Like other states, every teacher in Texas has to be certified. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) says it maintains all certificates – current, expired or inactive – in virtual form on its website. If you need a copy or if a potential employer wants to verify your status, that's the place for you to make a TEA certificate lookup.
The Texas Education Agency lets you make a TEA certificate lookup online. If an employer wants confirmation of your status, ask them for a PDF form TEA staff can fill out.
TEA says that in Texas, there are five steps to becoming a teacher. Two involve your education: you must complete a bachelor's degree and an educator preparation program. It's possible to include the program in your college coursework and training. After completing your studies you take your certification exams, then apply to the state for certification. The final step is to submit your fingerprints for a background check.
Advertisement Article continues below this adTEA says there are 123 educator preparation programs for Texas teachers. Depending on your choice of program, completing it will qualify you to teach, for example, sign language, art, chemistry, computer science, dance, history or bilingual English/Spanish, English/Vietnamese or English/Mandarin Chinese classes. Choose the program that corresponds to your career goals.
If you don't meet the requirements for certification, TEA says, you can go through an alternative certification program. These programs use intensive classroom training, after which you apply for a teaching internship position. Once you land an internship, you apply for probationary certification.
If you're already certified in another state, Texas will want to review your credentials, TEA says. You can submit your college transcript and teaching certificates electronically, along with the $164 fee. If you took a certification test in your home state, you'll need to submit the tests as well. If everything checks out, you can apply for a TEA certificate.
Advertisement Article continues below this adTEA keeps virtual copies of all certificates. Current certificates allow you to teach. Certificates become inactive, the state government says, when you fail to pay fees or to submit the required fingerprints. If you received a temporary certificate for any reason, it becomes expired when the time period runs out.
TEA says that if you need a copy of your certificate, you have to set up an account with them. Log in, click on Access Applications, then click on the link to your Educator Certificate Account. Bring up your current certificate and then print it out. You can also save the certificate as a PDF file to your desktop, then email it to someone else. TEA recommends you use Google Chrome as it keeps the dates on the certificate accurate.
If a potential employer wants TEA to verify your certificate, the simplest way is for them to give you a PDF verification form. TEA won't send individual letters of information, only forms. If someone wants the details of your training, contact your educator training program, not TEA. It may take several weeks to process your request or longer between April and October, the peak months for requests.