Preparation Program" and enter the program code from the Student Information Sheet.
  • Select: "I want my application to be reviewed by the State Education Department."
  • Make your payment by credit card (highly advised, rather than by using a money order). Keep records of your payment and transaction summary.

School Psychologists and School Counselors: select provisional/permanent certification as appropriate. Two years of experience are required for permanent certification. Click here to check your certification requirements.

What's Next

Your recommendation for teacher certification will be entered by the certification officer according to the timeline above, provided your mandated workshops have been verified and your graduation has been confirmed by the registrar. Monitor your TEACH account. There are two types of evaluations: automated and manual. Automated evaluations are posted when the automated system at the Office of Teaching Initiatives has completed an evaluation. Manual evaluations are posted when your transcripts and other documentation are examined by an officer at the Office of Teaching Initiatives. Click here for information on checking the status of your application.

Initial Certificates

Initial certificate effective dates are posted after your application is evaluated. The time this takes can vary. Please also read this information about expedited service. You will not automatically receive a printed certificate, but you can refer to your effective dates on your account online. If you wish, you can order a printed certificate for $25.00.  Refer to the information posted at the Office of Teaching Initiatives FAQ page. You can print out your account status by going to your New York State TEACH account and printing out your certificate information as you see it posted there. Certification can also be confirmed by going to the "Certificate Holder Lookup" link at http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert. Initial certificates are valid for five years. 

Be sure not to let your initial certification expire. If you do not complete a related masters degree that meets the requirements for certification, and the mentored experience requirement and/or if you do meet the work experience requirement before your certificate expires, you will need to apply for a time extension and/or initial reissuance certificate. You may need to complete new requiements if your certificate expires. Be sure to check the requirements for certification well before that time. 

For your professional certification teaching requirement, experience earned in a public or approved nonpublic preschool or elementary, middle, or secondary school is included. Claimed experience may be in any grade or subject. Experience that is not full time may be credited on a prorated basis. Teaching assistant experience is not applicable to this requirement.  Teachers working as substitutes in numerous districts may wish to have each district verify the experience by providing a short letter on district letterhead. 

Professional Certificates

You must allow about three months for your application to be evaluated. A printed certificate will be sent to you, and you can verify your effective dates on your TEACH account. Certification can also be confirmed by going to the "Certificate Holder Lookup" link at http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert. Once you have your professional certification, you must complete 175 hours of professional development every five years.Refer to this information about the professional development required for professional certificate holders.

Effective Date

You must complete all certification requirements in order to be given an effective date. The date your certificate is issued is the date your certificate is effective. Refer to http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/faqeffdate.html 

Expiration Dates

As of December 4, 2013, if you are issued a time limited certificate, (i.e. Initial, Provisional, Temporary coaching, Teaching Assistant Level I and II etc.), the expiration date will be set based on the length of time the certificate is valid (i.e. 5 years, 3 years, etc.) and the next sequential September 1 or February 1. 

A certificate issued between September 2 and February 1, will have an expiration date of January 31. 

Certificates issued between February 2 and September 1, will have an expiration date of August 31.   

Refer to http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/faqeffdate.html 

If your certifcate has expired, or is about to expire and you have not completed your certification requirements: 

You may need to apply for a time extension and/or initial reissuance certificate. You may need to complete the new certification tests if your certificate expires. Click here for the link to contact  the Office of Teaching Initiatives  or contact the Certification Officer. 

If you need written confirmation of your expected date of degree conferral before the timeline posted above:

If you need written confirmation of your expected date of degree conferral for your employer before the timeline detailed above, you can request a statement of graduation as long as you have met all degree requirements. Refer to your degree audit letter. You may request a statement of graduation by e-mail from Assistant Registrar Julie Hegner about two weeks before your expected date of graduation. State that you are asking for a statement of graduation and provide her with your name, the last four digits of your Social Security number (it is very important that you do not send the entire Social Security number), phone number and mailing addresses. Her office will mail the statements directly to the address provided, and you can supply the letter to the place of your employment and to the certification officer. Please also read this information about expedited service.