Initial License
All Delaware applicants must also apply for at least one Standard Certificate simultaneously when applying for an Initial License. An Initial License cannot be issued if the applicant does not also meet the requirements for certification.
The Department may issue an Initial License to an applicant who meets current Delaware reciprocity provisions and who also is currently licensed as an educator in another jurisdiction with less than four years of successful credentialed teaching experience.
This Initial License page includes the following sections:
Initial License Requirements
Prior to the Department issuing an Initial License, applicants must meet the following requirements:
- Provide official documentation of current degree requirements.
- Achieve a passing score on an approved content readiness exam that has been adopted by the Delaware Professional Standards Board and approved of the Delaware State Board of Education.
- Complete an approved student teaching program or an approved alternative route to student teaching program.
- Complete all other requirements of the 14 DE Admin. Code 1510 Issuance of Initial License.
An applicant who previously held a Delaware Initial License that has since expired (for more then five years) will be treated as a new applicant and must meet all current requirements in law and regulation.
In addition to an Initial License, applicants must also apply for a Standard Certificate to practice in the particular area, to teach a particular subject, or to instruct a particular category of students and must verify that they possess the prescribed knowledge, skill or education to practice in that area, subject, or category.
An Initial License cannot be issued if the applicant does not also meet requirements for certification.
Initial License Documentation Requirements
The following items must be sent:
- Official Transcript(s) – minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree.
- Student Teaching on an official transcript.
- Copy of current and valid out-of-state license, if applicable.
- Form E (Verification of Teaching Experience) – if you have over one year of out-of-state teaching experience
- Test scores should be forwarded to the Delaware Department of Education electronically upon your request.
- For certificates requiring Praxis II, Educational Testing Service (ETS) administers the Praxis tests. Please use reporting code R7065.
- For certificates requiring the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), Language Testing International administers the ACTFL tests.
All documents, with the exception of copies of out-of-state and/or national certificates (if applicable), must be official, meaning that they must be sent directly from the appropriate third party (e.g., the college/university, testing organization, former employer, independent credentialing agency) to the Department, or forwarded unopened to the Department by the candidate. Applicants submitting test scores should be sure to review the Delaware Professional Standards Board testing requirements for test-specific submission procedures.
Applicants with Foreign Credentials:
Applicants graduating from foreign institutions shall provide an official analysis of the degree equivalency in a format approved by the Department, along with all other required application materials, which shall be reviewed and approved by the Department.
Inactive Initial License
If you are not employed in a Delaware Public School District/Charter School, your Initial License will be issued without an Effective Date and Expiration Date on the certificate.
The license is a valid license. However, you will not be able to meet the requirements to move from an Initial License to a Continuing License unless you are employed in a Delaware Public School District/Charter School. See Regulation 1510 Issuance of Initial License, Section 11.0 Validity of Initial License.
11.2 An Initial License issued to an applicant who is not currently employed by a public school district or charter school shall be inactive until such time as an applicant is employed by a public school district or charter school. Once employed, the Initial License shall be in effect for four (4) years from the date of hire until the last day of the month of issuance four (4) years later, except Initial Licenses issued in Skilled and Technical Sciences career areas shall expire on the last day of the month of issuance six (6) years later.
Delaware Department of Education
Licensure and Certification
Collette Education Resource Center
35 Commerce Way, Suite 1
Dover, DE 19904
Feel free to contact us:
M-F 8:00 AM-4:30 PM
302-857-3388
Contact Us – Delaware Department of Education
