Educator Licensure

Thank you for your interest in becoming a licensed Montana educator. This webpage provides all information necessary for you to apply for a new Montana Educator License, renew your existing Montana Educator License, or reinstate your lapsed Montana license.

Montana offers 3 main categories of Licensure:

Teacher (elementary and secondary, career and technical education, Native American Language and postsecondary faculty/dual credit teachers)
Administrator (principals, superintendents and subject-area supervisors)
Specialist (School Counselors and School Psychologists)
Alternative License

Please carefully review the "Qualifications" documents under your chosen category of licensure, then apply for the most appropriate license. If you qualify for more than one category (e.g. teaching and administration), you can apply for both on the same application form.

All applicants for an initial Montana License or reinstatement of a lapsed Montana license must complete a fingerprint based background check through the Montana Department of Justice.

APPLICANTS LICENSED IN OTHER STATES MUST COMPLETE THE ENTIRE LICENSURE PROCESS FOR MONTANA. Include a copy of your current license from the other state. Due to Montana's federally approved definition of a "highly qualified teacher", applicants from out of state who completed an alternative route to license or licensure/endorsement via testing may not qualify for full licensure in Montana. Please apply for the appropriate license, and if you do not meet the qualifications, our Licensure Division will offer you the appropriate license after our review.

The following summary is provided to give you an overview of Montana Educator Licensing. Once you determine the Class(es) of licensure for which you may qualify, please review the Application for more specific information.

All licenses are valid for 5 years except the Class 5 Alternative License (3 years).

All applicants for initial licensure or reinstatement of a previous license must complete a fingerprint based background check through the Montana Department of Justice.

	Teaching Licenses
	Class 2: Standard	Hold a bachelor’s degree; and Verify completion of an accredited professional educator preparation program in an area approved for endorsement in Montana; and Successfully complete a supervised teaching experience either as part of an accredited professional educator preparation program or successfully complete one year of teaching experience in a state accredited elementary and/or secondary school district.

	Class 1: Professional	A Class 2 Standard Educator License or meet the qualifications of the Class 2 Standard Educator License; and A master’s degree in professional education or an endorsable teaching area(s) from an accredited college or university; and Verification of three years of successful K-12 teaching experience as a licensed teacher.

	Class 4: Career and Technical	For those with work experience in career and technical areas, but without degrees in education. Applicants must demonstrate 10,000 hours of work experience in each area they wish to teach. Degrees, licenses and industry standard designations may be substituted for some of the work experience requirement.

	Class 7: Native American Language and Culture	Granted upon recommendation from the tribe.

	Class 8 Dual Credit-Only Post Secondary Faculty License	For those college instructors who teach university courses in which a high school students enroll and receive both college and high school credit for completion. Eligible instructors must verify employment at a university and eligibility for licensure. Please see your college or university Chief Academic Officer for additional information.

	Class 3: Administrator	A master’s degree in an accredited school administration program or the equivalent; and Must qualify for one of the administrative endorsements for Montana (complete an accredited preparation program). Principal: Elementary, Secondary, or K-12 Superintendent Supervisor

	Class 6: Specialist	Available only with School Counselor or School Psychologist endorsements Must have: Master's degree; and Complete an accredited professional educator preparation program in the endorsement area.

	Class 5: Alternative	Entry level license for candidates who might meet some but not all of the above requirements for the Class 1, 2, 3 or 6 licenses. Not available for Class 4, 7 or 8 licensees. Class 5 Licensees sign a Plan of Professional Intent agreeing to complete their deficiencies within 3 years. Cannot be renewed or reinstated (can only have one Class 5 License in your lifetime). Most typically used when someone has a bachelor's degree in an endorsable area and needs to complete a teacher prep program or fails to complete renewal requirements.

Application Materials

Code of Ethics

Fingerprinting

Professional Educators of Montana Code of Ethics

Print Instructions for Law Enforcement
Request Fingerprint Packet
Redissemination Request

Teacher

Applications
Class 1 or 2: Elementary or Secondary Academic Subjects
Recommendation for Teaching Endorsements
Class 4: Career and Technical
Class 4 Verification of Work Experience
Class 4 Qualifications
Class 7: Native American Language and Culture
Class 8: Postsecondary Faculty Dual Credit-Only
Class 5: Alternative (not eligible for full licensure)
Degree(s) Earned Outside the US

Administrator

Note: Administrators applying for both teacher and administrator licenses may do so on 1 (one) application form.
Application Class 3: Full License
Institutional Recommendation
Class 1 & 3 Experience as an Educator
Application Class 5: (Not eligible for full license)

Specialist

Qualifications: School Psychologist
Applications
Class 6: Licensure and Class 5: Alternative Licensure

Montana Association of School Psychologists (MASP) Website

Qualifications: School Counselor
Applications
Class 6: Full Licensure
Class 5: Alternative (Not eligible for full license)

Renewals

Educators	Renewal Application Forms
	Renewal Requirements Online Renewal (Class 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6) Paper Application Forms Class 1, 2. 3, 4, 6 or 8 Class 7 How to get Renewal Units Pre-Approval Form

For Providers	I Provide Multiple Events throughout the year Online Approval & Reporting Application Annual Report Form

	I want to provide a single event Online Approval & Reporting Application Completion Report

Lapsed License

Fingerprinting	Print Instructions for Law Enforcement Request Fingerprint Packet Redisseminate Request
I have earned the credits	Reinstatement Application
I have NOT earned the credits	Class 5 Application

Adding Endorsements

Endorsements can be added to your active Montana license upon recommendation from a university's accredited educator preparation program. Administrative Rule does not allow adding endorsements by evaluation of your academic record by the Office of Public Instruction/Educator Licensure, nor can endorsements be added via testing in Montana.

With Internship

If your school district has an opening in an area outside of your existing endorsement(s), you may be eligible to participate in an internship. The internship is an agreement between the licensee, their school district and a Montana university's accredited educator preparation program. The licensee has 3 years to complete the requirements for the endorsement. The school district can report the intern as the "educator of record" for purposes of the Annual Data Collection (accreditation report).
Teaching Internship Application
School Counselor Internship Application
Principal Internship Application
Superintendent Internship Application

Without Internship

Follow these steps to add an endorsement without an internship:
1. Contact a university's accredited educator preparation program offering the endorsement you wish to add.
2. Complete the specific coursework
3. Work with the university's licensure official to submit the documentation required to add the endorsement to OPI.

Teacher Preparation Program

Updating Your License

Updating

Class 2 to Class 1

Class 5 to Class 1, 2, 3 or 6

Map to OPI

Interactive map to Educator Licensure, Office of Public Instruction, 1201 11th Avenue, Helena MT 59620-2501

Licensure Rules

Administrative Rules, State of Montana Chapter 57

Montana Secretary of State

Contact Us

Email: cert@mt.gov
Phone: 406.444.3150

We are available from 8:00 am -5:00 pm Mountain Time, Monday through Friday. Please be aware that our Licensure Division has a very small staff. Phone calls are handled in the order in which they are received. You may have to wait to speak to a Specialist.

Difficulty downloading a form or Application? Click Here to Request a Hard Copy

The Montana Office of Public Instruction, Denise Juneau, Superintendent • P.O. Box 202501 Helena, Montana 59620-2501
In-State Toll-Free 1-888-231-9393, Local (406) 444-3095

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For information or to file a complaint, contact OPI Title IX/EEO Coordinator at (406) 444-3161 or tantonick@mt.gov.

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Educator Licensure