Regional Certification

The Nassau BOCES Office of Regional Certification is authorized by the New York State Education Department Office of Teaching to evaluate and recommend certification for areas related to professional services. Professional employees referred by participating districts and Nassau County residents receive responses to questions concerning certification status. The Regional Certification Office assists and advises school districts on issues related to the employment of noncertified teachers. Information concerning changes in certification regulations is disseminated to participating school districts. Workshops can be presented in local school districts upon request.

Please be aware that much of the information requested by those who contact the Regional Certification Office is available on the web for the Office of Teaching Initiatives. The New York State Education Department and the BOCES Regional Certification Offices will not provide informal evaluations.

TEACH Online Services is the New York State Education Department online application and database system. Users must apply for teacher certification and fingerprint clearance through NYSED TEACH Online. Teachers will be able to pay application fees, check status of certificate applications and fingerprint clearance status. If you live or work in Nassau County, you can select the Nassau BOCES Regional Certification Office to process your online application. All official transcripts must be submitted to the Nassau BOCES Regional Certification Office.

To view the status of your application, log into your TEACH account. Select documents you sent to review when the NYS office received your documents. If your certification has not been awarded, the following remarks may appear by your application:

"automated evaluation" this means that your file has not yet been reviewed by an evaluator.
"manual evaluation" provides a list of met/unmet requirements.

Search for Certification Requirements is an online search tool that allows you to identify the specific requirements you must meet for any given certificate.

Recent graduate in a teacher certification degree program from a college or university, select the "teacher approved program" pathway.
If you hold a valid NYS certification and you wish to hold another certificate, select the "Individual Evaluation for an Additional Certificate."
First-time NYS certification applicants should choose the pathway for the Individual Evaluation.

New York State Teacher Certification Examinations

Schedules, registration information, preparation guides and much more can be found on the NYSTCE website.

Please note: If you are considering distance learning programs, please seek verification from the college that your coursework will count toward a degree in the subject of the course.

Note: To be awarded a New York State certification, all applicants must be fingerprinted and cleared by New York State. For more information regarding fingerprinting, contact MorphoTrust by visiting IdentoGO's website and clicking on New York State on the map, or calling (877) 472-6915.