GA certification

Georgia teacher certification

Georgia reports 11 teaching credentials and 1 alternative route to Title II, and licensed 7,497 new teachers in the latest year.

Credential rules change. Confirm current requirements with Georgia Professional Standards Commission.

Teaching credentials in Georgia

Each row is a credential Georgia reported to Title II. Initial means a first credential for a new teacher. Years is the length of validity.

Georgia credentials
Credential	Initial	Years	Renewable	Grade levels
Advanced Professional	No	5	Yes	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Clearance	No	5	Yes	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Induction	Yes	3	No	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
International Exchange	Yes	3	Yes	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Lead Professional	No	5	Yes	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Life	No	99	No	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Non-Renewable Professional Certificate	No	3	No	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Permit	Yes	3	Yes	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Professional	Yes	5	Yes	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Provisional	Yes	3	No	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Waiver	No	1	No	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12

Requirements

Yes means the state reports the item as required for that credential. Tests shows only whether tests are required; Title II does not name the tests.

Credential	Bachelor's	Master's	Education degree	Prep program	Tests	Performance assessment	Clinical	Coursework	Credit hours	Min. GPA	Transcripts	Employment	Mentoring	Recency	Background check	Fingerprint	Police check
Advanced Professional	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Clearance	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	No
Induction	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No
International Exchange	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Lead Professional	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Life	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No
Non-Renewable Professional Certificate	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Permit	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Professional	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Provisional	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Waiver	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No

Verify a teaching license in Georgia

Teaching licenses in Georgia are verified on the lookup service run by Georgia Professional Standards Commission. Search there by the teacher's name or certificate number to see current status.

PT3 does not verify licenses and holds no records of individual teachers.

Renewal

Renew times is how many times the credential can be renewed; renewal years is the length of each renewal.

Renewal
Credential	Renewable	Renew times	Renewal years	Details
Advanced Professional	Yes	12	5	Educator must have a minimum of one (1) year of acceptable educator experience in a Georgia LUA or are employed at time of renewal. A specific number of professional learning units is required.
Clearance	Yes	12	5	Completion of a professional development plan or professional development goals and a GCIC background check with no reportable offenses.
Induction	No	Not reported	Not reported	Not reported
International Exchange	Yes	1	3	If the educator returns to his/her home country for at least one year after the initial three year certificate validity, then returns to GA to teach, a second International Exchange certificate may be issued at the request of a Georgia Local Unit of Administration for one additional three year period.
Lead Professional	Yes	12	5	Satisfy professional learning requirements or hold a valid National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification. Must have a minimum of one (1) year of successful teaching experience evaluated by TKES and attain a minimum number of “Exemplary” performance ratings.
Life	No	Not reported	Not reported	Not reported
Non-Renewable Professional Certificate	No	Not reported	Not reported	Not reported
Permit	Yes	99	5	Permitted personnel are defined as those who may not qualify for professional certificates, including JROTC, Career and Technical Specializations, performing arts, and native speakers, but who function as certified personnel.
Professional	Yes	12	5	Educators must satisfy a professional learning plan or professional learning goals for renewal if the educator is employed in a Georgia local unit of administration (LUA) at the time of renewal. If not employed, a specific number of professional learning units/CEUs/college credit is required for renewal.
Provisional	No	Not reported	Not reported	Not reported
Waiver	No	Not reported	Not reported	Not reported

Emergency and temporary credentials

Emergency credentials
Credential	Initial	Years	Renewable	Grade levels
International Exchange	Yes	3	Yes	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Non-Renewable Professional Certificate	No	3	No	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Provisional	Yes	3	No	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12
Waiver	No	1	No	PK-5, 4-8, 6-12

Out-of-state teachers

Title II lists no separate out-of-state credential for Georgia. Ask Georgia Professional Standards Commission how it reviews licenses from other states.

Newly licensed teachers prepared out of state: 2,197.

Alternative routes

Georgia Teacher Academy for Preparation and Pedagogy (teach while completing)

All alternative routes in Georgia

About Georgia certification

The Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) is responsible for establishing and upholding standards for the preparation of educators, providing a regulatory system of certification/licensure, and establishing and enforcing standards of professional conduct of certified personnel employed in Georgia public schools.

The Educator Preparation Division of the GaPSC approves preparation programs designed for educators who seek state certification. Georgia has public and private institutions of higher education that are approved to prepare educators in a wide variety of program areas. In addition, several local units of administration (LUAs) and Regional Education Service Agencies (RESAs) are approved to prepare teachers in non-traditional/alternative preparation programs. Georgia offers both traditional and non-traditional/alternative routes to teacher certification.

All educators who are certified in the state are required to have a major or equivalent and a passing score on the appropriate Georgia state-approved educator certification content assessment. Effective July 1, 2020, the content pedagogy assessment was removed as a state requirement.

Georgia's educator content assessment program is the Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators (GACE). The purpose of the GACE is to help the GaPSC ensure that candidates have the content knowledge of what is taught in Georgia's classrooms. All GACE assessments are aligned with the state standards for the P-12 curriculum, which are the Georgia Standards of Excellence, and with state and national content standards. Each GACE test was developed with diverse representation of Georgia educators from across the state, including the participation of individuals from school systems, local schools, institutions of higher education (public and private), and other stakeholders. For program admission, initial teaching candidates must complete the Georgia Educator Ethics Assessment.

Georgia's state-approved content pedagogy assessment is edTPA, yet the requirement was removed effective July 1, 2020.

The data in this report indicate the relationship between educator preparation and state certification.

More information about the Georgia Professional Standards Commission's Educator Preparation Division, Certification Division, and Assessment Program is available at www.gapsc.com.

How to become a teacher in Georgia Georgia teacher preparation providers

Frequently asked questions

How do I get a teaching certificate in Georgia?

Georgia reports 11 credentials to Title II, 5 of them initial. 3 initial credentials require a bachelor's degree, 3 require a preparation program and 5 require tests. Apply through Georgia Professional Standards Commission.

How do I verify a teaching license in Georgia?

Licenses are verified on the lookup service run by Georgia Professional Standards Commission. PT3 does not verify licenses.

Can I renew a Georgia teaching certificate?

6 of 11 Georgia credentials are reported as renewable. Renewal details by credential are listed in the Renewal section.

Does Georgia issue emergency or temporary teaching certificates?

Yes. Title II lists 4: International Exchange; Non-Renewable Professional Certificate; Provisional; Waiver.

Can I teach in Georgia with an out-of-state license?

Title II lists no separate out-of-state credential for Georgia. Ask Georgia Professional Standards Commission how it reviews licenses from other states.

Is there alternative teacher certification in Georgia?

Yes. Georgia reports 1 alternative route to Title II.