2022-2023 Undergraduate Academic Catalog

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Educator Licensure Regulations

Programs leading to educator licensure at Lesley University are approved by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE). Massachusetts is a member state of the NASDTEC and a signatory of the NASDTEC Interstate Agreement, which facilitates the transfer of educator licensure between member states (not necessarily immediate reciprocity). Depending on your professional goals, where you plan to reside or teach, and the licensure structures that exist within that state, there are different pathways to licensure that may be relevant, including additional coursework, required tests, assessments, and classroom experience.

We strongly encourage prospective applicants who intend to pursue licensure to review Licensure Information documents for their respective programs of interest prior to applying to the program. This is in accordance with Lesley University’s participation in SARA (State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement) and with federal regulations.

The Lesley Certification and Educator Licensure Office is located within the Graduate School of Education, 1815 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge. The Certification and Educator Licensure website, www.lesley.edu/certification is the primary source for information on educator licensure. This website has MTEL workshops and MTEL math course schedules and registration instructions. The process for applying for Initial and Professional licenses, and frequently asked questions for both licensure and Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL) are highlighted. Information regarding license renewal and licensure regulations outside Massachusetts is also available, along with the latest MTEL information and study resources. Specific links to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education keep the Lesley community aware of changes to regulations and procedures.

All teacher licensure programs are aligned to the Professional Standards for Teachers (PSTs) and subject matter knowledge (SMK) standards. Programs are subject to revision based on ESE guidance and changes to Regulations

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MA ESE) is located at 75 Pleasant Street, Malden, MA.  Due to COVID-19 precautions ESE's Walk-in Welcome Center Service Counter may be closed. Candidates are advised to call 781.338.6600, Monday through Friday 9:00 am - 12:00 pm or 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm (hours may vary; check the Office of Educator Licensure website for updates). ESE's 24-hour automated line can be reached at 781.338.3000; press "2" to obtain the status of an existing license application.

Amy Stratman, the Certification and Regulatory Affairs Officer, can be reached at cert_off@lesley.edu.  

Massachusetts Educator Licensure Requirements:

Educator Licensure and Recruitment (ELAR) Account

ELAR is the state's online portal for completing most licensure-related transactions. Through ELAR, candidates apply for or advance a license online, renew a Professional license, check the status of a license/application, make a payment, upload transcripts, view what documents are scanned into the file, review Massachusetts Test for Educator Licensure (MTEL) history, request a hard copy license, update contact information, view correspondence from the MA Office of Educator Licensure, and print unofficial license information.

Required Immediately: Upon starting a program leading to a license, each candidate creates a personal password-protected ELAR account at the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, https://gateway.edu.state.ma.us/elar/common/EducatorWelcomePagePageControl.ser,  and receives a unique Massachusetts Educator Personnel ID number, or MEPID, which must be reported to Lesley. For more detailed information about how to set up the required electronic account, obtain a MEPID, and submit it to Lesley, visit Lesley's Certification and Educator Licensure website.

Sheltered English Immersion (SEI) Endorsement

Because candidates for Initial teacher and reading specialist licenses are required to have an SEI endorsement, all of Lesley's Initial licensure programs include a MA ESE approved Sheltered English Instruction course.

Professional license renewals will require at least 15 Professional Development Points (PDPs) related to SEI or English as a second language and at least 15 PDPs related to training strategies for effective schooling for students with disabilities and instruction of students with diverse learning styles. Remaining PDPs may be earned through a combination of subject-related activities.

Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL)

Candidates seeking Initial license as a teacher, specialist, or counselor are required by the state to pass Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL), a series of pass/fail tests designed to measure communication and literacy skills and content knowledge for educator licensure. All MTEL exams are computer-based and many MTELs are now available at home with Online Proctoring. You will need to ensure you have the right equipment, run a system test and adhere to all testing guidelines. The Communication and Literacy Skills MTEL (or equivalent), required for all educator licenses, has a reading subtest and writing subtest. Candidates can opt to take both subtests in the same test administration (4 hours), or each subtest can be taken in a separate 4-hour administration. As of July 2021, there are additional test options available to meet the Communication and Literacy reading and writing test requirement. In addition, subject matter tests are required for teaching and specialist licenses (not for counseling, digital literacy and computer science, or instructional technology), and some licenses require the Foundations of Reading MTEL. The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education website contains a list of required MTEL exams for each license area, as does Lesley’s MTEL Student Guide, which can be found on the MTEL page.

In recognition of the need for increased and enhanced math proficiency for teachers and students, the General Curriculum (GC) MTEL subject test includes a separately-scored mathematics subtest and a multi-subject subtest. GC is required for students in Elementary Education, Moderate Disabilities, and Severe Disabilities programs.