Teacher Certification

Admission Requirements

• Good Character and Fitness

  You DO NOT need to submit any in addition to the application. 

  Washington State requires candidates to meet character and fitness standards as outlined by OSPI. The Teacher Certification Program embeds the questions Form 4020b (linked form is just for reference) in the program application to screen potential issues early and connect candidates with OSPI for help. 

• Declared in Appropriate Majors

  You must be officially declared in majors that will lead to certification after you have graduated.

  If you are declared in intended majors or pre-majors those plans do not meet these requirements.

  Please contact your Education Advisor for support meeting this requirement. If you do not have an Education Advisor please email CEPSAdvising@cwu.edu to get connected today!

• Academic Course Pre-Requisites

  You must pass one course from each area. You can check your AR/CAPS Report in MyCWU to see if you have met that requirement. If you have an AA/DTA your transfer credit report will be evaluated for the specific courses. The Teacher Certification Program does not accept unofficial transcripts. It is uncommon, but your DTA may not cover the specific list of courses allowed in either of these general education requirements. Click on the link below for the current Course Catalog.

  • Academic Writing l
  • Quantitative Reasoning

  If you would like to look for courses that may transfer from other institutions, the Office of the Registrar has resources to assist you. The Teacher Certification Program will officially verify this record.

• Basic Skills Tests for Reading, Writing and Math

  Basic Skills Requirement

  Washington requires a test attempt for reading, writing and math. The Teacher Certification Program at CWU then is allowed to have our own requirements above that minimum standard.

  You may mix and match any combination of SAT/ACT/WEST-B test attempts to meet that requirement. You are also able to mix and match any of the options. EX: You can meet Reading with Option 1, Math with Option 2 and Writing with Option 1.

  Options to meet Basic Skills Requirement

  Option 1-Test Only
  Pass required test based on published cut scores. See Basic Skills Webpage

  Option 2- Test attempts PLUS General Education courses
  You must still attempt an SAT/ACT/WEST-B reading, writing and math test before using coursework.

  • MATH Quantitative Reasoning-Pass requirement with a C or Higher
  • READING Academic Writing 1-Pass course with a C or Higher
  • WRITING Academic Writing 1-Pass course with a C or Higher

  If you can locate your previous test results, emailing them to teachercertification@cwu.edu would be appreciated. Please include your student ID number

  You may have luck finding your score reports if you follow the links below:

  WEST-B scores

  • Tutorial video on registering for WEST-B
  • Log in to find your WEST-B scores

  SAT scores

  • Log in to find your SAT scores
  • How to read a typical Full Score SAT report your score report needs to show all items in yellow boxes.

  ACT scores

  • Log in to find your ACT scores
  • How to read a typical Full Score ACT report your score report needs to show all items in yellow boxes.

• Program Inactivation Policy

  Candidates are removed from the Teacher Certification Program under the following circumstances:

  1. The candidate has been denied a second chance in a field experience course under the Second Chance Field Experience Policy.
  2. The candidate voluntarily exits the Professional Education Program or approved alternative and endorsement program.
  3. The candidate exits a teaching major under the Inadequate Performance and Termination of Field Experience Policy
  4. The candidate is discontinued from CWU.
• Readmission Policy

  Candidates inactivated from the Teacher Certification Program must reapply if they intend to complete their certification program. The candidate is held to the current Teacher Certification Program Admission Requirements Policy. The Teacher Certification Program Officer is notified of these candidates and reviews the file before processing the application.

  Applications for readmission will be considered on a case-by-case basis with the following information:

  1. School of Education and University documentation
  2. Time since last attendance
  3. Time since last successful field experience course
  4. Academic progress at the time of last attendance

  If the review of student academics and field experience documentation results in unresolved circumstances, the Candidate Review Committee (CRC) will meet to discuss the application. The CRC will recommend the applicant for readmittance or not.