How to Become a Teacher in West Virginia

West Virginia certification requirements, step by step

Each requirement below is stated as West Virginia Department of Education — Office of Certification publishes it, with the governing source cited.

1. 1

   Complete a WVBE-approved traditional teacher preparation program

   In-state completers use Form 20T. Requirements include a minimum overall cumulative GPA of 2.5, a state-approved student teaching experience or equivalent, and completion of a West Virginia Board of Education-approved traditional program. The college or university certification official must approve the Form 20T. Applicants must be at least 18 and a U.S. citizen or hold eligible documentation under Policy 5202.

   Source: wvde.us

2. 2

   Pass required Praxis exams in basic skills, content, and pedagogy

   Pass all West Virginia Board of Education-required exams listed in the Licensure Testing Directory and Policy 5202. Professional education may be met with Praxis Principles of Learning and Teaching or an approved Teacher Performance Assessment; Teaching Reading for Elementary Education applies when required. Candidates who completed a WVBE-approved program under Policy 5100 and passed an approved TPA after July 12, 2023, are exempt from the PLT. The Praxis Bridge option is available for some content exams when the score is within one SEM of the cut; it cannot be used for Professional Education exams.

   Source: wvde.us

3. 3

   Send official transcripts and apply in the Certification Portal

   Register in the WVDE Certification Portal (even if you already have a Webtop account). Colleges must email official transcripts to cert.transcripts.wvde@k12.wv.us; applicant-sent transcripts are not accepted. After the college and, if employed, the county approve the form, pay the non-refundable $35 fee online. Cash and checks are not accepted.

   Source: wvde.us

4. 4

   Receive a three-year Professional Teaching Certificate

   The initial West Virginia Professional Teaching Certificate issued on Form 20T is valid for three years. Out-of-state reciprocity applicants use Form 20R, also valid for three years, with a $100 fee and a valid, transferable, renewable out-of-state professional teaching certificate.

   Source: wvde.us

5. 5

   Renew or convert with Form 4T

   Use Form 4T after January 1 of the expiration year to renew a three- or five-year certificate, convert a three-year certificate to five years, or convert to a permanent certificate. Three- or five-year renewals generally require six credit hours of college or WVLearns coursework related to public education, completed after the last certificate was effective, not more than five years old, with a 3.0 GPA in each eligible course. A master’s +30 or age 60 exempts the coursework. The Form 4T fee is $35.

   Source: wvde.us

West Virginia’s first professional certificate is a three-year credential, not a five-year standard license. Form 20T in-state completers and Form 20R reciprocity applicants both start at three years. Moving to five years or to a permanent certificate is a later Form 4T event that mixes coursework, experience, and—for permanent status—a master’s degree plus induction. Educators who treat the initial $35 certificate as “done for five years” will miss the January 1 filing window in the expiration year.

Transcript control is institutional. WVDE will not accept applicant-uploaded official transcripts; the college or university must send them to cert.transcripts.wvde@k12.wv.us, or physical transcripts may go to the county HR office or to Building 6, Suite 550, 1900 Kanawha Boulevard East, Charleston. Employed applicants also need county approval on Form 20T; unemployed applicants select “no county.” The portal payment step happens after those approvals, which is why candidates see an email to “pay now” rather than paying at first click.

Testing policy layers Praxis, TPA, and Bridge. Content and basic-skills Praxis exams remain the default. Professional education can be a PLT or an approved Teacher Performance Assessment; a TPA passed after July 12, 2023, in a Policy 5100 program exempts the PLT. Praxis Bridge can rescue some content scores within one SEM, but West Virginia does not allow Bridge for Professional Education exams or for adding an endorsement by content proficiency. Out-of-state completers who use PLT instead of a TPA can be issued a non-transferable certificate (type 26) that renews only on the three-year track until a TPA or specified experience is completed.

Fee design is simple except for reciprocity. Most teaching applications and Form 4T renewals are $35, paid only online and non-refundable. Reciprocity Form 20R is $100—the one classroom-teaching application that breaks the $35 pattern. That difference is easy to miss if a relocating teacher copies an in-state checklist. General certification questions go to certification.wvde@k12.wv.us or 1-833-627-2833.

Required exams and fees

West Virginia uses ETS Praxis basic-skills, content, and professional education assessments (PLT or approved Teacher Performance Assessment; Teaching Reading for Elementary Education when applicable). Fees and cut scores appear only when published by the cited source (as of September 2026).

Moving a license to West Virginia

Out-of-state professional teaching certificate holders apply with Form 20R ($100). The resulting West Virginia certificate is valid for three years and requires a minimum GPA of 2.5 (bachelor’s) or 3.0 (master’s) and a valid, transferable, renewable out-of-state professional teaching certificate. Completers of eligible out-of-state programs who take the PLT rather than an approved TPA may receive a non-transferable West Virginia teaching certificate until a TPA or additional experience conditions are met.

Official West Virginia reciprocity guidance