Alternative Teacher Certification in Kansas

Kansas alternative certification requirements, step by step

Each requirement below is stated as Kansas State Department of Education — Teacher Licensure publishes it, with the governing source cited.

1. 1

   Confirm Restricted Teaching License eligibility

   The Restricted Teaching License Alternative Pathway recruits mid-career professionals who hold a bachelor’s or master’s degree, or equivalent coursework, in the content they want to teach. Heritage-language speakers with a bachelor’s degree or higher may use the pathway to teach their native languages. KSDE states the alternative licensure program is available only for secondary content areas and a limited number of all-level subjects.

   Source: ksde.gov

2. 2

   Meet GPA, degree, and Praxis content requirements

   K.A.R. 91-1 requires an official transcript verifying an undergraduate or graduate degree in the content area (or equivalent coursework), a minimum 2.75 GPA on a 4.0 scale for the most recent 60 semester credit hours, and a passing score on the content assessment. Heritage-language speakers qualify as having met content equivalency for their heritage language.

   Source: ksde.gov

3. 3

   Secure a Kansas teaching position and a Kansas IHE plan

   Locate and apply for a teaching position. A Kansas teacher education institution must attest that it has a written plan that will qualify the applicant for standard licensure in not more than two years and that contains the professional education coursework to be completed. The institution and hiring local education agency collaborate on a supervised practical training experience.

   Source: ksde.gov

4. 4

   Apply in KLAS and submit fingerprints

   Submit the restricted license application (Form 9) and licensure fee through KLAS, plus the $57 fingerprint fee if this is a first Kansas license. KSDE requires annual progress reports from the teacher education institution before July 1 each year the restricted license is in effect.

   Source: ksde.gov

5. 5

   Complete pedagogy coursework and upgrade to a standard license

   Teach under the restricted license while finishing the institution’s professional education plan. K.A.R. 91-1-201 states each restricted teaching license is valid for the school year in which it is issued and may be reissued for two additional school years. Convert to an initial or professional license when the plan and remaining assessments are complete.

   Source: ksde.gov

Restricted licensure is a hiring tool as much as a candidate pathway. KSDE’s Restricted Teaching License Alternative Pathway page frames the route as a response to district staffing needs and a way for mid-career professionals to start teaching while finishing pedagogy. Eligibility is narrower than many national “alt cert” brands: secondary content areas and only a limited set of all-level subjects. Elementary generalist candidates should not assume this form applies.

Regulation 91-1 stacks academic, testing, and institutional-plan requirements before the license can issue. The applicant needs a content-area degree or equivalent coursework, a 2.75 GPA on the most recent 60 semester hours, a passing content assessment, supervised practical training arranged by the Kansas IHE and the hiring LEA, and a licensing-officer attestation that a written plan will lead to standard licensure in not more than two years. Heritage-language speakers are an explicit exception to content-degree matching for their heritage language.

Time limits are short and administratively supervised. The restricted teaching license lasts only the school year of issuance and may be reissued for two additional school years. Each year the teacher education institution must file a progress report before July 1 verifying coursework progress and GPA. That annual report is the practical renewal instrument; there is no open-ended provisional status if the plan stalls.

Kansas also maintains other alternate-adjacent credentials that candidates often confuse with restricted teaching licenses. Regulation 91-1 defines an interim alternative license (one year, automatically extended one additional year with progress, nonrenewable after two years) for people who completed an alternative program and were licensed in another state. Restricted CTE certificates are a separate occupational pathway with different hour and mentoring rules. Career changers should match the Form 9 restricted teaching application to secondary academic content, not to CTE or out-of-state alternate-only files.

Required exams and fees

Kansas uses ETS Praxis content assessments and Principles of Learning and Teaching (PLT). Fees and cut scores appear only when published by the cited source (as of September 2026).

Moving a license to Kansas

The restricted license is an in-state, employment-tied alternate pathway through a Kansas teacher education institution. It is not a reciprocity vehicle. Out-of-state licensed teachers follow KSDE’s Initial License Requirements for exchange, one-year nonrenewable, substitute, or professional-level options. Kansas also defines an interim alternative license for individuals who completed an alternative teacher education program and were licensed in another state.

Official Kansas reciprocity guidance