Teaching Certificate Placeholder Guidelines

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To ensure that the documents attached to your application are the best quality possible, we advise all applicants to print and read the guidelines below.

1. Do not send out-of-state teaching certificates, emergency certificates, or printouts from the PA Department of Education website. They will not be added to your credentials file.



2. You may use a placeholder until you receive your certificate if:
   
   
   1. you are completing or have just completed your final semester of coursework at a Pennsylvania college or university and are eligible to receive your PA professional public school certificate,
   2. you are graduating from a college or university outside Pennsylvania and are completing your final semester of coursework, or
   3. you are a veteran teacher or administrator who does not possess a Pennsylvania professional public school certificate and are applying for PA certification.
      
      
   The placeholder letter must be typewritten and contain the following information:
   
   
   • The date,
   • Your name,
   • Your Social Security Number,
   • The college/university in which you are enrolled and your expected graduation date
               OR
     The number of years you have been teaching and the name(s) and location(s) of the districts and/or regional education service agencies (RESAs) where you have been employed,
   • That you will be applying to the Pennsylvania Department of Education for Pennsylvania professional public school certification in [specify your certification area(s)], and
   • Your signature.


3. Out-of-state applicants can get more information about obtaining a Pennsylvania professional public school certification by following the links on the PA Certification and Testing area of this site.