Out-of-State Educators

Each individual employed in an instructional, classroom teaching position or who serves in a position designed for the support of the instructional program in a public school of this state must hold an appropriate South Carolina educator certificate. Through participation in the Interstate Agreement of the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification (NASDTEC), South Carolina recognizes a valid, standard educator credential issued by another jurisdiction if the certificate or license meets certain requirements. The issuance of a South Carolina educator certificate based on a comparable credential issued by another jurisdiction is often referred to as reciprocity.

• Application Checklist for Out-of-State Educators

Out-of-State Credentials and Eligibility

For educator certification purposes, South Carolina accepts valid, standard certificates or licenses issued by the credentialing authority of another US state, the District of Columbia, and the Department of Defense Education Authority (DoDEA).

The out-of-state credential presented must meet the following requirements.

• A certificate or license presented must be a standard educator credential documenting that the individual has completed all requirements of an approved educator preparation program recognized by the issuing state and that certification examination requirements have been met.
• The out-of-state credential must be current and valid, allowing the educator to serve in a public school setting located in the issuing jurisdiction. The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) will not accept an expired credential for reciprocity purposes.
• The credential must be in good standing without current or pending disciplinary action. An out-of-state credential that has been subject to prior disciplinary action will require additional review to determine if the applicant is eligible for issuance of a South Carolina certificate.
• The SCDE does not accept temporary, emergency, provisional, or conditional educator credentials issued by another jurisdiction for reciprocity purposes. An out-of-state educator holding one of these credential types may have other options for pursuing certification in South Carolina. These options may include traditional or alternative route programs approved for the preparation of South Carolina educators.
• An educator who has participated in an alternative route preparation program in another state must have advanced to a standard educator certificate in that jurisdiction to be eligible for reciprocity. Credentials earned through an alternative route may be subject to additional review.
• Career and technology education (CTE) work-based credentials are not eligible for reciprocity; however, the educator may be eligible for participation in the work-based certification process in South Carolina. Additional information is provided on the Applying for CTE Work-Based Certification webpage.
• South Carolina requires an educator certificate in School Psychology for individuals working in that professional role in public school settings in the state. For certification purposes, the SCDE may accept the following: a current, valid out-of-state educator credential; a current, valid Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) credential issued by the National Association of School Psychologists; or a current, valid license in School Psychology issued by a state board of psychology or licensing authority that allows an individual to serve as a school psychologist in public school settings in that state.
• The SCDE does require educator certification for Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs) working in public school settings, whether employed through a district or through a third-party provider; however, the individual must first obtain an SLP license through the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation (LLR).
• The SCDE does not issue educator certificates for related service providers including audiologists, school nurses, and school social workers. Please consult LLR for additional information.

Out-of-State Educators Who Have Been Certified in South Carolina

An out-of-state educator who has been certified in South Carolina is not eligible to apply by reciprocity if

• the individual holds a current, valid South Carolina certificate or
• the individual held a South Carolina Professional certificate that expired within the past ten school years. In this instance, the educator must meet certificate renewal requirements and may be eligible for a one-year extension in order to do so.

Comparable Certification Fields and Grade Spans

For eligible out-of-state credentials, the SCDE will issue a South Carolina educator certificate in comparable certification fields and grade spans. Because each state establishes its own laws and policies regarding credential types and certification fields, the SCDE Office of Educator Services carefully reviews out-of-state credentials to determine comparable areas. The Certification Fields and Endorsements webpage provides a comprehensive list of all certification fields and endorsements issued in South Carolina. Educator certificates are issued three categories: classroom teaching fields, service fields, and leadership fields.
 
If South Carolina does not offer a comparable certification field, the educator’s application will be evaluated in the field that is most closely related. In some instances, additional requirements may apply.  
 
To qualify for certification in a service field (i.e., School Counselor, School Librarian, School Psychologist, and Speech-Language Pathologist), an educator must hold the equivalent of a master’s degree and have completed a preparation program approved for that field. The SCDE Office of Educator Services recognizes the national certificate in school psychologist (NCSP) issued through the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) for certification purposes in South Carolina.
 
To qualify for certification in a leadership field, an educator must hold the equivalent of a master’s degree, have completed an approved preparation program for the field, and meet experience guidelines for issuance of a Professional certificate in South Carolina.

Application Procedures for Out-of-State Educators

• Application Checklist for Out-of-State Educators

Please review all application procedures carefully and gather all necessary documentation. Submitting all application materials at one time expedites the processing of reciprocity requests.
 
To apply for a South Carolina certificate by reciprocity, please complete the following steps.

• Create a user account in My SC Educator Portal and then complete a Standard Application prior to all other procedures.
• Submit the non-refundable application processing fee of $105 online through My SC Educator Portal.
• Complete the fingerprinting process and criminal records review. Specific instructions for completing the fingerprinting process through the state-approved vendor will be available in My SC Educator Portal only after you submit the online application. Fingerprinting completed for another state, agency, or purpose cannot be used to determine eligibility for issuance of an educator certificate in South Carolina.
• Submit an official transcript from each regionally accredited college/university attended. Please review information on submitting forms and documents prior to submitting any official transcript or other materials.
• Provide a copy of the course-by-course evaluation of out-of-country credentials by an AICE or a NACES member organization, if applicable.
• Submit a copy of all pages, front and back, of the existing, valid out-of-state credential.
  • If a state no longer issues physical certificates and instead utilizes digital certificates or records, please submit the certificate as a PDF. A computer screenshot of the credential is acceptable if converted to a PDF. Cell phone images, even if converted to a PDF, will not be accepted.
• Submit copies of score reports for any certification exams you have completed.
  • The exams can be associated with any state where you have been issued an educator credential.
  • The score reports can be official or unofficial.
  • If score reports are unavailable, you may submit alternative documentation that verifies the completion of certification exams:
    • a state agency website where scores can be verified publicly;
    • a letter or Credential Verification Form completed by the educator licensing authority in the other state; or
    • a letter from a college or university.
  • If you have not completed subject area and pedagogy assessments as part of the licensing or certification process in another state, you may be required to complete South Carolina testing requirements. The SCDE Office of Educator Services will notify you in this event.
• Submit an Experience Verification Form completed by each employer where educator experience has been earned.
  • Please note that educator experience requirements vary from state to state. Experience credit accepted in another state may not meet South Carolina State Board of Education regulations and guidelines for the issuance of educator experience. Experience must be verified by the payroll or human resources department of the employer.

Certificate Types Issued in South Carolina

An out-of-state educator eligible for a South Carolina certificate based on reciprocity will be issued an educator certificate either at the Initial or Professional level.

Initial Certificate

• The SCDE will issue an Initial certificate to an educator who presents less than twenty-seven months of qualifying educator experience in the last seven years on the out-of-state credential. An Initial certificate is typically issued to an early career educator or to an educator without recent work experience in a regionally accredited PK-12 education setting.
• The South Carolina Initial certificate is valid for up to three school years and is not renewable. It may be extended at the request of an employing school district if needed. To advance from the Initial to a Professional certificate, an educator must complete South Carolina’s summative evaluation process as part of the state’s system for Assisting, Developing, and Evaluating Professional Teaching (ADEPT).
• During the validity period of the Initial certificate, the educator must also document successful completion of a pedagogy assessment.
• Leadership and administrative fields cannot be added to an educator certificate at the Initial level.

Professional Certificate

• The SCDE will issue a Professional certificate to an educator who presents at least twenty-seven months of qualifying educator experience in the last seven years on the out-of-state credential.
• While employed in a public school setting, an educator who is issued a Professional certificate by reciprocity must complete South Carolina’s summative evaluation process as part of the state’s ADEPT system in order to advance to a continuing contract.
• Leadership and administrative fields can be added to a Professional educator certificate.

Educator Experience

To qualify for issuance of a Professional certificate through reciprocity, educators must present a total of at least twenty-seven months (three years) of experience credit that meets all the following criteria:

• The experience has been earned within the last seven school years;
• The experience has been earned in the same state of the certificate that is being transferred (DoDEA educators may qualify by combining a valid DoDEA certificate and DoDEA experience); and
• The experience has been earned in a teaching, service, leadership, or administrative position in a public school setting, regionally accredited school, or state-education agency that required maintenance of a valid credential.

Experience earned as a substitute teacher, paraprofessional, teaching assistant, or college or university instructor or administrator does not apply toward the twenty-seven months of educator experience that will qualify an applicant for a Professional certificate. However, the experience may be acceptable for compensation purposes and should be submitted for that reason.