Mississippi Teacher Licensure Guide for Online Master's Students

Who Licenses Teachers in Mississippi, and Which Exams Does It Use?

Mississippi licenses teachers through Mississippi Department of Education, Office of Educator Licensure, and the exams it requires are the Praxis tests from ETS.

For the programs themselves, the online master's in education programs at universities in Mississippi are ranked at the in-state price, and the national and specialty lists cover schools in other states.

How Do I Get a Mississippi Teaching License With an Online Master's?

Getting a Mississippi teaching license with an online master's depends on the route you qualify for, and the department's traditional route asks for student teaching, an education degree leading to licensure, approved assessments, an online recommendation from your school and an application in its MECCA system. A five-year license can be upgraded to a higher class level, which is where a master's counts.

The licensure guidelines define Class AA as master's-level and require that a degree used for an upgrade come from a regionally or nationally accredited school. Our elementary education and special education rankings use federal graduation and tuition figures, which cannot show whether Mississippi will accept a program.

Which Exams Does Mississippi Require for Teacher Licensure?

Mississippi requires Praxis exams for teacher licensure, and the department's application checklist asks a traditional-route standard-license applicant for score reports on the Praxis Subject Assessment for the teaching area and the Praxis Principles of Learning and Teaching. Entry to a program also rests on the Praxis Core, an ACT or SAT equivalent, or a 3.0 grade point average in specific coursework.

Elementary candidates meet a reading rule specific to the state: a Foundations of Reading score report and, where it applies, proof of finishing the Pathways to Proficient Reading course with a score of 80 percent. The department's pathway pages send applicants to a Mississippi Praxis website and a Mississippi Foundations of Reading website for current test information.

Can I Transfer a Teaching License to Mississippi From Another State?

A teaching license from another state transfers to Mississippi through reciprocity, and the department's guidelines promise a standard five-year license within 21 days of a completed application when the out-of-state license is valid, standard and unencumbered. A license below standard earns a two-year provisional reciprocity license that cannot be renewed.

The same guidelines add that the license must correspond to an area, grade level and degree level for which Mississippi offers a comparable standard license, and that reciprocity is not necessarily full. The Education Commission of the States 2020 comparison did record full reciprocity with no extra coursework or assessments, so read the 2020 table below as the best case and the guidelines as the conditions.

Does NC-SARA Membership Cover Teacher Licensure for Mississippi Online Master's Students?

Mississippi joined NC-SARA in January 2016 through the Southern Regional Education Board, yet teacher licensure for its online master's students lies beyond that membership. NC-SARA says SARA does not address licensing board approval for programs leading to a teaching license.

A participating school does owe you a notice about whether its program meets licensure requirements where you live, and the Mississippi Department of Education makes the licensing decision.

What Should I Ask an Online Program Before Enrolling From Mississippi?

An online program should tell you in writing whether its curriculum meets Mississippi licensure requirements before you enroll. 34 CFR 668.43 requires a school marketing licensure preparation to publish the states where the program does and does not qualify, and to warn you ahead of enrollment if it found a shortfall or reached no finding.

Then ask what the department's out-of-state completer route depends on. Will the school provide an Institutional Program Verification form? Is the program a traditional, state-approved or nationally accredited one rather than nontraditional? Does it prepare you for the Praxis tests?

Which License Do Mississippi Principals and School Counselors Need?

On the traditional route, a Mississippi principal begins with a five-year standard educator license, a master's degree or higher in educational leadership or supervision, three years of education experience and the School Leaders Licensure Assessment. A nontraditional route exists for holders of an MBA, MPA, MPP or law degree with five years of supervisory experience. A completer of an administrator program in another state adds an Institutional Program Verification form.

A school counselor holds a Class AA license under the guidelines with a master's in guidance and counseling, the Praxis school counselor specialty test and either a five-year educator license or an approved program with a full-year internship, or with a National Certified School Counselor credential. Weigh an online master's in educational leadership or school counseling against those terms.