How to Become a Teacher in Utah: 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.

Standard University Preparation Program

Candidates enroll in an approved university or college educator preparation program and earn their degree and teacher training at the same time, finishing with a full-time semester of student teaching under a mentor teacher. Graduates receive a bachelor's or master's degree and an institutional recommendation, which the Utah State Board of Education uses to issue the Professional Educator License. Utah has ten university-based programs, and the state offers student teaching stipends of up to $6,000.

1. Enroll in an approved Utah university or college educator preparation program
2. Complete content and teaching coursework plus early field experience
3. Complete a full-time semester of student teaching
4. Pass the Utah Foundations of Reading Assessment if earning an Early Childhood, Elementary or Special Education license
5. Create a USIMS account, finish the checklist and pass the USBE background check
6. Confirm your university's recommendation in USIMS within 30 days

Source: schools.utah.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 Pathway to Professional Educator License (APPEL)

APPEL is a USBE-approved alternative route that lets candidates earn a Professional Educator License while working as a paid teacher, through a program run by a school district, charter school or other approved sponsor. Most programs require employment with a partnering district or charter school, and some require an Associate Educator License before admission. Candidates complete a Professional Learning Plan with coursework, mentoring and observed teaching, then the program director recommends them for the professional license.

1. Get hired by a Utah district or charter school that hosts or partners with an approved APPEL program
2. Apply for an Associate Educator License if your employer requires it
3. Apply directly to the APPEL program director
4. Create a Professional Learning Plan with your APPEL director
5. Complete coursework, mentoring and evaluations while teaching
6. Apply for the Professional Educator License after the director's recommendation

Source: schools.utah.gov

Changing careers into teaching in Utah

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.

For pay context, the median annual wage for high school teachers in Utah was $76,330 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 Utah.

License Equivalency Review (LER)

Educators with a bachelor's degree, a completed preparation program and a standard renewable license from another state or country apply through the License Equivalency Review in the SM Apply portal. Utah participates in the Interstate Teacher Mobility Compact, so holders of a professional license from another member state are granted an equivalent Utah license; probationary, provisional, LEA-specific and associate licenses do not qualify. Applicants also complete a Utah background check and send official transcripts.

1. Create a USIMS educator account and complete the checklist items
2. Request the background check in USIMS and submit fingerprints
3. Gather a copy of your out-of-state or international license
4. Have official transcripts sent directly to USBE
5. Submit the LER application in SM Apply

Source: schools.utah.gov

Required tests, codes and qualifying scores

Utah 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

All Utah educators must pass a criminal background check by the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification before receiving a license, requested in USIMS with a valid Social Security number. Applicants in Utah are fingerprinted at a LiveScan site, while applicants outside Utah mail a standard FD-258 fingerprint card; background checks from other states cannot be shared with USBE. Fee: $25 LiveScan site fee plus $20 BCI fee; fees outside Utah vary. Source

Your first license

License: Professional Educator License. It is valid for 5 school years. The Associate Educator License, for people teaching before finishing a preparation program, is valid for 3 school years and cannot be renewed; employed educators can request a one-time extension of up to 2 school years. Source

Renewal

Utah educator licenses stay valid through June 30 of their expiration year, can be renewed in USIMS starting January 1 of that year, and carry no renewal fee. Educators who worked in a Utah school for the entire past five years do not need a renewal form; others document at least 100 renewal hours on a form signed by a licensed administrator. Every renewal includes the Utah Educator Ethics Review. Requirement: 100 renewal hours every 5 years (form not required for educators employed in a Utah school for all 5 years). Source

Teacher pay in Utah

Elementary teachers in Utah earned a median of $74,810 a year in May 2025, $10,840 above 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

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

• Core Subjects: Elementary Education (statewide)

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