Boston University Approved Programs
BU offers Massachusetts approved programs for licensure at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. BU programs satisfy the course and practicum requirements for either the initial or professional license.
Boston University Students: Four Steps to Licensure
| Step 1: Apply for Licensure |
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The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (ESE) has implemented an online system for licensure application.
Click on "apply online" in the ELAR Functions sidebar.
There are advantages to applying online, and we strongly recommend that you use this service. By applying online, you are entering your information directly into the ESE database. If a school district is considering your candidacy and calls the ESE to verify your license status, you will appear in the ESE system as an applicant.
At this web site you can:
- Confirm your profile information
- Select the license/s you wish to apply for and indicate how you are meeting or plan to meet the requirements for each license. (Please read the information in the License Types section below before beginning your on-line application.)
- Complete and confirm your affidavit
- Confirm and submit your application
- Enter payment
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| Step 2: MTELs |
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Register for and take the Communication and Literacy Skills MTEL and other required MTELs. Scores will be sent directly to you and to the ESE. Information about the MTEL's may be found at http://www.bu.edu/licensure.htm#licensure |
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| Step 3: Submit Official Transcript(s) |
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You cannot submit a transcript online. All transcripts must show the date of graduation and your degree. By signing the attached notice of intention form you are giving the University permission to submit official BU transcripts to ESE. It is the responsibility of the student to submit official non-BU transcripts to ESE. Send all official non-BU transcripts, undergraduate and graduate, to:
Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148-9140
The SED Graduation and Licensure Office must review the record of your work and practicum report(s) to designate you as a program completer. SED must institutionally recommend you to the Commonwealth for licensure before your license may be issued. Given the number of requests received, the necessity to review faculty recommendations, and program and practicum requirements, the University verification of completion of the approved program may take up to eight weeks after the date of graduation. After a successful review, you will be electronically endorsed on the ESE website, and an endorsement will be added to your transcript. |
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| Step 4: Notify SED of intent to obtain licensure |
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To notify the SED Graduation and Licensure Office of your intention to be licensed in the Commonwealth, you must print and complete the attached form and return it to SED Room 113 with a screen print from the ESE indicating that you have applied online. Please slide this form under the door if the office is closed. Do not leave forms including your Social Security number in unsecured drop boxes. Your application, with supporting documentation, will then be processed as part of the batch during the eight weeks following your graduation date and delivered to the ESE. You will only be contacted if there are any problems with your request. |
Important Phone Numbers and Additional Information
The ESE automated line for applicants (requires inputting social security number) is 781-338-3000.
The ESE Call Center number is 781-338-6600. You may speak with an ESE staff person between the hours of 11 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. You may be on hold for a time so please be prepared for this possibility.
SED Office for Graduation and Licensure
Room 113
617-353-3239
License Types and Requirements for Each
For a complete list of requirements for each of the four types of licenses, please refer to http://www.doe.mass.edu/lawsregs/603cmr7.html.
Initial License (the FIRST license granted)
1. Possession of a bachelor's degree
2. Passing score on the Communication and Literacy Skills test
3. Passing score on the subject matter knowledge test(s) appropriate to the license sought, based on the subject matter knowledge requirements set forth in 603 CMR 7.06 and 7.07. Where no test has been established, completion of an approved program will satisfy this requirement.
4. Completion of an approved program for the Initial license sought as set forth in 603 CMR 7.03 (2) (a)
5. Evidence of sound moral character
Professional License (requires an initial license and 4 years of experience)
1. Possession of an Initial license in the same field as the Professional license sought
2. Completion of a one-year induction program with a mentor
3. At least three full years of employment under the Initial license
4. At least 50 hours of a mentored experience beyond the induction year, which may be fulfilled as part of a program option in 603 CMR 7.04 (2) (c) 5
5. Completion of one of the following:
a. Approved district-based program for the Professional license sought as set forth in 603 CMR 7.03 (2) (b) 1. a
b. A master's or higher graduate level program in an accredited college or university that is or includes one of the following:
i. Approved program for the Professional license sought as set forth in 603 CMR 7.03 (2) (b) 1. b
ii. A master's degree program or other advanced graduate program in the academic discipline appropriate to the license sought in a graduate or professional school other than education
c. For those who have completed any master's or higher degree or other advanced graduate program not described in 603 CMR 7.04 (2) (c) 5. b., in an accredited college or university, one of the following:
i. Approved, non-degree, 12-credit program of which no fewer than 9 credits are in the academic discipline appropriate to the instructional field of the Professional license sought as set forth in 603 CMR 7.03 (2) (b) 1
ii. 12 credits of graduate level courses in the academic discipline appropriate to the instructional field of the Professional license sought; these may include credits earned prior to application for the license
d. Programs leading to eligibility for master teacher status, such as those sponsored by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and others accepted by the Commissioner
e. A Department-sponsored Performance Assessment Program, when available
Alumni of Boston University
Alumni should send state verification of program forms to the Graduation and Licensure Office for completion when applying for licensure in another state. Please include a note with your contact information and directions on where the completed form should be sent. Official transcripts must be ordered directly from the Office of the University Registrar.
Massachusetts Licensure Information
Massachusetts Licensure Types
Massachusetts issues four types of licenses: Preliminary, Initial, Professional, and Temporary. The Boston University approved licensure programs lead to licensure with either Initial or Professional status.
Learn more about these types of licenses
Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure
Massachusetts requires applicants for educator licensure to pass the appropriate Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL). All applicants must take the MTEL Communication and Literacy Skills Test AND relevant subject matter test(s) as part of the licensing requirements. We strongly recommend you take only one MTEL on any given test day.
Licenses, grade levels, and MTELs required
Reading the Test Information Booklets will help you by familiarizing you with the format and content of the tests. Practice tests are available for the Communication and Literacy Skills test (Reading and Writing subtests) (01) and for the Foundations of Reading test (90), Early Childhood (02), General Curriculum (03), and Mathematics (09), which meets the testing requirement for Mathematics in grades 1-12. There are other Mathematics test options for elementary or middle school Mathematics, which meet the requirements in those fields (MTEL (53) and (47), respectively).
Boston University does not offer Test Prep Workshops. MTEL Test Information Booklets are available to the Boston University community in the SED Pickering Educational Resources Library.
Download Test Information Booklets
Order hard copies. (The booklets cost $8 each and may take up to four weeks for delivery.)
You may pick up an MTEL Registration Bulletin in the hall near SED Room 113, the Office of Graduation and Licensure,
or download it. The MTEL website also gives you access to the Test Information Booklets and Test Objectives.
MTEL registration and test date information
License Reciprocity (NASDTEC Interstate Agreement)
We recommend that our students become licensed in Massachusetts when they complete an approved program at the School of Education. By becoming licensed in Massachusetts, the student will find it easier to gain licensure in his or her home state or his or her destination state since Massachusetts participates in the NASDTEC Interstate Contract.
While reciprocity will make it easier to become licensed in another state, it does not mean that there is an automatic transfer of licenses among participating states. Often one will have to take state specific tests or fulfill other requirements to achieve licensure in another state.
View this chart to find out which states are party to the NASDTEC 2005-2010 Agreement with Massachusetts
Investigate the requirements in the NASDTEC participating states
No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
Highly Qualified Teacher Requirements in Massachusetts
The NCLB definition of Highly Qualified Teachers is: To be deemed highly qualified, teachers must have: 1) a bachelor's degree, 2) full state certification or licensure, and 3) prove that they know each subject they teach. By reading the Massachusetts ESE website, you can learn how your Massachusetts license qualifies you for the Highly Qualified Teacher designation or what additional steps may be required for you to achieve the designation.
More information
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