How to Become a Teacher in Maine: 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.

Pathway 1: Approved Teacher Prep Program

Pathway 1 is for graduates of a Maine state-approved educator preparation program. Maine has more than 150 endorsements for teachers, administrators, education specialists and CTE teachers, each with its own requirements, so applicants first check which endorsement they may qualify for. Completion of the approved program is shown by a note on the official transcript or, when the transcript has no such note, by an approved program verification form completed by the college.

1. Check the certification requirements to see which endorsement you may qualify for
2. Complete a Maine state-approved educator preparation program
3. Look for a note about the approved program on your official transcript
4. If there is no note, have your college complete an approved program verification form from the Forms & Resources page
5. Submit your application with the official transcript or verification form

Source: maine.gov

Bachelor's in another field: the alternative route

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

Pathway 2: Transcript Analysis

Pathway 2 is for applicants who did not attend a formal educator preparation program. These applications usually include several transcripts that together cover the endorsement requirements, and they are reviewed through transcript analysis. Applicants send official transcripts showing all of their coursework, including the one with the bachelor's degree conferred, along with any Praxis scores they have earned.

1. Check the certification requirements for the endorsement you want
2. Collect official transcripts that show all of your coursework
3. Make sure one transcript shows your bachelor's degree as conferred
4. Add any Praxis test scores you have taken
5. Submit the application for transcript analysis

Source: maine.gov

Changing careers into teaching in Maine

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.

For pay context, the median annual wage for high school teachers in Maine was $64,880 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

Not confirmed in the agency pages we could check; check with the agency.

Licensed in another state

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

Pathway 3: Out-of-State Applicant

An educator who holds a comparable certificate from another state, the District of Columbia, a US territory or another country may receive a reciprocal professional certificate after submitting a criminal history background check. Maine presents this route as a way to address its identified staffing shortage and links it to its shortage area list. The certificate is not issued until the background check is complete.

1. Confirm you hold a comparable certificate from another state, the District of Columbia, a US territory or another country
2. Submit your valid teaching certificates, transcripts and any test scores
3. Register on the fingerprinting page and have your fingerprints taken
4. Allow the background check to be completed, since the certificate cannot be issued before then

Source: maine.gov

Required tests, codes and qualifying scores

Maine uses Praxis 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

Getting a criminal history records check (CHRC) is a two-step process: submit an application in the Maine Educator Information System (MEIS), then register with the state's fingerprinting partner, IdentoGO. Fingerprints are not processed until the application has been submitted. Applicants outside Maine register with IdentoGO as an out-of-state applicant and still pay the IdentoGO fee. Fees are non-refundable. Fee: $55 IdentoGO processing fee; a CHRC-only application costs $15. Source

Your first license

Not confirmed in the agency pages we could check; check with the agency.

Renewal

A certificate can be renewed if it has not been expired for more than six months; after that, the educator applies for new credentials. Educators in Maine public schools are recommended for renewal by a Support Chair, and districts may add their own expectations. The teacher renewal fee is $100 for all endorsements renewed at one time, and free renewal webinars are offered. Requirement: 6 semester credits or 90 contact hours (teachers, specialists and administrators). Source

Teacher pay in Maine

Elementary teachers in Maine earned a median of $62,390 a year in May 2025, $1,580 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

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

• Early Childhood: Birth through Kindergarten (statewide)

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