I have a friend whose teaching license is going to expire. He is not an American citizen, but did his undergrad and subsequent teaching certificate in the States. He has been teaching internationally for many years now and is about to begin a new job search, but his teaching credential in the States is now expired. For this particular license, he cannot renew it without actually teaching / living in that state, which is not going to happen.
Does anyone have any suggestions as to what he should do? He also has a Masters of Teaching degree which was earned in the states as well. Should he look to find another teaching license in another country that is easier to maintain abroad? Continue teaching without a current license? Other options?
Teaching License Expiring
Inquiry
We need more information:
1) Is the credential expired already or about to expire, meaning its still valid for at least a few more weeks to a month?
2) What is their academic preparation (degree) in, you said they have a Masters in Education but what is their core subject competency?
3) What are they certified in? Do they have only a single subject endorsement?
4) Are they certified in ESOL?
5) How many years of documentable teaching experience do they have?
The easiest credential to obtain and maintain for a western credentialed IT is QTS, its a brief 10 minute online application, and a decision is typically rendered within a few weeks. There is no cost to apply, and QTS is a lifetime credential that requires no PD.
Does your friend have an appointment already? They will find their resume has much better marketability and utility if they have a valid credential, generally those without credentials dont find much utility outside the lower third tier, but if they have a strong enough resume with their degree and experience a lack of a credential may not be much of an issue.
Outside the US CAN might be an option if they have the right preparation depending on subject matter. AUS isnt really an option, and the answers to the questions above will indicate the best pathway in the US.
1) Is the credential expired already or about to expire, meaning its still valid for at least a few more weeks to a month?
2) What is their academic preparation (degree) in, you said they have a Masters in Education but what is their core subject competency?
3) What are they certified in? Do they have only a single subject endorsement?
4) Are they certified in ESOL?
5) How many years of documentable teaching experience do they have?
The easiest credential to obtain and maintain for a western credentialed IT is QTS, its a brief 10 minute online application, and a decision is typically rendered within a few weeks. There is no cost to apply, and QTS is a lifetime credential that requires no PD.
Does your friend have an appointment already? They will find their resume has much better marketability and utility if they have a valid credential, generally those without credentials dont find much utility outside the lower third tier, but if they have a strong enough resume with their degree and experience a lack of a credential may not be much of an issue.
Outside the US CAN might be an option if they have the right preparation depending on subject matter. AUS isnt really an option, and the answers to the questions above will indicate the best pathway in the US.
Re: Teaching License Expiring
Thanks very much for the feedback @PsyGuy.
Here is some additional information.
1) His credential is already expired.
2 and 3) He has a bachelors degree in Psychology and a Masters degree in Teacher Education. He received a preliminary multiple subject credential through the program which is now expired because he doesn't teach in California.
4) Not certified in ESOL
5) He has 8 years of teaching experience in an international setting (by the end of this school year). 7 of those years are in PYP schools.
He does not want to work in the US, but would like to continue teaching internationally in Europe, South East Asia or the Middle East.
He looked into QTS and heard that it is for teachers who would like to work in the UK. Are there any other credentials that he could apply for that would allow him to teach in an international environment?
Here is some additional information.
1) His credential is already expired.
2 and 3) He has a bachelors degree in Psychology and a Masters degree in Teacher Education. He received a preliminary multiple subject credential through the program which is now expired because he doesn't teach in California.
4) Not certified in ESOL
5) He has 8 years of teaching experience in an international setting (by the end of this school year). 7 of those years are in PYP schools.
He does not want to work in the US, but would like to continue teaching internationally in Europe, South East Asia or the Middle East.
He looked into QTS and heard that it is for teachers who would like to work in the UK. Are there any other credentials that he could apply for that would allow him to teach in an international environment?
Reply
@Rudyard
You dont need to teach in CA to complete induction and transition the preliminary credential to to CLEAR credential. A number of Unis offer induction programs and a few have online CLEAR/Induction programs such as SDSU and UCLA. Your friend could still complete one of these programs but the costs are about the same as an ACP program around $6K.
CA is really the location you want to transition to as an IT, since its the only one of the three that requires no PD to maintain a license and accepts foreign ITs/DTs. CA also does not require a credential to be valid at the time of application. However, your friend would need to obtain a ELL authorization and as an out of state candidate the only way to accomplish that is with a full ESOL endorsement or credential. None of this matter because your friend is not an out of state candidate, they are a CA educator.
There are two options for your friend:
I) Your friend can obtain the Hawaii credential. This would be a very simple process since your friend earned their degree and EPP/ITT in the US so there is no need for an NACES evaluation. There is no CRB and the academic preparation will waive any testing requirement at least for credentialing as a secondary psychology DT/IT. It would essentially be an application, transcripts and work experience verification. You would apply under either option A or E and and with their teaching experience would likely qualify for the advance license. The standard license is valid for 5 years and the advance license is valid for 10 years. Its is pricey about $50/yr. If they did not award a prmary credential, then your friend would need to take a couple of PRAXIS exams, these exams are available globally.
Once they had the HI credential whether standard or advance they could then use that to obtain QTS. QTS is the professional credential/license for DTs in England/UK. The majority of western ISs are US, UK or IB, and within the UK national curriculum and BS ISs QTS is the working qualification. QTS is accepted globally as a professional educator credential within IE.
II) Your friend could pursue BC/CAN (British Columbia/Canada) credentialing. The requirements are mostly those of academic preparation, they need not have a current credential but have completed an EPP/ITT program. They may be approved directly for social studies, and if not would likely have to take a Uni course in Canadian studies for certification in primary education. The registration cost is $150/yr and there are no PD requirements, this is in addition to the application costs.
You dont need to teach in CA to complete induction and transition the preliminary credential to to CLEAR credential. A number of Unis offer induction programs and a few have online CLEAR/Induction programs such as SDSU and UCLA. Your friend could still complete one of these programs but the costs are about the same as an ACP program around $6K.
CA is really the location you want to transition to as an IT, since its the only one of the three that requires no PD to maintain a license and accepts foreign ITs/DTs. CA also does not require a credential to be valid at the time of application. However, your friend would need to obtain a ELL authorization and as an out of state candidate the only way to accomplish that is with a full ESOL endorsement or credential. None of this matter because your friend is not an out of state candidate, they are a CA educator.
There are two options for your friend:
I) Your friend can obtain the Hawaii credential. This would be a very simple process since your friend earned their degree and EPP/ITT in the US so there is no need for an NACES evaluation. There is no CRB and the academic preparation will waive any testing requirement at least for credentialing as a secondary psychology DT/IT. It would essentially be an application, transcripts and work experience verification. You would apply under either option A or E and and with their teaching experience would likely qualify for the advance license. The standard license is valid for 5 years and the advance license is valid for 10 years. Its is pricey about $50/yr. If they did not award a prmary credential, then your friend would need to take a couple of PRAXIS exams, these exams are available globally.
Once they had the HI credential whether standard or advance they could then use that to obtain QTS. QTS is the professional credential/license for DTs in England/UK. The majority of western ISs are US, UK or IB, and within the UK national curriculum and BS ISs QTS is the working qualification. QTS is accepted globally as a professional educator credential within IE.
II) Your friend could pursue BC/CAN (British Columbia/Canada) credentialing. The requirements are mostly those of academic preparation, they need not have a current credential but have completed an EPP/ITT program. They may be approved directly for social studies, and if not would likely have to take a Uni course in Canadian studies for certification in primary education. The registration cost is $150/yr and there are no PD requirements, this is in addition to the application costs.