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The NYS Teacher Certification Instructions are below. Please read this entire page before submitting your application - not doing so can cause a delay in your certification.

The New York State Education Department (NYSED) uses an online processing system for NYS Teacher Certification called TEACH. All students must use the TEACH system to apply for their NYS Teacher certification. Everything, including payment, will be done online though the TEACH system.

Click here to download the appropriate “Student Application Information Sheet” for the certificate that you are applying for. Please be sure to choose the appropriate set of instructions for your degree and certificate type (initial/professional – provisional/permanent). This sheet will give you step by step instructions to apply for your certificate(s) through the TEACH system.

You can submit your teacher certification application through the TEACH system at any time before or after you graduate. However, your application will not be reviewed by NYSED until after The College of Saint Rose sends our recommendation. The College will automatically send this recommendation approximately 3 weeks after the end of your last semester. We will not automatically recommend any student that has a hold on their account. This includes holds for unpaid bills, parking tickets, library, or any other outstanding financial obligation to the College. After you clear your hold, it is your responsibility to contact us at certification@strose.edu so that we can send your recommendation to NYSED.

You and your potential employers can check your certification status online at any time. Therefore, The College of Saint Rose does not issue letters confirming your pending certification status with NYSED.

At the bottom on each “Student Application Information Sheet” is contact information for the NYS Education Department should you have problems with the TEACH system. If you have problems filling out your application or have any questions about certification, please email us at certification@strose.edu.

Important Notes/Exceptions:

If you received a Master’s Degree or Advanced Certificate from us that leads to both Initial and Professional certification prior to May 2011, please send a request for a recommendation to certification@strose.edu when you are ready to be recommended for your Professional certification. If you received a Master’s Degree or Advanced Certificate from us that leads to both Initial and Professional certification as of May 2011 or after, we will automatically recommend you for both certifications at the time of graduation.

The College of Saint Rose can only send our recommendation to the State for degrees that you have received from us. If you are applying for a certification area based on a degree that you received elsewhere, you will need to apply on your own. For example: if you have a Bachelor’s Degree from another college in Early Childhood Education and a Master’s Degree from Saint Rose in Literacy we can only recommend you for your Literacy certification. We cannot recommend you for Professional certification in Early Childhood Education, you will need to contact your prior college for assistance with that certification.

If you are applying for certification based on a degree from The College of Saint Rose that was awarded prior to December 2006, please contact us at certification@strose.edu. Please include your name, student ID number, date of graduation, and certificate(s) that you are applying for. We will review your record and determine the best course of action for you.

Extensions: 

If you are applying for the 5-6 or 7-9 extension, you will need to apply for two different certificates. The first would be the base certificate, and the second would be for the extension. Please repeat “Step 2” on the “Student Application Information Sheet” and choose the appropriate extension. You will then need to contact us at certification@strose.edu so that we can send your recommendation to the State for this extension.