Alternative Licensure Options and Information 

Teaching candidates who have a bachelor’s degree in a subject other than education and have not completed a teacher preparation program may pursue a North Carolina alternative teacher certification. Alternative certification programs are designed for individuals who are otherwise qualified to teach. 

NC list of approved Educator Preparation Programs (EPP) for Alternative Certification
https://www.dpi.nc.gov/educators/educator-preparation/approved-programs

Graduates of an accredited North Carolina college/university will work through their school to obtain a N.C. license.  The school will notify the student of the college and state requirements for a license.  Steps to obtaining a N.C. license.     

Graduates will need to register for an on-line licensure account in order to finalize details and make payment for the application for a license created by the college/university.  There is a licensure processing fee associated with the application.  It must be paid by MasterCard or VISA credit card an is non-refundable. 

If the graduate has previous teaching or non-teaching work experience, they should provide the college/university with the appropriate experience forms for completion to upload to their licensure application when making the initial request to save the graduate money.

Forms You May Need:
Form_E
Form_NE
Form_CE
Form_V
Form_ME

To be eligible for an Initial Professional License, an individual must have done the following:

• Completed a state teacher education program from a regionally accredited college or university, OR
• Completed another state's approved alternative route to licensure, met the federal requirements to be designated as "Highly Qualified", and earned a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college/university
• OR qualify for an alternative teaching license
• AND participate in the Beginning Teacher Support Program.  All IPLs are required to participate in the BTSP.  (Failure to participate could result in not being eligible to convert the Initial license to a Continuing license, which is the five-year license)
   

Effective July 1, 2019, if an IPL did not complete the State required testing prior to the issuance of their license, they must ATTEMPT all the required tests during their first year of licensing and PASS all the required tests by the end of their third year of licensing to be eligible to convert their license to continuing. 

If all tests are not attempted and passed according to State policy, the license will expire.  The annual deadline for passing ALL required exams for Craven County Schools is April 1.  This aligns with annual contract recommendation.

Effective July 1, 2019, an individual may be issued a Lifetime License after 30 years of teaching as a licensed teacher in North Carolina that requires no renewal.  A Lifetime License is issued to an individual who meets the following requirements:

 1. Completed 30 or more years of teaching as a licensed teacher when the teacher holds a current North Carolina teaching license, AND;

a. Only those licenses that are appropriate for classroom instruction are eligible for a Lifetime License. Administrator and student-support licenses are NOT ELIGIBLE for the Lifetime License. 

b. For the purposes of this policy, individuals whose major responsibility is to either teach students or directly supervise the teaching of students are deemed to be engaged in teaching.

c. Administrators and other student-support professionals may be eligible for a Lifetime License in an approved teaching area provided they have met the 30-year requirement and have maintained an active license in the teaching area during the 30-year requirement.

2. Completed 30 or more years of creditable service with the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System (TSERS). 

NOTE: Individuals who are employed with public school units that do not participate in TSERS are required to produce employment verification from those public school units. NCDPI nor TSERS will be able to provide employment verification from those entities. 

Educators that are licensed or have met requirements for licensure in another state should be eligible for a license in North Carolina. This is due to reciprocity. While North Carolina has reciprocity agreements with most states in the U.S for licensure, reciprocity does not exist for testing.

North Carolina will issue a license to out-of-state applicants based on their degree program completed and/or license that is held from another state. The license will be issued in area(s) as close to the other state's as possible, but it may not be exact. For example, a license from New York for grades Kindergarten - 2 will be issued in N.C. as a Kindergarten - 6 because that is the closest area North Carolina issues. Also, some other areas may require additional course work or testing for licensure in North Carolina than another state may require, thus requiring that the applicant meet a few more requirements to get fully licensed in a certain area(s).

Applications for a N.C. license are made through the on-line licensure system. The educator must register for an account and then applications can be created. Documents such as transcripts, test scores, experience forms, etc. must be scanned and uploaded with the application.

Applying for this license requires a licensure processing fee. This fee must be paid by MasterCard or VISA credit card and is non-refundable.

Forms You May Need: 
Form_E
Form_NE
Form_CE
Form_V
Form_ME

 

License areas can be added provisionally to an existing, non-expired, teaching license or for student support services areas. Pre-requisites may be required for some of these areas.  Contact the Licensure Specialist for specific requirements.

Provisional licenses are issued on a year by year basis for a maximum of three years in some areas and five years in other areas. The educator must complete on of the following:
1)  attempt the test/exam annually OR
2)  pass the State required test/exam to clear the provisional AND/OR
3) complete a plan of study issued by an accredited college/university

A provisional license expires annually and the HR Department will request a license extension for the next year if the educator continues to qualify for the provisional area. Upon completion of the program, the college/university will recommend clearing the provisional license to DPI through the HR Licensure Specialist.

A provisional license application requires the employee to pay a non-refundable licensure processing fee made payable by VISA or MasterCard.

Lateral Entry ended (June 30, 2019)
replaced with
residency beginning (july 1, 2019)
An individual, including those who hold the Permit to Teach or Emergency License, may qualify for a one-year Residency License in a teaching area, with the option to renew twice, within no longer than a three-year period. All requirements to convert a Residency License to either an Initial or Continuing license must be completed before the expiration of the second renewal of the Residency License. Individuals must meet all of the following requirements:

Teachers in the first year of their Residency License must receive 10 days of professional development from the LEA designed to support a successful classroom experience.

You can go to DPI's website at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/troops/residency/ for more information.

A Residency License must be requested by a North Carolina public school system and accompanied by a certification of supervision from the recognized Educator Prep Program (EPP) in which the individual is enrolled. The local school system shall be responsible for verifying the candidate’s enrollment in an approved EPP. A Residency License is issued for one year and renewable twice at the recommendation of an employing North Carolina school system.

In order to renew a Residency License for the second or the third year, the LEA must verify

Individuals must complete all requirements, pass NCSBE-required licensure testing requirements, and receive the recommendation of an EPP to convert the Residency License to the Initial or Continuing Professional License within three years of the effective date of the Residency License.

If an individual fails to renew the Residency License for either the second or third year, the current Residency License will expire. Within three years of the effective date of the original Residency License, a Residency License may be reinstated at the request of an LEA if the following conditions are met:

Military personnel and military personnel spouses whose residency licensure program is interrupted by a call to active duty or relocation to an out-of-state duty station shall be eligible to resume the program of study at the point of separation upon documented return to a duty station and employment in North Carolina public schools. 

For Career and Technical Education areas, the State Board may establish alternate criteria related to that area to establish competency in lieu of a baccalaureate degree, as specified in the CTE Licensure Policies and Procedures Manual.

Teachers assigned to multiple subject areas shall be issued a Residency License for one licensure area and may add the additional Residency License area at the request of the employing school system. The additional Residency License areas may be cleared in accordance with Section 1.23 of this policy. Note: The primary Residency licensure area must be cleared through an EPP before any additional areas can be cleared.

Residency Licenses are only issued at the A-level and may be awarded experience credit and graduate pay in compliance with LICN-006.

Current lateral entry license holders may convert to a Residency License provided Residency License qualifications are met; the employing school system submits the request for the conversion; and the lateral entry license is not expired. Individuals who do not fulfill the requirements of the lateral entry license and the lateral license has expired may convert to a Residency License provided that the following conditions are met:

Residency Licensure for Currently Licensed Educators

At the request of an employing school system, an individual who holds a clear (non-restricted) license in a teaching, administrative, supervisory, or student services area may be issued a Residency License in a teaching area provided the individual meets the State requirements to hold a Residency License in the teaching area. Licensed educators who are issued a Residency License shall be subject to the requirements detailed in Section 1.80 of this policy.

For Career and Technical Education areas, the NCSBE may establish alternate criteria related to that area to establish competency in lieu of a baccalaureate degree, as specified in the CTE Licensure Policies and Procedures Manual.

A Residency License must be requested by the LEA or charter school and accompanied by a certification of supervision from the recognized EPP in which the individual is enrolled.

1. holds, at a minimum, a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education with a GPA of 2.7 or higher (an EPP may accept a slightly lower GPA);
2. has either completed 24 hours of coursework in the requested licensure area or passed the NCSBE required content area examination(s) for the requested licensure area (some EPPs may require the courses being counted toward meeting the 24 hours have a minimum grade of a 'C';
3. is enrolled in a recognized Educator Preparation Program (EPP), and;
4. meets all other requirements established by the NCSBE, including completing preservice requirements prior to teaching.
5. the license holder taught at least six calendar months, as defined in Section 1.20 of this policy, during the prior school year, and;
6. continued enrollment with an EPP, and; 
7. employment of the teacher in an LEA, and;
8. the license holder completed 10 days of required professional development.
9. The individual taught at least six calendar months during the year when they last held an active Residency License, and;
10. The individual is enrolled with an EPP, and;
11. The individual is employed as a teacher in an LEA.
12. pass the required NCSBE-required exam(s), and; 
13. meet eligibility requirements for a Residency License. 

Helpful Links:

• NCDPI Approved List of EPPs
• Chart to Determine Eligibility for Elementary Education or Special Education Based on 24 Semester Hours of Coursework
• East Carolina University's Residency Model Flyer
• Residency License Verification Form (Must have competed by College EPP before seeking employment under Residency License pathway)

Individuals who hold a clear teaching license in one area can add an additional teaching area to their license by the following routes:

Individuals who hold a clear teaching license can also add a language area to the license by earning a rating of at least 'Intermediate High' proficiency on the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Oral Proficiency Test and, if available, the Writing Proficiency Test

Individuals licensed in Elementary Education and completed National Boards in Early Childhood Generalist can add Birth-Kindergarten to their license.

All of these routes to adding an area to an existing license requires a non-refundable $60 licensure processing fee paid by VISA or MasterCard. Contact our licensure specialist to request assistance with adding an area to your license.

• Completing an approved teacher education program in the additional area and meeting the federal requirement to be "highly qualified" in the additional teaching area
• Passing the appropriate Subject Assessment testing requirements for the additional area
• Completing 24 semester hours in the subject area with a grade of "C" or better in the subject area

Contracts are normally extended/renewed based on performance of the educator and continuation of funding for the position. However, licensure status also affects eligibility for extension/renewal of a contract.

The law states that all educators must hold a valid, "current" teaching license. Therefore, educator contracts stipulate this as well. This means that if an educator does not meet licensure renewal requirements or provisional/alternative licensure requirements, a contract may not be extended/renewed. This is also true for a tenured educator - if their license expires, their career contract becomes void and employment may end.

Contract issues are handled by the Board in late May of each year. The Human Resource Services Department determines what teachers have/have not met licensure requirements, consider principal/supervisor recommendations, performance and verify the position allotments for the new year and make recommendations for contract renewal or contract non-renewal based on these criteria. 

Contracts are normally offered to educators prior to school ending each year.

Educators can request a name change on their license by making an application through the on-line licensure system. If the educator is employed, the licensure specialist for the school system can assist in making this request. A social security card or driver's license with the new name will have to be scanned an uploaded with the application. It is strongly suggested to use the driver's license as evidence.

You should also notify your district licensure specialist of any name change.

There is a $60 licensure processing fee to request a name change for educators. The fee must be paid by MasterCard or VISA credit card and is non-refundable. The educator can track the request through their on-line license account.

Continuing licenses shall be issued with five-year renewal cycles. Holders must renew their licenses at the end of each five-year period. Credit earned for renewal purposes shall apply to the person’s license field(s) and professional duties. 

Renewal or reinstatement of a license shall be based on 8.0 units of renewal credit. A unit of credit shall be equal to one quarter hour or two-thirds of a semester hour of college credit. 

Five-year renewal cycles shall be initially based on the completion of credit requirements to qualify for licensure, the completion of licensure renewal requirements, or a valid license held from another state. A new five-year renewal cycle is established for a Continuing license when an expired license is renewed. A new five-year renewal cycle also is established upon the completion of program requirements for converting an Initial license to a Continuing license. 

Teachers (including instructional support, student support, specialists, and resource personnel), excluding school based and central services administrators, that are not deemed 'proficient' on the most recent final summative evaluation may be placed on a mandatory improvement plan and may, therefore, be eligible to receive an Initial license at the time of license renewal (not another Continuing license); provided all other licensure requirements are met.  

Teachers and licensed support personnel whose license expire due to performance issues in the license renewal year must follow the procedures listed below: 

For educators, whose continuing licenses reverted to an initial license and/or expired due to performance issues, the LEAs shall have discretion over what professional development is required of the teacher. LEAs may prescribe professional development to the employee in accordance with his/her demonstrated deficiencies. At the end of the three-year cycle, if all 8 credits have been completed, the license will be issued with a new five-year dating cycle or the license remains expired until all renewal credits have been earned. This option shall not be for currently employed individuals who have not met renewal requirements.   

Requirements for licensed educators whose license expire on or after June 30, 2019:

Teachers of grades B-K, and kindergarten through five must complete 8 renewal credits during each five-year renewal cycle that meet the following requirements:

Teachers of grades six through twelve and Instructional/Student Support Personnel and Central Services Administrators (includes media. counselors, psychologists, social workers, resource teachers, specialists, etc.) must complete 8 renewal credits during each five-year renewal cycle that meet the following requirements:

School Administrators: 

The Human Resource Management System (HRMS) used by our LEA that records and tracks educator's renewal credits is restrictive enough to prevent teachers from earning both Academic Credit and Literacy Credit for the same course. This is due to the rule (based on State Board policy) that states that an individual course/workshop cannot be counted toward two state sub-category licensure requirements simultaneously (i.e. Literacy and Academic Credit). However, CEU credits for a course can be split between these two categories and our Personnel Department will split credit when needed to provide the most benefit to our educators.

Credits can be completed at your school, other schools within the district, schools in other districts, at higher education institutions, DPI, etc. If the staff development activity is not taken 'in-house' you must submit a certificate of credit or copy of transcript to the Human Resource Services Department in order to get credit for the activity.

Completion of National Board earns the total 8.0 renewal credits (covering all categories) regardless of passing. Documentation of completing National Boards or a letter indicating the attempt must be submitted to the Licensure Specialist. Renewal is granted either in the educator's current renewal cycle or the next cycle and is only granted one time. Renewal of National Board is required every ten years and awards 2.0 renewal credits.

• Renewal credit is no longer given for experience
• Credit is only awarded for activities totaling 10 contact hours or more (1.0 CEUs)
• Credit is not awarding for hosting activities or attending meetings
• Credit is not awarded in increments less than 1 hour (ex:  Activity is 10 hours and 45 minutes - only 1.0 credit is awarded)

Credit is earned as follows:

Employees can check their renewal credit history through our Human Resource Management System. To view your credits, you must view it from a computer that is on our school or district network and must be viewed using Microsoft Edge/Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher or from a MacBook using Chrome. 

There is a non-refundable $35 licensure processing fee required and can only be paid by VISA or MasterCard.  Instructions for handling the renewal process will be e-mailed to present employees in the Spring of each year.

• A teacher who meets the criteria above, but who is not placed on a mandatory improvement plan by the employing agency shall be deemed to have an “expired” teaching license. A teacher whose license has expired pursuant to the provision in this section shall be eligible to apply for an Initial license upon receipt of official notification from the State Board of Education and after a 30-day waiting period.
• “Proficient” shall be defined as achieving a rating of proficient or higher on all of the five standards of the NC Educator Evaluation System (NCEES), or both Standards I and IV for abbreviated evaluations.
• The term of the mandatory improvement plan shall be 90 instructional days for teachers in schools identified as low performing and 60 instructional days for teachers in schools not identified as low performing. Teachers who are placed on a mandatory improvement plan as a result of this policy shall be issued an Initial license provided the teacher meets other licensing requirements.

Local education agencies (LEAs) that move to dismiss a teacher under the provisions of this policy must follow all due process procedures as outlined in G.S. § 325.1, et seq. The reversion of a teacher’s license from Continuing to Initial shall not be construed as a demotion or result in a reduction of the teacher’s salary. At the end of the term of the Initial license (three years), a teacher may be eligible for a Continuing license.

To view how many credits are needed for your license please visit the NCDPI website.

How to calculate course contact hours to CEU credits:

• one contact hour is equivalent to 0.1 renewal credit
• ten contact hours is equivalent to 1.0 renewal credit
• a quarter hour is the equivalent of 1.0 renewal credit
• a semester hour is equivalent to 1.5 renewal credits

Effective July 1, 2019, initially licensed educators are required to ATTEMPT State required test(s) during the first year of licensing and PASS required tests by the end of the third year of licensing.  If all State required tests are not passed by the third year of the initial license, the license can not be converted to a continuing license. 

The Praxis Series tests are still used for all licensure areas with the exception of Elementary Education and Special Education. Click here to go the Praxis website. Elementary Education and Special Education require the Pearson and Praxis tests. Click here to go the Pearson testing website.

Employed educator's seeking to add an area to their teaching license should contact the Licensure Specialist in their school district. Adding an area requires a $60 licensure processing fee. This fee must be paid credit card (MasterCard or VISA). Educator's not employed by a N.C. school system, must make application through the on-line licensure system along with an uploaded copy of their test scores and the licensure processing fee.

Click on the link below see the State Board Policy on testing requirements.  The Policy includes the tests required for each area as well as the scores required. 

Check out the following testing prep areas:
Pearson Test Prep - On line Modules for Current Teachers

NC Education Modules are self-paced modules to complete.  It's intended to help out of state teachers and others prepare for the Pearson test.  Both the Math and Reading test preps are available.

Pearson Test Prep for Potential Teachers
Watch Video
Regional Assistance Licensing Center (RALC)

State Board Information on Licensure
State Board Licensure Testing Requirements Policy

Senate Bill 744 / Session Law 2014-100 Section 8.3 "SECTION 8.22. 
Notwithstanding Section 35.11 of this act, only the following teachers and instructional support personnel shall be paid on the "M" salary schedule or receive a salary supplement for academic preparation at the six-year degree level or at the doctoral degree level for the 2014-2015 school year and subsequent school years:

Graduate Degrees:
The Licensure Section will continue adding the graduate degree level designation on the Educator's license if the following criteria are met:

NOTE: The graduate degree designation will be on the license, however, the individual may not be eligible to be paid on the graduate salary schedule unless at least one of the graduate degree courses was completed prior to August 1, 2013.

Graduate Pay Approvals:
Graduate pay approvals will be considered if one of the following criteria is met:

There is a $60 processing fee to request the first masters (or higher) level pay based on a non-education degree, but meets the criteria above. The fee must be paid by MasterCard or VISA credit Card. Contact the Licensure Specialist to seek masters level pay.

1. Certified school nurses and instructional support personnel in positions for which a master's degree is required for licensure; and
2. Teachers and instructional support personnel who were paid on that salary schedule or received that salary supplement prior to the 2014-2015 school year; and
3. Teachers and instructional support personnel who (i) complete a degree at the master's, six-year, or doctoral degree level for which they completed at least one course prior to August 1, 2013, and (ii) would have qualified for the salary supplement pursuant to State 
   Board of Education policy TCP-A-006, as it was in effect on June 30, 2013."
4. A state approved education program that leads to licensure has been completed and verified with the required Form V, degree-dated transcripts and the completed application has been submitted to the NCDPI Licensure Section
   AND
5. The college or university is regionally accredited.
6. An individual was paid on the graduate salary schedule prior to July 1, 2014; 
   OR
7. At least one of the graduate degree courses was completed prior to August 1, 2013;
   AND
8. The individual would have qualified based on the SBE Graduate Pay policy TCP-A-006 in effect June 30, 2013.

Due to NC General Statue 115C-296(b), NCDPI's Licensure Section has established a 5-year window, immediately following the retirement date, during which a teacher is not required to obtain CEUs, regardless of when the teacher's license actually expires. The 5-year window begins at retirement. If a teacher otherwise licensed at retirement applies for a renewal of a license during the 5-year window, the Licensure Section will issue a 'new' or renewed license notwithstanding the absence of CEUs during the 5-year period. If seeking renewal based on this option, documentation from the Retirement System of the educator's retirement date is required and will need to be scanned and uploaded when making this request.

Breakdown:
Teachers with 30 or more years of teaching experience in North Carolina may qualify for a retirement license. These licenses have specific renewal requirements as listed below.  Individuals with fewer than 30 years of teaching experience in North Carolina do not qualify for a retirement license. Retired teachers with fewer than 30 years of teaching experience in North Carolina, Administrators, and Student Services Personnel, must follow the standard renewal cycle requirements listed in Section III of this policy to maintain a current license.

A retired educator is responsible for applying for this renewal through the on-line licensure system. First the educator must register for an on-line licensure account and then create the application.  If renewal is based on meeting the CEU requirements in place at the time of renewal, then proof of credits must be uploaded. 

The application will also require a non-refundable $35 licensure processing fee which must be paid by credit card (MasterCard or VISA).

• 5-year license cycle is 7/1/2011 to 6/30/2016
• Retirement date is 7/1/2013
• Eligible for renewal without CEUs from 7/1/2013 to 6/30/2018
• Any renewals for this license after 6/30/2018 will require CEUs

1. For each license renewal cycle, teachers holding a retirement license must provide evidence of
   1.  at least 640 hours of documented employment in a local school administrative unit, and;
   2. 4.0 credits of professional development (a minimum of 8 hours annually) approved by a local school administrative unit.
       
2. A local board of education may select a retired principal or retired assistant principal to serve an interim principal for the remainder of any school year, regardless of licensure status.

Educators who have an expired teaching license can still be employed if the hiring school district is willing to request a validated license for them. A validated license is issued for 3 years to allow the educator time to complete the required 8 renewal credits to renew the license. The eight renewal credits must be earned by the end of the 3-year license. 

A validated license must be requested by a school system. The fee to request a validated license is $60 and can only be paid by VISA or MasterCard. The fee is non-refundable.