Overview of Texas Certification Requirements
Certification as a teacher
- For initial teacher certification in Texas, see the Texas Education Agency (TEA) website.
- If you have taken one or more of the Praxis Subject Assessments and are certified in a state other than Texas, you must have your credentials reviewed by the TEA. To have your credentials reviewed, see instructions on the TEA website. To send any required Praxis scores to the TEA for credential review, use score recipient code 8325.
For details on additional routes to certification, see the TEA website.
Certification as a principal
To be certified as a principal in Teas, you must take the ETS® Performance Assessment for School Leaders (PASL). This assessment measures your application of the knowledge and skills identified as relevant and important for beginning instructional leaders.
Admission to an Educator Preparation Program
Individuals who hold a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university1 or are scheduled to receive a bachelor's degree before being placed in a classroom, are allowed to take a content test for purposes of admission into the following types of educator preparation programs:
- alternative certification programs
- university alternative certification programs
- university post-baccalaureate programs (without content courses)
Learn more about who can take it, Praxis tests that may be accepted and their passing scores, and important registration information to ensure scores are reported properly.
1 PACT is not for use by out-of-state educators applying for certification in Texas. Out-of-state educators applying for certification in Texas must have their credentials reviewed by TEA.
