To become a public school teacher in the United States you need to obtain a license from the state to which you belong after completing your Bachelor’s degree in any teacher education program. The license for teaching is specific to the state where it is issued and enables you to become a teacher in that state. But if you want to move out of the state and teach in some other state then you have to take recourse to the provisions of the teacher certification reciprocity, which is an agreement between the states through which you want to move about.

The Necessity:
The states have their own regulations about the standard of education and the requirements to become a teacher differ from one state to another. This is the reason why the certificate that you receive is applicable for that state only. In the event of moving over to another state to pursue the same profession it is necessary for the state to which you migrate to have an agreement with your parent state to recognize the certificate or license that you possess, thus making you eligible to teach in that state albeit with some additional criterion. This kind of arrangement between the states is known as teaching credentials reciprocity agreement. Many states in the United States enter into such agreements.

The Background:
The high demand of public school teachers across the country has compelled the states to encourage mobility of teachers from one state to another and overcome the problem of different licensing criterion and standards that are prevalent in the states. The demographic changes occurring in the country is fuelling the demand for teachers that have to be addressed on priority. From the teacher’s perspective it has also been observed that some teachers who are over qualified in a particular state falls short of the requirements of another state, thereby impeding their prospect of employment. The agreement seeks to offer a level playing field for teachers.

The Stipulations:
The spirit of the agreement is not to encourage trading in the license that you have. Neither does it guarantee recognition of the license in the state you want to move to. It just enables you to apply for a teacher’s job in that state. The remaining criterion for selection has to be met and you have to earn your job by passing through the process of recruitment. Usually you may have to meet the requirements of specific coursework or even take a test as felt necessary by the authorities.

Agreement Features:
The agreement between the states is not automatically reciprocal. This means that one state that accepts the education license of another state cannot always expect the other state to reciprocate the gesture automatically, but the other state has to mention about its willingness to reciprocate in the agreement. The states declare the names of the other states in the agreement that is acceptable to them to make the agreement work.

An alternative to teacher certification reciprocity is the national certification that can complement the education license issued by a state but cannot be used as its replacement.

Your best action is to speak to the School District you are interested in working for so that they can provide you with orientation on any programs they may have to assist you with licensing requirements and reciprocity options.