Certification and Endorsement Testing Requirements

Initial Teacher Certification

It is important to apply for teacher certification as soon as requirements are met. A person has up to five years from completion of the program requirements to receive the teaching certificate and endorsements.. After 5 years, a person who wishes to earn the teaching certificate will need to return to meet the requirements that are current at the time.

Requirements for a teaching certificate in Michigan are as follows:

Bachelor degree.
Appropriate classes and field experiences from an approved Educator Preparation Institution.
Michigan Test for Teacher Certification (MTTC). See your major in your EMU catalog for the correct test for your major/minor. To register for the test, go to the MTTC website.
Recent Statement of Civil/Criminal Conviction [PDF].
Application through the Michigan Online Education Certification System.
Certification fee paid to the Michigan Department of Education.

Michigan Test for Teacher Certification (MTTC) Preparation

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MTTC Test Objectives - Select your test on this site to review testing objectives and test subareas.
MTTC Study Guides - Select your test to get a list of study guides and preparation materials.
MTTC Practice Tests - This page provides information on Full-Length Practice test options.
How to Prepare for the Your Teacher Certification Test - This page has a link to three videos on preparing for your test.
Candidate Test Preparation Webinar [Vimeo] - A video of a webinar provided by Pearson on MTTC preparation.
Candidate Test Preparation Webinar Slides [PDF] - A copy of the Webinar slides used in the Preparation Webinar.
MTTC Computer-Based Testing Tutorials - Tutorials to give you a sense of what you will see when you begin your test.

Additional Endorsements

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Michigan teachers are required to periodically update their teaching certificates, and the State rules to do so are complicated. Staff in the College of Education's Office of Academic Services can advise teachers on the requirements for updating certificates and on how to add new endorsements to certificates.

For Michigan Department of Education information on updating teaching certificates, visit MDE's MOECS website and select "Certification Guidance Documents."

When applying for admission for continuing certification, you will use a graduate application form. You need to choose the appropriate admission category from the following:

Degree (master's, specialist, etc.)

Professional teacher certification (taking classes to earn your professional certificate) Teacher endorsement (only adding an endorsement)

Certificate renewal

If you are unsure of your interests, simply apply as a graduate "non-degree" student. Do not use the undergraduate application to take classes for continuing certification.

Leadership

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Graduates of the K-12 Administration Program are prepared for careers as K-12 building and/or district level leadership roles. Students completing the K-12 Master’s or K-12 Certificate (previous Master’s required) will be qualified for a Michigan Department of Education (MDE) Building Level Certification. Those completing a Specialist or Doctoral degree will be qualified for an MDE district level administrator endorsement.

Catalog Information:

Applying for the Michigan Administrator Certificate [PDF]

Counseling

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The Counseling Program at Eastern Michigan University consists of three, professional counseling graduate programs. All three programs are accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).

In addition, we offer four Advanced Graduate Certificate programs.

Post-Master's Certificate in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
Post-Master's Certificate Program for School Counselor Licensure (SCL)
Graduate Certificate in Helping Interventions in a Multicultural Society (HIMS)
Postsecondary Planning Specialist Certificate Program for School Counselors (PPS)

Application for Licensure as a Counselor (LLPC) [PDF]

Communication Sciences and Disorders

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The Communication Sciences and Disorders Program at Eastern Michigan University offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees in Communication Sciences and Disorders. The bachelor of science degree is available with optional elementary or secondary teacher certification. The master of arts degree, required for professional practice in the field, prepares all students to work clinically in a wide variety of settings.