How to Become a Teacher in Iowa: Tests, Fees and Routes

By the Transforming Education editorial team. Every fact on this page was checked against the source linked beside it on November 7, 2026.

No degree yet: the traditional route

For high school students, college students and anyone without a bachelor's degree. You earn the degree and the teacher preparation in one program.

Initial Teaching License through an Iowa teacher preparation program

Most Iowa teachers complete a full Iowa-approved teacher preparation program for college credit that meets at least one endorsement requirement, plus mandatory reporter training on child abuse. Completers receive the Initial Teaching License, valid for 2 years, which allows full teaching within the listed grade levels and endorsements. It converts to the Standard Teaching License after two full years of successful teaching in an Iowa public school, or three years in accredited nonpublic or out-of-state schools.

1. Complete a full Iowa-approved teacher preparation program that includes at least one endorsement.
2. Complete mandatory reporter training for child abuse.
3. Apply online for the Initial Teaching License with your preparation program's recommendation.
4. Teach two full years in an Iowa public school, or three years in accredited nonpublic or out-of-state schools.
5. Apply to convert to the Standard Teaching License once the experience requirement is complete.

Source: educate.iowa.gov

Bachelor's in another field: the alternative route

For people who already hold a bachelor's degree in a subject other than education.

Teacher Intern License

Iowa's alternative route is a teacher intern program run by an approved Iowa college or university: Drake University, Morningside University or the Regents Alternative Pathway to Iowa Licensure (RAPIL). After completing the first year of required intern coursework, the candidate receives a one-year, non-renewable Teacher Intern License that allows full teaching within the listed grade levels and endorsements. When the internship year and all remaining coursework and testing are complete, the intern applies for the Initial Teaching License.

1. Choose an approved teacher intern program: Drake, Morningside or RAPIL.
2. Complete the first year of required teacher intern coursework.
3. Complete mandatory reporter training for child abuse.
4. Apply for the one-year Teacher Intern License and teach during the internship year.
5. Finish the remaining program coursework and testing.
6. Apply for the Initial Teaching License.

Source: educate.iowa.gov

Changing careers into teaching in Iowa

If you already have a bachelor's degree and some years in another job, start with the alternative route described above. It is built for people who did not study education. The 3 programs below are on the state's approved list.

For pay context, the median annual wage for high school teachers in Iowa was $61,200 in May 2025, according to the BLS OEWS state estimates. If your background matches a subject on the state's shortage list, that list is further down this page.

State-approved alternative certification programs

Programs shown are a selection from the state's approved list, checked November 7, 2026. "Online" reflects what the program or the state says about its coursework; teaching practice is always in a real school. The full, current list is on the agency's approved-program page.

Licensed in another state

For teachers who hold a license from another state and want to teach in Iowa.

First Iowa Teaching License (out-of-state program or reciprocity)

Teachers prepared or licensed in another state apply online for the First Iowa Teaching License (Out of State Institution). Iowa offers full reciprocity to applicants who completed a full preparation program and hold a regular (not emergency or temporary) license from another state, or who completed all requirements except required testing, as long as they have no past or pending disciplinary actions. The application includes transcripts, experience verification, a program form or out-of-state license, mandatory reporter training and FBI fingerprinting.

1. Create an account in the Iowa online licensure system, or log in if you already have one.
2. Start the First Iowa Teaching License (Out of State Institution) application and complete the checklist.
3. Upload official transcripts, verification of all previous teaching experience, and either the program recommendation form or a copy of your other state's license.
4. Complete mandatory reporter training for child abuse and upload the certificate.
5. Provide proof of citizenship or work authorization.
6. Schedule FBI fingerprinting through Fieldprint, then pay the fees and submit the application.

Source: educate.iowa.gov

Required tests, codes and qualifying scores

Iowa uses Foundations of Reading for teacher licensure. The table lists the core tests by license area, with the qualifying score and fee exactly as the source publishes them. Which tests you take depends on the license area you are seeking, so check the full list for your subject before you register.

Scores and fees change. Confirm both on the testing company's page before you register.

Fees, background check and license validity

Background check

First-time applicants complete the federal portion of the background check through Fieldprint: schedule an appointment at a Fieldprint location, get fingerprinted, and submit prints electronically using the code in the application instructions. Most results arrive within a week. Paper fingerprint cards are available on request but take 4 to 6 weeks to process. Renewals and conversions include checks of Iowa Courts Online, the Child Abuse Registry and the Sex Offender Registry, paid as part of the application. Fee: $35 (paid in the online application; Fieldprint charges an additional fee). Source

Your first license

License: Initial Teaching License. It is valid for 2 years. Two renewals are available, the second requiring a contracted position that leads to the standard license. It converts to the five-year Standard Teaching License after two years of successful teaching in an Iowa public school or three years in accredited nonpublic or out-of-state schools. Source

Renewal

The Standard Teaching License is valid for five years. To renew, holders complete 6 renewal credits plus mandatory reporter training for child abuse, or verify a master's degree or higher, at least 10 years of PK-12 licensed experience and the mandatory reporter training. Requirement: 6 renewal credits every 5 years. Source

Teacher pay in Iowa

Elementary teachers in Iowa earned a median of $60,580 a year in May 2025, $3,390 below the national median of $63,970. Half of teachers in each occupation earn more than the median and half earn less. What you earn in a given district depends on its salary schedule, your experience and any graduate credits.

Annual wages, cross-industry estimates, from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics May 2025 state tables, retrieved through the BLS Public Data API on November 7, 2026. Special education teachers are shown separately; our guide to the online master's in special education covers the add-on and initial-license options.

Teacher shortage areas, 2026-27

Iowa reported these subject areas to the US Department of Education as teacher shortage areas for the 2026-27 school year.

• Academic Intervention: At-Risk (statewide)
• Academically Advanced: Gifted Education (statewide)
• Art and Music Education: Art, Music (statewide)
• Career and Technical Education: Agricultural Science and Technology, Business Education, Family and Consumer Science, Industrial Technology (statewide)
• Core Subjects: Elementary Education (statewide)
• Early Childhood: Birth through Kindergarten (statewide)
• English as a Second Language: English as a Second Language (statewide)
• Health and Physical Fitness: Health Science, Physical Education (statewide)
• Language Arts: English, Reading (statewide)
• Mathematics (statewide)
• Science: Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Earth and Space Science, General Science, Physics, STEM (statewide)
• Social Studies (statewide)
• Special Education: All Exceptionalities, Hearing Impairment (statewide)
• Support Staff: Counseling, Instructional Library Media (statewide)
• World Languages: Any World Language (statewide)

Source: US Department of Education, Teacher Shortage Areas report, retrieved November 7, 2026.