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College of Education
Office of Educator Preparation

Accelerated Certification

Welcome to the Accelerated Alternative Certification Resources Page

Welcome to the Texas State University Office of Educator Preparation’s Accelerated Alternative Certification Resources page! Here, you will find all the essential links, forms, and documents to help guide you through your certification journey. Whether you are just starting or preparing for clinical teaching or internships, this page is designed to streamline your access to key resources.

Expand FAQ List

  • Certification Plans

    • Your personalized certification plan is an outline of the coursework and assessments required to complete your certification. This plan will list all requirements needed for completion of the alternative certification program.

    • If you have not made the necessary payment for teacher certification plan fees as noted on the provisionally accepted letter; please complete the payment with the following link:

      Certification Plan

  • Letter of Intent to Certify

    • The Letter of Intent to Certify can be used in two ways:

      • To help search for a Teacher of Record position for your internship.
      • If you are already hired, your district may need this for their records.

      Submit the form to request a Letter of Intent to Certify

  • Exam Requirements

  • Retake Instructions

    • In compliance with Texas Education Agency (TEA) rules, candidates are allowed five (5) attempts to pass a certification exam. If you fail an exam, you must seek approval from your Educator Preparation Program to take the exam again. Although you must wait 30 days to sit for the exam, you can submit the Retake Request Form immediately upon receiving failing scores.

      1. Review the Five (5) Attempt Limit Policy.
      2. Download your Exam Score Report(s) for the failed exam from the Texas Education Certification Examination Program (Pearson). You will need to upload score reports from previous attempted exam(s).
      3. Complete a written Study Plan and score 80% or higher on a practice exam from the Study for Exams resources page. You will need to attach these to the Retake Request Form.
      4. Upload score reports from previous attempted exam.
      5. Submit the TExES Retake Request Form.
      6. Check the email you provided on the Retake Request Form.
      7. Allow 3 business days for processing

    • In compliance with Texas Education Agency (TEA) rules, candidates are allowed five (5) attempts to pass a certification exam. If you exceed those five attempts, you may appeal to the State Board of Educator Certification.

      The Texas Education Agency (TEA) limits candidates to FIVE (5) attempts to take a certification test. The five attempts include the first attempt to pass the examination and four retakes. The five attempts include any of the test approval methods (i.e., PACT, EPP, Out of State, Charter, and CBE). The TEA implemented this change to Texas Education Code §21.048 in response to House Bill 2205, 84th Texas Legislature, 2015.

      • Pedagogy and Professional Responsibility (PPR) Exams: If you do not pass the PPR within the allowed number of attempts, you will not be eligible for teacher certification in any subject or grade level in the state of Texas.
      • Content Exams: If you do not pass your content exam(s) within the allowed number of attempts, you will not be eligible for certification in that particular subject.
      • Core Subjects Exam: Every attempt of the full test or a subtest counts toward the five-attempt limit.
        • Only take a single subtest if it’s the last section you need to pass.
        • If you fail two or more sections, register for the full test and skip through the passed sections.
        • Contact Pearson to reschedule if you mistakenly register for individual subtests.
        • Submit evidence as noted above. 

    • Waiver: If you do not pass an exam within FIVE (5) attempts, you may appeal for a waiver. This is processed through the State Board of Educator Certification (SBEC) for approval. Instructions are on the Texas Education Agency (TEA) website.

    • Test approvals are valid for two years after completing the Educator Preparation Program.

    • After two years, submit this form to appeal for test approval. Study activities or repeating coursework may be required.

  • Field Based Experience

    • Field Observations: This is an alternative to Blocks only if you are enrolled in one of the following programs:

      • Certification with M.Ed. (CMED), 
      • Stand-Alone Teacher Certification
      • Accelerated Alternative Certification

      You complete the coursework online, and you complete a minimum of 30 or 50 clock hours (depending on admittance date to EPP) of observation during days & times agreed upon between you and a school campus.

    • Explore different paths to secure your field-based experience, a key component of your certification process:

      • Guidance Document-  guidance document to understand field experience expectations and requirements.
      • Letter from OEP- letter from the Office of Educator Preparation regarding field-based experiences.
      • Field Log -Track your field-based experiences using the field log process outlined here.
      • Securing a Field Placement 
        • Students should first attempt to secure their observation site. 
        • If students are unable to secure a location, they should reach out to their professor. If you all have personal contacts in the school, this would be the ideal way to assist them. 
        • If the second option is not possible, then the professor can reach out to OEP and cc’ the specific student that needs help. 

  • Applying for Clinical Experience

    • Start your clinical experience application process with the links and timelines below:

    • Apply during the designated windows:

      • For Spring 2025: Oct 1st-8th
      • Fall Clinical Experience: February 1st-15th
      • Spring Clinical Experience: September 1st-15th
      • For Candidates starting their program in the summer, 
        Fall Clinical Experience: May 27-June 6

    • Learn about the internship process and how to apply for a probationary certificate if you're pursuing an internship-based path.

      Guidance Document

      • You must apply for Clinical experience
      • Eligibility verified 
      • Registration information is shared during the open window for registration 
        • Please note if all eligibility requirements are not met before the start of the semester; you can be dropped from clinical experience.

  • Apply for Standard Certification

QUICK LINKS:

Initial Test Approval Application:

Retake Exam Request Application: