How to Become a Teacher in Mississippi: 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.

Note: The Mississippi Department of Education, Educator Licensure website could not be reached from our network on November 7, 2026, so the routes, license, renewal and background-check details on this page come from Mississippi's administrative rules, Guidelines for Mississippi Educator Licensure K-12 (Dec 2023), 7 Miss. Admin. Code Pt. 4. Rules set the requirements but not always the current procedures or fees, so confirm both with the agency before you apply.

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.

Five Year Educator License, Traditional Teacher Education Route

Candidates earn at least a bachelor's degree and complete a state-approved or NCATE/CAEP-accredited teacher education program, including student teaching, at a regionally or nationally accredited institution. They also need a 21 ACT (or SAT equivalent), a qualifying Praxis Core score, or a 3.0 GPA on at least 60 hours of coursework, plus passing scores on the Praxis Subject Assessment and the Praxis Principles of Learning and Teaching (PLT). Elementary education completers must also score 233 on the Foundations of Reading test, and program students need a Pre-Service Teacher License, which requires a cleared criminal background check, before field experience or student teaching.

1. Enroll in a state-approved or NCATE/CAEP-accredited teacher education program
2. Meet the academic threshold: 21 ACT (or SAT equivalent), a qualifying Praxis Core score, or a 3.0 GPA on 60 hours of coursework
3. Have your program request a Pre-Service Teacher License, with a cleared background check, before field experience
4. Complete student teaching and earn your bachelor's degree
5. Pass the Praxis Subject Assessment and the Praxis PLT (plus Foundations of Reading for elementary education)
6. Apply for the five-year educator license through your MECCA account, with transcripts and scores sent directly

Source: sos.ms.gov

Bachelor's in another field: the alternative route

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

Alternate Route License

Candidates with a non-education bachelor's degree from a regionally or nationally accredited institution qualify with a 21 ACT (or SAT equivalent), a qualifying Praxis Core score, or a 3.0 GPA overall or on the last 60 hours, plus a passing Praxis Subject Assessment. The approved programs are the Teach Mississippi Institute, the Master of Arts in Teaching and iteach Mississippi, which lead to a three-year alternate route license, and the American Board Certification for Teacher Excellence, which leads to a one-year license. After a one-year mentored or supervised internship and the program's remaining coursework or modules, candidates apply for the five-year alternate route educator license.

1. Hold a non-education bachelor's degree from a regionally or nationally accredited institution
2. Meet the academic threshold: 21 ACT (or SAT equivalent), a qualifying Praxis Core score, or a 3.0 GPA overall or on the last 60 hours
3. Pass the Praxis Subject Assessment for your licensure area
4. Enroll in an approved program: Teach Mississippi Institute, Master of Arts in Teaching, American Board or iteach Mississippi
5. Finish the pre-teaching training or coursework and apply for the three-year (American Board: one-year) alternate route license
6. Teach through a one-year mentored or supervised internship and complete the remaining program requirements
7. Apply for the five-year alternate route educator license

Source: sos.ms.gov

Changing careers into teaching in Mississippi

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 15 programs below are on the state's approved list, and one of them says its coursework is online.

For pay context, the median annual wage for high school teachers in Mississippi was $50,980 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.

Licensed in another state

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

Five Year Educator License, Reciprocity

The department grants a standard five-year license to anyone who holds a valid standard license from another state, or from another country or political subdivision, within 21 days of a completed application. Applicants upload a copy of the out-of-state license to their MECCA account and have official transcripts for all college coursework sent, and a valid out-of-state Class AA, AAA or AAAA license in a Mississippi endorsement area qualifies for the matching higher class. Educators who complete a non-traditional program outside Mississippi must first be licensed in another state and then apply through reciprocity.

1. Hold a valid standard educator license issued outside Mississippi
2. Apply online through the Mississippi Educator Career Continuum Archive (MECCA) system
3. Upload a PDF copy of your valid out-of-state license to your MECCA account
4. Have official transcripts for all college coursework sent electronically by each institution
5. Receive the standard five-year license, which the department issues within 21 days of a completed application

Source: sos.ms.gov

Required tests, codes and qualifying scores

Mississippi uses Praxis and 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

Anyone doing field experience or student teaching in Mississippi schools, including candidates from out-of-state programs, must hold a Pre-Service Teacher License, which requires documentation of a cleared criminal background check; the Resident Teacher License and the Performance-Based Teacher License carry the same requirement. Under Miss. Code Ann. 37-3-2(11), as set out in the guidelines, a license application may be denied for a felony conviction or guilty plea, or while on felony probation, and must be denied for a sex offense conviction or guilty plea. The guidelines do not set a background check fee. Source

Your first license

License: Five Year Educator License (Class A). It is valid for 5 years. Class levels follow the highest degree: Class A (bachelor's), AA (master's), AAA (specialist) and AAAA (doctorate). Licenses expire on June 30 of the expiration year, and a five-year license issued during a school year counts that year as its first. Alternate route candidates start on a three-year alternate route license (one year for American Board) before the five-year license. Source

Renewal

Only a five-year standard license can be renewed, for one five-year period beyond its expiration date, using credits earned within the renewal cycle shown on the license. Class A holders need 10 CEUs, 6 semester hours, or 3 semester hours plus 5 CEUs in their content or job/skill area, and Class AA, AAA and AAAA holders need 3 semester hours or 5 CEUs. Completing the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards process, official documentation of retirement from Mississippi public schools, or a valid standard out-of-state license submitted in the final year of the Mississippi license also qualifies. Coursework needs a grade of C or higher, and 10 contact or clock hours equal 1 CEU. Requirement: Class A: 10 CEUs, 6 semester hours, or 3 semester hours plus 5 CEUs every 5 years (Class AA and above: 3 semester hours or 5 CEUs). Source

Teacher pay in Mississippi

Elementary teachers in Mississippi earned a median of $49,790 a year in May 2025, $14,180 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

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

• Mathematics (statewide)
• Science (statewide)
• Special Education (statewide)
• World Languages (statewide)

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