Level I To Level II Certification Requirements

Level I Pennsylvania Instructional and Educational Specialist (temporary/provisional) certifications are valid for six (6) years of service, not calendar years. If you have been working in Pennsylvania on a Level I (Education Specialist or Instructional) certificate for 3-6 years of satisfactory service, completed an Induction Program and have earned 24 post-baccalaureate credits, you may apply for a Level II certificate through the Teacher Information Management System (TIMS).

Conditions for Eligibility:

24 Post bachelor’s degree Credits: A minimum of six of the credits must be related to your certification area(s) and/or designed to enhance professional practice.

Creditable Service: You must have at least three years of creditable service on your Level I certificate.

Evaluations: Completed 6 Semi-Annual Evaluations and received a satisfactory rating on each.

Induction Program: Completion of a PDE induction program, verified by the chief school administrator of your employing entity.

Validity of Level I Certifications:

Level I Pennsylvania Instructional and Educational Specialist certifications are valid for six years of service, not calendar years. A ‘service year’ is defined as a year in which you were employed as an educator in one of the following settings:

  • Public schools;
  • Intermediate units;
  • Career and technical schools;
  • Approved private schools for special education (APS);
  • Special program jointures;
  • Pre-K Counts programs (effective 2008-2009 school year);
  • Scranton State School for the Deaf & Hard of Hearing Children;
  • State correctional facilities when providing inmate education and training to school age inmates;
  • Juvenile correctional facilities or county jails (when employed by a public-school entity);
  • Local education agency (LEA) alternative education programs including after school program alternative education programs where the students receive credit for coursework;
  • A charter school as a principal, assistant principal, or vice principal;
  • A charter school in any special education certificate area: speech-language, visually impaired, hearing impaired, general special education, supervisory.
  • A charter school in related services positions as defined by IDEA which includes the position of school psychologist, school nurse, school counselor, school social worker and education specialist speech and language pathologist.

The specific requirements for Level II certification can be found on:

Certification Staffing Policy Guideline 7 - Level II (Permanent) Certification

Applying for Level II:

To apply for Level II certification, please follow these steps through the Teacher Information Management System (TIMS):

  1. Complete the Online Application: Log in to TIMS, complete your application, and pay the required fee.
  2. Submit Required Documentation: Send any necessary documents, such as official transcripts, directly to the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE). If the college/university has the capability to send electronic transcripts, the college/university should send official transcripts to ra-teachercert@pa.gov
  3. Supervisor Assessment: Ask your supervisor to complete the PDE 427 Level I to Level II Summative Evaluation Form and submit it to Human Resources. You can find this form on the PDE Website here.
  4. Human Resources Processing: Once Human Resources receives the completed and signed PDE 427 Level I to Level II Summative Evaluation Form, they will verify your work history in TIMS and forward your application to PDE for processing.
  5. Notification: After your certification is issued, email hr@IU5.org to inform us so we can update your personnel file or the district HR that you work for. Please note that PDE does not notify us directly.

For further assistance, please refer to the following resources:

Please feel free to contact Leslie Newlin at Leslie_Newlin@iu5.org or 814-734-8406 with any questions that you may have.