UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN River Falls

Wyman Education Building 

Educator Preparation Program

Program Completion & Licensing

Professional Licensure


UW-River Falls offers several programs leading to professional licensure within the State of Wisconsin. States vary regarding the professions they require to be licensed and how licensure functions. Some states require an individual to graduate from an approved program. Others require an individual to meet certification requirements of a national organization. A specific amount of training can also be required as well as passage of an examination based on a state requisite exam score. Often, licensed professionals must complete continuing education on an annual basis.

If a student is planning to apply for licensure in a state other than Wisconsin after completion of their program, the student should refer to the information below or contact the other state's appropriate licensing board to determine whether UW-River Falls program meets licensure requirements in that state.

Please note that licensure requirements are always subject to change. Although UW-River Falls will confirm the licensure requirements on a routine basis, we strongly recommend that you inquire with the state board to confirm that you understand and will meet the requirements for licensure before enrolling in your program of choice.

Select programs at UW-River Falls are designed to provide the educational requirements for initial professional licenses in the State of Wisconsin.  For additional information, refer to the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification webpage: Information for Out-of-State Applicants - National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification (nasdtec.net)

 

Program Completion

Please refer to the chart below to review the requirements of your program to be considered a "program completer" and eligible for an "institutional endorsement" for licensing.

Program Requirements for program completion and to be eligible for a "University Endorsement" for Licensing  

Undergraduate Teacher Certification

  • Art
  • Agricultural Education
  • Biology
  • Broad Field Social Studies
  • Broad Field Science
  • Chemistry
  • Elementary Education (EC, ECMC, MCEA)
  • English
  • English as a Second Language
  • Health Education
  • Mathematics
  • Music Education
  • Physical Education
  • Spanish
  • Physics
  • Awarded a Bachelor Degree and posted to official transcripts
  • No grade lower than a C in a content course unless previously approved by your department
  • No grade lower than a C in a teaching foundations course or methods course
  • Have an undergraduate cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) of at least a 2.75 (including transfer courses) on a 4.0 scale
  • Successfully completed student teaching with a grade of "S"
  • Demonstrated Content Knowledge as outlined here
  • Programs in EC, ECMC, MCEA Regular Education must have successfully passed the Wisconsin Foundations of Reading Test with a qualifying score of 240
  • Completed your Teacher Certification Portfolio
  • Successfully completed the STPA with a qualifying score of 30
    OR
  • Successfully competed the edTPA with the following qualifying scores:
    • 38 for edTPA handbooks with 15 rubrics
    • 32 for edTPA handbooks with 13 rubrics
    • 45 for edTPA handbooks with 18 rubrics.
  
     

Post Bachelor Initial Teacher Certification

  • K - 9 Elementary Education
  • STEM Teach
  • Agricultural Education
  • TESOL
  • Speech and Language Pathology
  • Completed all content courses as identified by your content department with no grade lower than a C
  • EC -A, Speech and Language Pathology Teacher must have been awarded their Masters Degree and have it posted on official transcripts
  • Completed all Teaching Foundations and Methods courses with no grade lower than a C
  • A cumulative Grade Point Average of a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale
  • Successfully completed Student Teaching with a grade of "S"
  • Demonstrated Content Knowledge as outlined here
  • ECMC, regular education  must successfully complete the Wisconsin Foundation of Reading Test with a qualifying score of 240
  • Completed your Teacher Certification Portfolio
  • Successfully completed the STPA with a qualifying score of 30 or higher
    OR
  • Completed[ the edTPA:
    • 38 for edTPA handbooks with 15 rubrics
    • 32 for STPA handbooks with 13 rubrics
    • 45 for STPA handbooks with 18 rubrics.
  

Pupil Services Programs

  • School Counseling
  • School Psychology
  • Awarded advanced degree per program requirements and posted to official transcripts
  • A cumulative Grade Point Average of a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in the candidate's graduate program.
  • Demonstrated Content Knowledge as outlined here.
  • Successfully competed pupil services portfolio
  

Administration Programs

  • Principal
  • Reading Specialist
  • Director of Instruction
  • Holds or is eligible to hold a tier II, III, IV license in in K - grade 12 or has completed a program which leads to a license to teach in K - grade 12.
  • Holds or is eligible to hold a Tier II, III, or IV license as a school counselor, a school psychologist, or a school social worker or has completed an approved program which leads to one of these licenses.
  • Awarded an advanced degree per program requirements and posted to official transcripts
  • A cumulative Grade Point Average of a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in the candidate's graduate program.
  • Demonstrated Content Knowledge as outlined here.
  • Successfully competed portfolio
  • PreK - 12 Reading Specialists must complete the Wisconsin Foundations of Teacher Reading Test for an initial administrator license.
  • Completed six semesters of successful classroom experience teaching in any grade
  • The applicant has 6 semesters of successful experience as a school counselor, school psychologist, or a school social worker, and the applicant has at least 540 hours of successful classroom teaching experience.
  

Supplemental Licenses

  • Athletic Coaching
  • Adaptive Physical Education
  • Reading Teacher
  • Holds a Tier II, III, or IV teacher license
  • Completed all coursework required for the license area
  • A cumulative Grade Point Average of a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in the candidates content area.
  • Successfully completed a certification portfolio
  • EC - A, Adaptive Physical Education candidates are required to hold a Physical Education Teaching license
  • EC-A, Reading Teachers who do not hold a WI teaching life license must complete the Wisconsin Foundations of Teacher Reading Test with a qualifying score of 240
  • EC-A, Reading Teachers are required to have completed two years of regular classroom teaching experience
  

Undergraduate Post Bachelor Degree Initial Licensing Programs

  • Art
  • Agricultural Education
  • Broad Field Social Studies
  • English
  • Health
  • Mathematics
  • Physical Education
  • Spanish
  • Completed all requirements as outlined in the students Memo of Understanding.
  • No grade lower than a C in a content course unless previously approved by your department
  • No grade lower than a C in a teaching foundations course or methods course
  • Have an undergraduate cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) of at least a 2.75 (including transfer courses) on a 4.0 scale
  • Successfully completed student teaching with a grade of "S"
  • Demonstrated Content Knowledge as outlined here
  • Completed your Teacher Certification Portfolio
  • Successfully completed the STPA with a qualifying score of 30
    OR
  • Successfully competed the edTPA with the following qualifying scores:
    • 38 for edTPA handbooks with 15 rubrics
    • 32 for edTPA handbooks with 13 rubrics
    • 45 for edTPA handbooks with 18 rubrics.
  

 

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction no longer accepts paper applications for Wisconsin Educator Licenses.
 

Educators apply for Wisconsin Initial Licenses and Renewal Licenses in teaching, pupil services, administrator, and other license categories using the Educator Licensing Online (ELO) system. ELO allows educators to provide the information, supporting materials, and payment needed for DPI to process their license applications. The system streamlines the application process and allows the applicant to manage their own licensing information, including printing a copy of their license certificate and renewing their licenses when applicable.

elo-250w_0
Educator Licensing Online - (ELO) System.  https://elo.wieducatorlicensing.org/

  • If you completed your program between 9/1/2004 and  12/31/2013. Please complete the form at the bottom of the page to request your information be submitted to DPI.

General Information

Carefully read all directions for the specific state and license you are applying for before beginning the application process.  If you have questions about completing the application please contact the college's Certification Officer,  Mr. Tyler Koepke.

 

Please Review all Directions Carefully Before Beginning Your License Application.
 

Before you begin your license application, The UWRF College of Education and Professional Studies is required to submit your license information to the Wisconsin Department of Pubic Instruction (DPI).  If you are a current student this will be competed once you finish all requirements in your program.  Students who completed their program(s) before 12/31/2013, will need to complete the form at the bottom of this page to request UW River Falls review and submit your license information to the Wisconsin  Educator Licensing Online (ELO) system.  Please follow the following steps when applying for any type of license in ELO:

How to Apply
 

5-step graphic

1. Determine if you must submit fingerprints

2. Gather Documents

  • Preview the ELO Conduct & Competency Questions to see if you will need to provide documentation of any alleged misconduct.
  • Confirm with your EPP that your license endorsement has already been submitted to the DPI.  This Endorsed Candidates for Licensure (ECL) data is required to complete your online license application.  If you are unsure whether your EPP has submitted this data to the DPI, please contact the Certification Officer at your EPP.
  • If you determine that you need to provide documentation, please scan to files (.pdf, .doc/docx, .jpg/jpeg, or .txt) that are 2MB or less in size

3. Log in to Educator Licensing Online (ELO)  

  • Within ELO, make sure you have answered the three onboarding questions.
  • Find the APPLY FOR A NEW LICENSE section of the Quick Start Menu. Select the same choices in the three drop-downs in the application screenshot below:

Apply for an Educator License

 

Please note:

When you submit a complete and accurate renewal application before June 30th of the year in which your license expires, Wis. Stat. 227.51 (2) provides that your existing license does not expire until the DPI completes the processing of your renewal application.

If you are experiencing any difficulty when logging into ELO, please use the ELO Log-in Resource Guide to troubleshoot your problems.

Submit questions and comments about this information to the Licensing Online Help desk.

4. Receive Email Confirmation

 

5. Complete Application on ELO

  • Click the GO! button next to “Submit C&C and Payment to Complete Application.”
  • Review your fees.
  • Complete the Conduct and Competency Questionnaire (14 questions).
  • Pay with a credit card or pre-paid card. For fee amounts and additional payment information please see License Application Fees.

PROCESSING TIMES

Our processing times vary throughout the year. For current processing times see Check Application Status.

Additional resources

 

Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board


1021 Bandana Blvd. E., Suite 222
St. Paul, MN 55108-5111 
pelsb@state.mn.us
651-539-4200
Walk-in hours: Mon. - Fri., 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. (dropbox) 
Phone hours: Tues - Thursday., 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Minnesota Tiers without Fears licensing help!

Special Information for out of State Applicants

If you have obtained a regionally-accredited bachelor's degree from a state-approved teacher preparation program with field-specific student teaching equivalent to requirements of Minnesota programs, you may qualify for a Minnesota teacher license under the tiered licensure structure. 

You may qualify for a Tier 3 license if:

An out-of-state teacher may apply for a Tier 2 license prior to passing the MTLE content and pedagogy exams if they have met all Tier 2 licensure requirements and have been offered a position by a Minnesota public school district or charter school. 

Minnesota Teacher License Applications and Forms (link)
 

Licensure Requirements and Information

General Application Process

  1. Wait to apply until you receive verification from UWRF that your Wisconsin License endorsement has been submitted to the state of Wisconsin
  2. Complete either a Tier II or Tier III application. (not sure which to use contact MN PELSD)
  3. Submit the verification of program completion form to UWRF's Teacher Certification Officer Mr. Michael Martin.  Please allow 15 days for processing.  All forms will be returned via US Mail as MN does not accept electronic signatures.
  4. Submit your entire application to MN PELSB in a single packet.

Information for out-of-state applicants to states other than Wisconsin or Minnesota:
 

National Association of State Director of Teacher Education and Certification Webster:https://www.nasdtec.net/page/InterstateAgreements   

Reciprocity

Certification reciprocity facilitates movement, but you still must meet the receiving state’s certification requirements. See the National Association of State Directors Teacher Education and Certification for information on certification reciprocity

This page is intended to help you find information on states of your choice. We are not responsible for the content beyond this page. Please do not contact the UWRF College of Education and Professional Studies with questions about the certification requirements for a specific state. Instead, please refer to the contact information contained in the links for the individual states.

 

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

D.C.

Florida

Georgia

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

North Carolina

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

Puerto Rico

UW River Falls, Teacher Certification Officer:

Tyler Koepke
Student Services Coordinator 
University of Wisconsin River Falls, College of Education and Professional Studies
410 South 3rd Street
River Falls, WI 54022
tyler.koepke@uwrf.edu
Phone: (715) 425-3708
 

Contact Us

Education Preparation Program
203 Wyman Education Building
Phone: 715-425-3774

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