Applying for Additional Certification

If you are applying for certification in an age group/subject that is not directly related to your college preparation program (e.g., you want to apply for an additional certification in early childhood and you are already certified to teach grades 1–6):

• You must have New York State certification in effect (verify on your TEACH account).
• You can check the certification requirements under the “Pathway: Additional Classroom Teaching Certificate (Must hold a valid certificate).” All current workshops are also required, including the updated mandated reporter training described here.
• If you do not meet the requirements your additional certificate yet, you can consider applying for a supplementary certificate while you are completing the requirements for your additional certificate. You can check by searching the certification requirements.
• Check a copy of your transcript to see if you have completed or will be completing the requirements listed. Requirements for certification can only be verified by OTI. If you like, you can send your transcripts for evaluation to OTI and apply for your certification before you complete your requirements to check the completion of the requirements completed so far. Applications are valid for three years or two evaluations, whichever comes first.
• After you have your first professional certificate, the experience requirement should  be satisfied for any future professional classroom teaching certificate applications.

To Apply

1. Log in to your TEACH account.
2. Verify and update your profile.
3. Complete and pay for an application for your additional certification area.
4. Select a type of certificate:

• Initial (or provisional) certification—if you don’t have the work experience yet for any of your certification areas. Initial certification is for classroom teaching titles. Provisional certification is for school psychologists and school counselors.
• Professional (or permanent) certification—professional certification is for classroom teaching titles. Permanent certification is for school psychologists and school counselors. You can check requirements at this link.

For professional/permanent certification:

• You need a graduate-level degree in the content area of the initial certificate or in a closely related subject area.
• You need to complete the work experience requirement.
• If you have professional certification already or not, if your employer did not send in a work experience form previously, it is now needed. For experience completed within the New York State, the preferred method for an employer to verify it is by entering a Superintendent Statement onto TEACH. If the employer cannot enter a Superintendent Statement, they need to send the appropriate “Verification of Paid Experience” form found here.
• You may need one year of mentored experience.
• You will need INS Permanent Residence or U.S. citizenship. You should not need to send information about this to the state unless you are asked.
• For your fist professional certificate, your teaching experience must be in the area/level of the certificate held. The other professional certificate applications should be based on the issuance of the first professional certificate.

When you apply, do not enter a program code. Select “No, I have not completed, nor am I enrolled in, an Approved Teacher Preparation Program at a New York State College or University for this certificate and this type.” This is because you are applying for certification based on completion of requirements that are in a age group/subject that is different from your college preparation program. You should be applying through the Additional Classroom Teaching Certificate (Must hold a valid certificate) “pathway”/ application type.

OTI will need to check your transcripts, including transfer credits.

To order Brooklyn College transcripts, refer to these instructions.

How and where to send documents.

What to include with your documents. If your test data is not posted on your TEACH account, you do not need to send in test documents. You will need the test provider to send the test data to OTI.

More information about sending data to the state. You will only need to send transcripts and documents to the state when you apply for certification that does not match your college age group/subject. To check, you can search the requirements needed.

What’s Next

Monitor your TEACH account, and check for any application evaluations that may be posted. Allow about three months for this to be done after your requirements and documents are received. Automated evaluations are posted when the computer has completed an evaluation, and some requirements may be marked “unmet” or “deficient” until your application is reviewed. Manual evaluations are posted when your transcript and other documentation has been examined by the Office of Teaching Initiatives.