First Steps to Certification

Welcome!  If you are interested in becoming a teacher, review the information outlined below.   

Do you have a bachelor's degree or higher? 

If you do, please proceed! 

If not, you will need to complete this in order to move forward.  

Do you have a degree in Education? 

If you do, you can apply for a Professional Certificate at the FL DOE.  As long as your degree is in the area you want to teach, you will have the credentials needed.  

If not, that's okay!  Here is the order of operations: 

• Determine which subject your degree matches most closely.  For example, biochemistry relates to teaching high school chemistry or theater relates to teaching drama.  If you aren’t sure, you can contact our office or the FL DOE to ask for advice.   

• Then follow the next steps below. Note: If you do not want to teach the subject that most closely matches your degree, that’s okay!  You will still want to apply for the subject closest to your degree and read the bold portion in the last paragraph. 

Steps to Obtain an SOE / Temporary Certificate:  

1. Login/create an account at the FL DOE Online Licensing Services site and complete the "Educator Certification Application."  The FL DOE has created helpful "How-To" videos you can find here.  

2. Pay the $75 application fee. 

3. Request official transcripts be sent to the FL DOE, or have the college/university send them electronically if they use SPEEDE or FASTER systems.   

Florida Department of Education 

Bureau of Educator Certification 

325 West Gaines Street, Room 201 

Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400 
 

4. The Department of Education will review your transcripts and return a Statement of Eligibility (SOE) or Ineligibility, depending on how well your degree and application subject match, and either way, they will notify you which additional steps you'll need to take to either get a Temporary or obtain a Professional Certificate.   

5. To be issued a Temporary Certificate after receiving a Statement of Eligibility, you will need to be hired into a teaching position.  Then, you will have 5 years to complete the steps to earn a Professional Certificate.  We can guide you through this process.  

Your SOE might require you take a FCTE test in the subject you applied.  If you are interested in teaching a subject not related to your degree and your SOE, you will need to take and pass a test in that subject, and it will be added to your Temporary Certificate, allowing you to teach that subject.   Official score results will automatically be reported to the FL DOE.  Here are some Test Preparation Resources.