Elementary Education – Certification Only

The length of time required to complete the Certification-Only option at Piedmont varies. A minimum of 15 credit hours must be completed in a Piedmont program, unless otherwise approved by the Chair of the department. (add- An Academic advisor will review undergraduate and graduate transcripts to create an individual program of study). Classes are offered face to face, hybrid, and fully online – but not fully online. Certification-Only candidates complete 3 internships. Internship I is observation-based and requires 120 contact hours across the semester; however, work experience as a paraprofessional or provisional teacher may be used for experiential credit for internship I. Internship II focuses on co-teaching and classroom management and requires 360 classroom hours. Internship III (student teaching) is the cumulating experience and requires 600 classroom hours (a semester of full-time teaching). The program can accommodate most paraprofessional and provisional teachers’ work environments as their internship placement.

Piedmont’s elementary education certificate program will provide you with a PK-5 certification for the state of Georgia. Teaching options will include preschools, elementary school (public and private). It also qualifies you to pursue add-on certifications, administrator certifications, counseling, coaching, and other graduate level degree work in or outside of education. Our students typically receive their certificate two weeks after all certification requirements are met (provided paperwork is successfully completed and submitted).

To enroll in Piedmont’s elementary education certificate program, you must have a minimum of a master’s degree with a 2.5 cumulative GPA from an accredited college or university. Applicants must also provide/complete:

1. Graduate Admissions Application
2. Official, final transcripts from all colleges and universities attended
3. Two Professional References
4. Personal Affirmation Form
5. If you are a returning BA or MA Educational Studies graduate from Piedmont University, you may return within five years as a certification only student.  A prerequisite for admission as a certification-only student is successful completion of the appropriate GACE content tests.

(NOTE: If you currently hold a professional teacher certification and want to add another certification, you may apply for the certification only program with only a BA degree).

The elementary education department chair approves certification-only courses, based on a transcript analysis, to meet minimum state certification requirements. Your academic advisor can discuss the criteria for experiential credit and will review your transcript to create an individualized plan specific to your individual needs. Certification-only is not a degree program. All other procedures and requirements of Piedmont University and the College of Education apply. Candidates must apply for and be admitted to Teacher Education at the beginning of the program. To complete elementary education certification requirements, candidates must pass the Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators (GACE) content examination in their selected certification field. (NOTE: Completion of this course of study does not lead to a degree in education.)