Overview

• New Students
• Register on NYSED's TEACH Online System
• Graduating Students
• Students with a valid Provisional or Initial Certificate
• Current Students
• Students with Expiring Certificate
• Internship Certificates
• Fingerprint Clearance for Certification

If you are completing or have completed a teacher preparation program (including School Counselor and School Building/District Leader), you will apply for your certification through the New York State Education Department. All certificate applications are processed online through the TEACH online system. You must be registered on TEACH before you can apply for certification. Instructions on how to register on TEACH are available online.

Instructional handouts have been designed specific to your program to help you through the process. Link to your program-specific handout and read through the instructions  thoroughly. You will be asked to send an email with pertinent information to tcert@hunter.cuny.edu as your final step in applying for certification.

Keep in mind the basic requirements for initial certification* in all areas:

• Complete your program of study;
• Pass all required New York State Teacher Certification Exams (L.A.S.T, A.T.S.W., and C.S.T.)*;
• Clear your fingerprints with NYSED. If you were fingerprinted by the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE), you need not apply again; submit the OSPRA 104 form instead. If you have not been fingerprinted yet, apply online and post fingerprint cards separately. (see below for more information on fingerprint clearance)

Master's degree students who have a valid provisional certificate (e.g. PreKindergarten-Grade 6, Special Education K-12) may be eligible to apply for the permanent certificate after two years of teaching experience. Those with initial certification (e.g. Childhood Education, Students with Disabilities) should apply for the professional certificate after three years of teaching experience. If your certificate has not expired and you expect to graduate from your master's degree program before your provisional or initial certificate expires, you can apply for professional certification online through TEACH. Permanent certification is not an option for those who hold initial certification or who have no certification. All applications for time extensions are submitted and processed online, be sure you are registered on TEACH Online Services.  Instructions on how to register on TEACH are available online.

The short programs (programs that require initial or provisional certification upon admission) you are completing at Hunter College can only recommend you for certification that is related to your program. (Refer to our Certification Chart for information on which certificates we can recommend based on your program at Hunter). TESOL program 2 can only recommend for certification in ESOL; Childhood Special Education (LD & BD) short program can only recommend for Students with Disabilities Grades 1-6 certification. Students who hold certification in areas outside of their program will apply for the next level certification through Certificate Progression pathway.  Follow these instructions on applying for your professional or permanent certification through Certificate Progression.

Questions about certification or requests for official transcripts to be send to NYSED should be directed to the School of Education, Office of Educational Services at tcert@hunter.cuny.edu.

If you are currently certified in initial or transitional B certificate and will not graduate in time to meet the master’s requirement for your expiring certificate, you may be eligible for a time extension*. Apply for a time extension to your teaching certificate online through NYSED’s TEACH Online Services.  If you have not registered yet with NYSED's TEACH Online Services, follow our instructions on how to register on TEACH. Be sure you have access to a printer and pay for your time extension with a credit card. Once you have completed your application online, you will be instructed to submit all documentation, including official transcripts to NYSED. Please follow their instructions thoroughly. You can request for a program status letter to accompany your extension application by emailing tcert@hunter.cuny.edu.

Visit NYSED's FAQs page on Expired Certificates/Time Extensions/Renewals.

Current students who need no more than one year to graduate may be eligible for a NYS teaching certificate by way of an Internship Certificate. The Internship Certificate Application is available online. Please read below for Hunter College requirements for an internship certificate as well as application deadline dates.

You may be eligible for an Internship Certificate if you are a graduate student in a master’s degree program leading to initial certification and:

1. You hold a teaching position that requires you to have NYS Certification in order to retain that position, or you have a commitment for a teaching position with the proviso that you obtain NYS Certification;
2. You have passed the LAST, ATS-W and CST(s)*; and
3. You will have completed at least half the credits in your program before the Internship Certificate is issued and need no more than one year to complete the remainder of your program’s requirements; and
4. You meet your program’s requirements for admission to a practicum class.

Internship certificates are not available for the Bilingual Childhood Education students because NYSED does not offer the Bilingual Education Extension as an internship certificate.

The Internship Certificate allows a teacher candidate to serve as a teacher while completing the master’s degree program. A condition of the Internship Certificate is that you must be enrolled in practicum for each semester you are teaching with the Internship Certificate, even if you have already completed your program’s practicum requirement.

Because of the requirement for college supervision during the internship period, the School of Education will recommend teacher candidates only if they are able to graduate in no more than one year plus one or two summers. If you are planning to apply for an Internship Certificate do not complete your student teaching/practicum requirement before the Internship period.  You must be enrolled in the practicum course and be supervised by a faculty member of the Hunter School of Education during each semester that you hold the Internship Certificate. The School of Education approves only a limited number of internship certificates each year. Approval is not guaranteed even if you meet the minimum requirements for the certificate.

The general criteria for an Internship Certificate recommendation are as follows:

1. A GPA of at least 3.2.
2. A plan for program completion signed by the program coordinator that will enable the teacher candidate to graduate in no more than one semester or one semester plus a summer.
3. A letter from the principal or director of the school or other educational agency (on institution’s letterhead) in New York City indicating offer of a teaching position provided that NYS internship certification is obtained. Subject and grade level must be specified.
4. Enrollment in practicum during the semester of the Internship period.
5. Students who have completed their student teaching or practicum requirement are not eligible for an internship certificate.
   

Special Education (Early Childhood and Childhood Grades) candidates may apply for and teach only under the Students with Disabilities certificate. Under no circumstances may Special Education students apply for a General Education internship certificate.

Bilingual Education (Early Childhood and Childhood Grades) candidates may apply for and teach only under the Childhood Education certificate. Due to NYSED policy changes, internship certificates are no longer issued for bilingual education extension.

Please note that all pre-requisite courses for your program’s practicum course must be completed before applying for the Internship Certificate and your plan of completion must include all co-requisite courses. In addition, other pre-requisite courses for the Internship Certificate are as follows by program:

• Childhood Education: EDC 715-Fieldwork in Reading and Social Studies.
• Early Childhood Special Education: SPEDE 776-Field Experiences in Early Childhood Special Education; ECC 712-Pre-Student Teaching Field Placement (for those in Program 1A).
  
• Early Childhood Education: ECC 712-Pre-Student Teaching Field Placement.
  
• Childhood Special Education: SPED 781/782 (LD), SPED 751 (BD).
  
• Adolescent Education:  completed 8-10 credits in the subject area and all education courses except Methods II, SEDF 706 and SEDC 720.

Application Deadline: You must submit the paper application complete with all relevant signatures and exam scores by the following deadline date. Commitment letters from schools may be submitted after the deadline date below. If you have initial approval for an internship certificate, you will be informed when the deadline date is for your commitment letter.

• June 1 for September teaching start.   
  
• December 1 for February teaching start.

Students can start early and apply for fingerprint clearance with NYSED's TEACH online system. If you have not registered yourself on NYSED's TEACH, instructions on the registration process are available. Once you log into your TEACH account, apply for fingerprinting online. Complete the application form and pay online. Be sure to print out your payment receipt. After applying online ($99 fee), you will need to send fingerprint cards to NYSED. The fingerprint cards can be picked up in Room 1000 West. Find out from your local police precinct where to get fingerprinted ($15 fee). Send the packet with a copy of your payment receipt to NYSED. You can check on the status of your fingerprint clearance through your TEACH account online. Be sure to submit the OSPRA 103 form in order to forward the clearance from the state to the city for employment and student teaching.

If you have already fingerprinted with the NYCDOE, you do not have to be fingerprinted again. Simply, submit the OSPRA 104 form to have your clearance forwarded from NYCDOE to NYSED for certification. You can call NYCDOE HR Connect (718-935-4000) to see if your fingerprints have cleared with the City.