North Carolina: Praxis Test Requirements

How to Qualify for Teacher Licensure
Where to Get Additional Information
Where to Take the Tests
Test Requirements

How to Qualify for Teacher Licensure

Qualifying for teacher licensure requires completing an approved teacher education program. Applicants to a program must earn a satisfactory score on the Praxis I: Pre-Professional Skills Tests (PPST®).

Licensure requires satisfactory completion of one or more Praxis II: Subject Assessments or Specialty Area tests. See below for a complete listing of currently required tests.

If another subject area is added to the initial license, a candidate must complete the appropriate subject assessment for that area.

Candidates pursuing alternate routes for licensure must satisfy the same testing requirements as candidates in traditional programs.

Applicants who have completed teacher education programs and have been fully licensed outside North Carolina must meet the same testing requirements as graduates of North Carolina education programs.

Where to Get Additional Information

To obtain information about licensure in North Carolina, you may contact:

Where to Take the Tests

The computer-based tests are offered by appointment through a national network of Prometric™ Testing Centers (many Prometric Testing Centers are located inside Sylvan Learning Centers) and selected institutional sites. Visit Computer-based Test Centers for the locations near you.

Test center locations for the paper-based PPST are listed in the appropriate Test Center List:

• United States and U.S. Territories
• Outside the United States

Test Requirements

If you test in North Carolina a copy of your scores will automatically be sent to the Department of Public Instruction.

The first digit of the "Session/Test Code" indicates the session during which the test is offered in the 2009-10 testing year. There are no session numbers for the computer-based tests, which are given by appointment.

PRAXIS I TESTS

You may take each Computerized PPST® once per calendar month up to six times in a 12-month period. If you violate this restriction, the scores from your retest will not be reported and your test fees will not be refunded. This applies even if you canceled your scores on a test taken previously.

NOTES:

Individuals with a total SAT score of 1100 (Verbal plus Quantitative only) are exempt from Praxis I testing requirements for teacher education program administration.

• Individuals with a total SAT score of less than 1100 (Verbal plus Quantitative only), but a score of at least 550 on the Verbal test are exempt from the Pre-Professional Skills Tests in Reading and Writing for teacher education program admission.
• Individuals with a total SAT score of less than 1100 (Verbal plus Quantitative only), but a score of at least 550 on the Math test are exempt from the Pre-Professional Skills Tests in Mathematics for teacher education program admission.

Individuals with a composite ACT score of 24 are exempt from Praxis I testing requirements for teacher education program admission.

• Individuals with a composite ACT score of less than 24, but with a score of at least 24 on the English test are exempt from the Pre-Professional Skills Tests in Reading and Writing for teacher education program admission.
• Individuals with a composite ACT score of less than 24, but a score of at least 24 on the Math test are exempt from the Pre-Professional Skills Test in Mathematics for teacher education program admission.

PRAXIS II TESTS

**Although no test is required for the Birth-Kindergarten (B-K) license, B-K teachers may be designated "highly qualified" to teach kindergarten by earning a score of 155 or higher on Praxis test  0022 Early Childhood: Content Knowledge .

This page is a supplement to The Praxis Series 2009-10 Information Bulletin (PDF).