Job Discussion Forums

angstrom · Joined: 03 Aug 2004 Posts: 27

Can anybody advise me on getting a teaching license in the US? I'm from NY and right now I'm teaching English in Moscow. The plan is to go back to the States in December, apply to a teaching program, and become a teacher within a year. I'm really interested in a program that is fast (under a year) and affordable and not on the East coast. I also heard about a lot of alternative routes to getting a license, like Alaska Teaching Fellows, etc... Does anybody have more info about this? Appreciate any help.

nolefan · Joined: 14 Jan 2004 Posts: 1458 Location: on the run

I believe Arizona is the easiest state to get a teaching certification (provided you have a bachelor). I know 2 folks teaching middle school and they are still working on their B.ed Shocked

ChrisP · Joined: 24 Mar 2004 Posts: 29 Location: Shenzhen

California pays very well, and, if you have a bachelor's and can teach something they need, like math, will let you teach on a temporary license. Try a website called CalTeach.

yodetta · Joined: 29 Aug 2004 Posts: 68 Location: California, USA

California pays okay, but the cost of living can be really high and nullify it...so it really depends From what I've seen, Texas has the highest differential between pay and cost of living.

You can take the CBEST test and receive an emergency credential to teach in CA. University of California at Santa Barbara (www.ucsb.edu) has a highly reputable M.Ed./credential program that only takes a year (full-time study). I'm considering that myself...and I'm already here at UCSB. It requires summer school, however, and alot of classroom hours.

Y

kev7161 · Joined: 06 Feb 2004 Posts: 5880 Location: Suzhou, China

Western Kansas schools pay upwards to $5,000 more per year than Eastern/mid Kansas (or so I've been told) as mostly there are smaller towns there and it is difficult to attract teachers. Of course, as for getting the license, I'm sure you have to go through the regular courses as anyone else.

James_T_Kirk · Joined: 20 Sep 2003 Posts: 357 Location: Ten Forward

In the future, I plan to get my teaching license in the great state of Florida. If you meet their specialization requirements in a given area, you can obtain temporary certification and utilize the alternative certification program to earn your teaching license as you work.

http://www.teachinflorida.com/

Stephen Jones · Joined: 21 Feb 2003 Posts: 4124

Presuming you have your degree teaching certification in many STates seems to take around four months. Do get it somewhere you intend to hang around, as otherwise you might have trouble with recertifying.

angstrom · Joined: 03 Aug 2004 Posts: 27

I guess what it really boils down to is the amount of financial aid available and the speed of the program. Right now, I'm looking at programs in California, Arizona, Oregon, and Alaska. Whichever program offers me enough fin aid and accepts me is good enough for me I guess. Does the accreditation organization matter? I heard that the NCATE is really well looked upon, though I really don't see what the difference is in the end. Oh, for anybody interested, I read about another program in Mississippi where you can get your license for free if you're accepted in the fellows program/