**PLEASE NOTE: As Per NJDOE, applications must not be submitted until after the program completion, or degree conferral dates have been posted to official transcripts. Please do not submit your applications to the TCNJ Certification Application Portal, or send your VOPC documents until you meet this requirement.
The Certification application process begins based upon the posted conferral date on official transcript. It is not processed on the date your certification application was uploaded and received.
To check the status of your application, or print your certificate: https://certification.tcnj.edu/printing-certificate/
Grade Point Average (GPA)
GPA – All candidates for certification must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 to be recommended for a teaching license by the TCNJ Certification Office.
Basic Skills Requirements
All candidates seeking initial certification must demonstrate basic skills competency
Beginning in Fall 2015, the New Jersey Department of Education has mandated that all students seeking initial teaching certification must satisfy a basic skills requirement. The basic skills requirement has three key portions (reading, writing, and mathematics) and must be satisfied through a combination of the following methods:
To demonstrate satisfaction of the mathematics portion of the requirement, students must meet one of the following scores:
- SAT:
- March 2016 and forward: Math Section score 570 or higher
- Pre-March 2016: Math Section score 540 or higher
- ACT: Math score 23 or higher
- GRE:
- If taken on or after 8/1/2011: Verbal 155
- If taken before 8/1/2011: Verbal 530
- Praxis Core: Math score 150 or higher
To demonstrate satisfaction of the reading/writing portion of the requirement, students must meet one of the following scores:
- SAT
- March 2016 and forward: EBR Section score 610 or higher OR Reading Test score 30 or higher
- Pre-March 2016: Reading Section score 560 or higher
- ACT: English score 23 or higher
- GRE:
- If taken on or after 8/1/2011: Quantitative 156
- If taken before 8/1/2011: Quantitative 720
- Praxis Core: Reading score 156 or higher AND Writing score 162 or higher
Timeline
For students in undergraduate programs leading to initial teaching certification (four-year and five-year programs), the basic skills requirement must be satisfied by the start of Clinical Practice I. The exact timing of Clinical Practice I varies by program; please contact your education advisor for your timeline. Documentation demonstrating qualifying scores which displays your full name should be submitted through the following form for review: https://tcnj.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0MWxdFGd32Grb37
For students in graduate programs leading to initial certifications (certificate and degree programs), the basic skills requirement must be satisfied upon admission to the College. Documentation demonstrating qualifying scores which displays your full name should be submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies.
Praxis Content Exam for Teaching Scores
All candidates must attempt the Praxis Content Knowledge exam BY THE TIME YOU SUBMIT STUDENT TEACHING APPLICATIONS. All teacher candidates must successfully pass the Praxis exam relevant to their course of study and desired certification area. To register for the Praxis exam, visit https://www.ets.org/praxis/register
To learn about the tests you need specific to your certification area, CLICK HERE
edTPA Scores
All teacher candidates must successfully submit and complete the edTPA as evidenced by a PASSING numerical score on an official score report.
Beginning September 2019, students will need to achieve the state approved cut score to be eligible for certification.
HIB/Bullying Training
All teacher candidates must successfully complete the online training or course-embedded training as evidenced by a certificate of completion. Please be advised that the NJPSA Legal One HIB training website has been updated and is now online. CLICK TO REGISTER for Understanding Bullying in Our Schools AND Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights. They are in the section “Online Courses Self-Paced“
- Create an account and Register using a provided code – CLICK HERE FOR CODE
- Receive a password, complete the courses, and take the assessments.
“Understanding Bullying in Our Schools” and
“New Jersey Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights v2” - Save as a PDF the LEGAL ONE Certificate of Completion for each course
NJ Health and Physiology Requirement
All teacher candidates must successfully complete course in Biological Sciences, such as BIO104, or register for the Health/Physiology test. Register Now.
Health & Phys Test Review Guide