To apply for certification or to request an update to a certificate or educator file, a current or prospective educator must submit an official request and supporting documentation through
My SC Educator Portal. The SCDE Office of Educator Services no longer accepts requests and documents from educators by mail, email, or fax. Please note that the previous request for change/action forms are no longer needed or accepted.
Please review the following information for guidance regarding submission of official transcripts or forms to be completed by employers, colleges, universities, or other entities.
How to Submit Official Transcripts
Official transcripts transmitted by the college or university are required for initial certification as well as for certificate upgrades and changes. Official transcripts may be submitted electronically or by mail; however, electronic delivery is preferred.
Any transcript uploaded by an educator in the Educator Portal is considered unofficial and cannot be used for certification or advisement purposes.
Transcripts Containing Previous Names
If any transcript being submitted contains a previous name, please send an email to transcripts@ed.sc.gov with your full name, Educator ID (EID), the name of the institution(s), and your previous name as it will appear on the transcript(s). We will then note this information in your certification record.
Coursework and Degrees Earned Outside the United States
If you have completed coursework or degrees at a college or university outside the United States, please review the section on required documentation. Courses completed during a study abroad program do not require additional documentation so long as they appear your transcript from the US college or university.
Submitting Transcripts by Electronic Delivery
Electronic delivery is the preferred method for submitting an official transcript to the SCDE. To be considered official, the transcript must be sent directly to the SCDE from the registrar’s office or transcript service.
- Directly From a College or University
Transcripts requested for electronic delivery must be sent directly from the registrar’s office at the college or university to transcripts@ed.sc.gov.
- Directly from a Transcript Service
Transcripts requested from a transcript service such as Parchment, Credential Solutions, or the National Student Clearinghouse must be sent through the service’s web-based delivery system.
- When using Parchment, please select the option for the South Carolina Department of Education—Educator Services from the drop-down menu.
- For other delivery services, please be sure to enter the correct email address: transcripts@ed.sc.gov.
NOTE: When ordering an electronic transcript, please do not have the transcript sent to your email address. If you forward a transcript from your personal or work email address to the SCDE, the document is considered to have been opened and will be marked unofficial. An unofficial transcript cannot be used certification or advisement purposes and may result in an additional cost and will delay completion of any related request.
Submitting Transcripts by Mail
To be considered official, transcripts must remain enclosed in their original envelope as issued by the institution of higher education with an unbroken seal. If submitting additional materials along with the official transcript, you may place the sealed transcript and supporting documentation together in a single, larger envelope.
Official transcripts and their supporting documents may be mailed to the following address:
Office of Educator Services
South Carolina Department of Education
849 Learning Lane
West Columbia, SC 29172
Documentation of Coursework and Degrees Earned Outside the United States
The SCDE does not evaluate degrees or coursework from colleges and universities outside the United States. Applicants must not submit these transcripts, diplomas, or other credentials for evaluation to the Office of Educator Services.
Course-by-Course Evaluation and Degree Equivalency
Individuals who have completed academic degrees or coursework at an institution of higher education outside the United States must obtain a complete, course-by-course evaluation of their credentials and other relevant documents prior to applying for a South Carolina educator certificate or certificate change. This requirement applies to degrees and coursework completed at any institution of higher education outside the fifty states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, or any territory or possession of the U.S.
Please note: an evaluation document is not required if an individual only completed coursework, but not a degree, outside the United States and the coursework has been accepted and included on a transcript issued by a regionally accredited college or university in the United States.
Acceptable Evaluation Services
Applicants must submit a copy of the evaluation of their out-of-country credentials completed by a member organization of one of the two national associations of credential evaluation services with published standards for membership and an enforced code of ethics:
If you earned a degree, the evaluation must include a statement of that degree’s equivalency to a degree conferred by a regionally accredited college or university in the United States. The evaluation must also include a listing of all courses completed and the semester-hour equivalent of each course.
Applicant Responsibilities
All costs associated with the evaluation are the responsibility of the applicant, and the applicant must retain the original evaluation document for personal records. Instead of the original evaluation document, the applicant must submit a legible copy to the SCDE electronically by email or in hard copy by mail. Under no circumstances should an individual submit an original evaluation document, out-of-country transcript, or other credential. Documents submitted to the SCDE are retained in the applicant's records electronically and cannot be returned.
Forms for Applicants and Educators
Employers, colleges, universities, and other entities should use the following forms to provide supporting documentation for your applications and requests. These forms can be submitted directly to certification@ed.sc.gov by the employer, college, university, or education licensing authority in another state. You may also upload completed forms to your user account in SC Educator unless the form must be submitted directly by the verifying entity.
