Certification

Upon completion of the Adolescent Education program, candidates are eligible for recommendation to New York State for an Initial Adolescent (Grades 7-12) teaching certificate. New York State requires that candidates for all teaching certificates successfully complete New York State Teacher Certification Exams (NYSTCE). For initial certification, students must pass the Liberal Arts and Science Test (LAST), the Elementary Assessment of Teaching Skills – Written (ATS-W), and the subject area Content Specialty Test (CST). The passing score for each NYSTC exam is 220. Pace University integrates information about, and preparation for, these exams throughout each of our programs. We strongly recommend that candidates in our Adolescent Education program complete the NYS teacher examinations according to the following schedule so that any problems can be addressed prior to student teaching:

• LAST: Completed by second semester of sophomore year
• Secondary AST-W: Completed by or before the semester of student teaching
• CST-subject area: Completed by the first semester of senior year.

• Complete the Child Abuse Verification Workshop (through the SOE program)
• Complete the School Violence Intervention and Prevention Workshop (through the SOE program)
• Submit fingerprints to the New York State Education Department for background check