Certification

To be certified in the State of Texas, you need:

  • an undergraduate degree
  • to complete an approved certification program
  • to pass both required exams

The UTeach program provides documentation to the SBEC liaison in the College of Education verifying that you have completed the UTeach program. This process takes place after grades are posted. Documentation is NOT sent if

  • you are registered for courses after your student teaching semester
  • if you are missing degree requirements
  • if you have not applied to graduate

Documentation for degree-holders is sent as soon as grades post. Documentation for all others is sent as soon as possible after grades post and well before degrees become official. Once UTeach sends documentation about program completion, the SBEC liaison checks to see that you've also passed both exams and that you hold a degree. If everything checks out AND you've applied to SBEC, then you are ready to be certified.

Wondering where your certification is? Here are some possibilities:

  • Did you apply to SBEC yet? If not, click here. Recommendation is NOT instantaneous. You should apply to SBEC as soon as possible. The lag time between when you are recommended and when you are actually certified can be as long as 2 weeks. Do not wait until the day you're offered a job to find out whether or not your certification is official. IMPORTANT: UTeach does not have access to any SBEC records. Address questions about that aspect of certification to SBEC.
  • Have you taken and passed both exams? If not, you'll need to do that before you can be recommended.
  • Is your degree official yet? The University of Texas at Austin puts all degrees through a rigorous vetting process that ensures the intergrity of your degree. Degrees "post," or become offical, only after this process is completed. Usually, degrees will post in late December (Fall semester), May (Spring semester), and August (summer session). Local school districts often begin classes before degrees post. There is no way to shorten the process, so be sure to talk to Human Resources at the district you are working with. Let them know you expect to be recommended for certification soon. Find the official date here.
  • Did you finish course work in the semester (fall, spring, or summer) AFTER you did your Apprentice Teaching? If so, you'll need to let the UTeach program know that you've finished. If you took courses somewhere besides UT (like ACC), those classes have to be official, either showing up on your UT transcript or with an official transcript here in the UTeach office. Click here to send an email letting us know so we can send documentation to the SBEC liaison.
  • Did you finish your degree after you completed Apprentice Teaching? If so, you'll need to let us know you're all done. Click here to send us an email.
  • The exams you take do not match the certification(s) listed on the SBEC card you filled out in the Apprentice Teaching seminar. For example, if you listed both senior grades and middle grades certification, but never took the middle grades PPR, your file will be marked as pending. If you change your mind, send us an email letting us know so we can revise your documentation.
  • Questions? We're here to help! Send us an email and we'll see what we can get figured out.