Vocational Certification Procedures
(Based on Experience and Preparation in Skill Area)

Many servicemembers leave the military with advanced technical skills in areas where the public schools offer vocational education to their students. The process for certification in a vocational area is very different from standard subject area certification and can sometimes be accomplished even without a bachelor's degree. The following information is a general outline of the procedure. Specific guidance will be obtained from the university which evaluates your experience. You might want to call school districts in the area where you hope to teach, and ask them if they offer or plan to offer vocational classes in your experience field.

The basic process is as follows:

1. Contact the university closest to you that is authorized to evaluate experience for vocational education programs. Listed below are some of the authorized institutions. Ask your school district which institution normally does the experience evaluations for the specific vocational program that interests you.
    
   
   • Lamar State College (Orange) ***On-Line Certification***
     For more information, contact the ACE Program staff at (409) 882-3043, or
     e-mail your questions to Joanie.Gaspard@lsco.edu
      
   • Prairie View A & M University
      
   • Sam Houston State University (Huntsville)
      
   • Texas A & M University at Commerce
      
     
   • Texas A & M University at Corpus Christi
      
     
   • University of North Texas (Denton)
      
   • University of Texas at Tyler
      
   • Texas State University (San Marcos)
      
   • University of Houston (main campus)
      
   • Wayland Baptist University (Plainview) ***On-Line Certification***
     Contact Dr.Kent Brooks at 806-785-9285 or email Dr. Kent Brooks
      
   •  West Texas A & M (Canyon)
      
2. Request that they send you a Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) form, and give you exact instructions on other documents that they may need to do the evaluation.
    
3. Submit completed SOQ, required documents and evaluation fee to the university point of contact.
    
4. After the university evaluates your documentation, they will issue you a deficiency plan, which will detail the courses that you must ultimately take to complete certification. This often involves up to 18 Semester Hours of Vocational courses, plus a course in the US/Texas Constitution or government. Depending on how many credits are required, you will be given between 1 and 3 years to complete course work.
    
5. Once the deficiency plan is created, you may apply to school districts to teach on a probationary certificate for up to 3 years.  You will teach at full pay and benefits for the school district.
    
6. Before certification is authorized, you must take and pass the applicable Texas Examination of Education Standards (TExES).

Go back to 'Routes to Certification'