Professional Teaching Certificate (Out-of-State)

General Requirements

To apply, you must:

• Be a U.S. citizen or hold eligible documentation (see Policy 5202, Minimum Requirements for the Licensure of Professional/Paraprofessional Personnel and Advanced Salary Classifications)
• Be at least 18 years old
• Be physically, mentally, and emotionally qualified
• Have official recommendation from a designated official from your college or university
  • If you are employed in any capacity in a county school system, multi-county career technical education center, the West Virginia Schools of Diversion and Transition, or the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and the Blind, you will also need a recommendation from your employer.
  • If you are not employed in any capacity with these entities, select "no county" under "employing county" and submit Form 4B Character Reference with your application.

 This certificate is valid for three (3) years.

Education Level

You must:

• Have a minimum overall cumulative GPA of 2.5 for a bachelor's degree, or minimum overall cumulative GPA of 3.0 for a master's degree
• Have completed a state-approved teacher preparation program
• Have documentation verifying successful completion of a student teaching experience
• Pass all West Virginia Board of Education required exams for the requested certificate and endorsement area

To send official transcripts to our office, please have your college or university email them to cert.transcripts.wvde@k12.wv.us. Transcripts must be received from the college or university, not the applicant.

Application Submission

For instructions on how to apply for a license to work in West Virginia public schools, follow the steps detailed in the certification application process.

If this is your first time using our Certification Portal, you will need to register. Follow the instructions for first-time applicants. 

For more detailed instructions, watch our Form 20A how-to video.

User Guide

• Applicant User Guide - Form 20A

$100