If you are moving into teaching without a background in education, you may qualify for provisional, permit, or paraprofessional certification at the request of a Georgia employer prior to you completing all requirements for professional certification. Please see the following links for more information:

• Steps to Become a Georgia Teacher Overview
  
  
• Provisional Certification:
  Issued to those who wish to complete an educator preparation program that would allow for greater flexibility in the addition of teaching fields, level increases based on approved advanced degrees, and upon meeting all requirements will result in certification that can be renewed without employment.
  
  
• Permits:
  Issued to those who do not wish to complete an educator preparation program. Permits are restricted from the addition of fields, level increases through advanced degrees, and can only be extended through employment.
  
  
• Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education (CTAE) Certification
  
  
• Paraprofessional Licensure

If you are considering returning to teaching, but your professional certification has lapsed, you have many options to renew your certificate on your own. Georgia employers may also request non-renewable certification to allow you to work while completing renewal requirements. Please see the following links for more information:

• Certificate Renewal Requirements
  
  
• Required Documents Guidance
  
  

If you are retired and wish to return to teaching under HB385, please see our HB385 FAQs for more information. If you are retired and wish to qualify for a Retired Teaching certificate for the purpose of substitute teaching only, please see our Retired Educator FAQs.

If you are already professionally certified and wish to qualify for additional fields to pursue alternative positions, please see the following links:

• Adding a Field/Endorsement Overview
  
  
• Educational Leadership Certification
  
  
• Service Field Certification (School Counseling, Media Specialist, etc.)
  
  
• CAPS (Certification/Curriculum Assignment Policies System that lists fields of certification required to teach specific courses)

If you are professionally certified in another state and wish to apply for reciprocity, please see the following links:

• Out-of-State Educators Overview (How to apply and required documentation)
  
  
• Special Georgia Requirements
  
  
• Acceptable Out-of-State Certificates
  

If you completed a teacher preparation program out-of-country, please see the following links:

• Exchange Visitor Program (International Exchange certification)
  
  
• Foreign Credential Reports
  

Should you have concerns regarding your background preventing you from teaching, or questions regarding the ethical standards expected of Georgia educators, please see the following links:

• Ethics Resources (Code of Ethics Standards and guidance)
  
  
• Contact our Ethics Division
  

• Teacher Salaries (GaDOE listing of current and previous state teacher salaries, yet local systems may offer salaries above these levels and should be consulted directly)