Florida Teacher Certification

If you already have a Bachelors degree, then you can become eligible for Florida teacher certification under one of the following options:

1    Pass an appropriate subject area exam; OR

2    Earn a degree major in an appropriate subject area; OR

3    Complete the appropriate coursework in a subject area with 2.5  GPA; OR

4    Complete a Teacher Prep program from an  accredited college; OR

5    Possess a currently valid out of state teaching license in an equivalent subject area and grade level offered by Florida.

Under current rules, you must meet one of the above “specialization requirement” options for the appropriate subject area before you can be considered eligible for a Florida certificate. In most cases, the district requires an applicant to be eligible for certification before entering into an instructional position.  An applicant does not have to hold a certificate, but must be eligible for the certificate.

To view a simplified illustration of the Florida certification process, please click the following link: Florida Teacher Certification Option Summary. A teacher may begin teaching under either a temporary certificate or a professional certificate. 

Those beginning with a temporary certificate need to be aware that it is a non-renewable certificate. Teachers with a temporary certificate need to meet professional certification requirements prior to the expiration of the temporary certificate in order to retain their certified status.

To view a document that outlines options for meeting the requirements for moving from a temporary certificate to a professional certificate, please click the following link: Options for Temporary to Professional Certificate.
 

To view requirements for teacher certification in the state of Florida, visit: http://www.teachinflorida.com.

To apply to the Florida Department of Education for teacher certification, visit:  http://www.fldoe.org/edcert/.

To view frequently asked certification questions from the Florida Department of Education, visit: http://www.fldoe.org/edcert/faqs.asp.

To view requirements for specific subject areas, visit: http://www.fldoe.org/edcert/subjlist.asp. 
 

To register for the subject area exam, interested persons should visit: http://www.fl.nesinc.com/index.asp.

To review the competencies and skills covered by the tests, visit: http://www.fldoe.org/asp/ftce/ftcecomp.asp.

To access practice Florida Teacher Certification Exams and test taking tips, please visit:
http://www.ftceexampracticetests.com/.

Learn more about TIP @ FGCU, an alternative teacher certification program: http://www.fgcutip.com/

All instructional hiring is performed by our school principals/site administrators. Remember that you do not need to hold a Florida teaching certificate to gain employment. Rather, you must be eligible for a certificate by one of the above options.

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- External Applicants
- Current School District Employees