Graduate Certification

Application for graduate level teaching certification is processed by the Cecilia J. Lauby Teacher Education Center.

Please note that procedures are different for certification and for degree completion. The forms submitted for certification are in addition to any required by the Graduate School and the department for your graduate degree.

Complete these steps for initial evaluation

If you are planning to pursue course work for a certificate, you must have an initiation evaluation completed. The evaluation should be made early in your program in order to provide a list of deficiencies that must be completed prior to the issuance of the certificate. You will receive a copy of the evaluation to use as a reference for all requirements. Please allow up to four weeks for the initial evaluation to be processed.

• Complete an Intent to File for Certification (pdf). Be sure to check the type of certificate for which you are applying.
• If you already have a certificate(s), include a photocopy of each certificate, front and back.
• If applying for the General Administration, Superintendent, or Chief School Business Official, have your district superintendent submit an official letter on school stationery verifying teaching and your administrative experience. The letter must clearly indicate the following:
  • Your name
  • Specific dates of assignment indicating part or full-time
  • Specific kind(s) of assignment: teaching, administrative
  • District superintendent's signature
• The Teacher Education Center has access to records of your Illinois State course work. If you are applying courses to your program completed at any other university, please request that an official transcript from each university be sent to the Teacher Education Center. The Center does not have access to official transcripts from other universities, which have been sent to other offices on campus.
• Send all of the above to the address stated on the form.

When the initial evaluation has been completed, you will be notified of deficiencies.

Complete these steps for final certification after requirements for the certificate have been met:

1. Order an official transcript to be sent to the Cecilia J. Lauby Teacher Education Center.
2. You must pass a test of basic skills and a special area test corresponding to the desired certification. An Assessment of Professional Teaching may be required for certain certifications. Learn more about these tests.
3. The Cecilia J. Lauby Teacher Education Center will notify the state of your program completion and send you instructions on how to apply for your certificate using the online ISBE Educator Certification System.
4. You must register your teaching certificate with a regional office of education. This may be done online through the ISBE Educator Certification System at the same time you apply for your certificate.
5. If you need verification of program completion before your certificate is received, please print the last page of your application on ISBE Educator Certification System. That is your confirmation from the state that all requirements for your certification have been met.