To assist educators who may be required to change residence and employment on short notice due to military service, the Office of Educator Services provides expedited processing of certification applications for spouses of active duty military service members assigned to South Carolina.

Educators holding valid, standard out-of-state certification issued by a state licensing agency and educators who have completed approved preparation programs are eligible for expedited processing of their application if their spouse is an active military service member being assigned to South Carolina.

Apply for South Carolina Certification

Before requesting expedited processing, eligible educators should first apply for South Carolina Educator Certification.  All applicants must submit the following materials as part of their application process:

• Create a user account and submit an application through My SC Educator Portal prior to all other steps.
• Pay the non-refundable application fee through My SC Educator Portal.
• Complete the Fingerprinting and Criminal History Review Process.
  Specific instructions for completing the fingerprinting process are available to an applicant through the Educator Portal only after the application for certification is submitted.
• Submit official transcripts from all regionally accredited colleges and universities where a degree, undergraduate or graduate coursework, or an educator preparation program was completed.
• Submit supporting documentation for any teaching experience completed after conferral of a bachelor's degree.
  Acceptable experience verification can be submitted via:
  • Experience Verification Form; or
  • Official experience documentation from the employer.  The documentation must include: employee’s full name, employing entity information including address and type of employer (e.g., school district, parochial school, etc.), employment dates and hours worked, position held, and contact information for the employer.
• Educators holding a valid, standard out-of-state certificate should submit a front and back photocopy of the existing, valid out-of-state teaching certificate.
• Educators that do not hold a valid, standard out-of-state certificate issued by a state licensing agency must verify completion of an approved program and educator certification exams.  The following documentation must be submitted:
  • Submit a College Recommendation Form for Classroom Teaching Fields or Service & Leadership Fields signed by your designated college official.
  • Submit passing scores on an approved content knowledge exam.
  • Submit passing score on an approved pedagogy knowledge exam.

Requesting Expedited Processing

Once all application materials are submitted and documents are shown to have been received through My SC Educator Portal feature of our website, please submit the following materials by email to Sherry Schneider:

• Copy of Permanent Change of Station (PCS) Orders
• Copy of DD form 1172

Submitting Documents

For instructions on submitting supporting documents to the Office of Educator Services, please visit the Submitting Certification Requests and Materials webpage.