Wisconsin Educator Licensure
For Individuals Prepared Outside The United States

Wisconsin does not have license reciprocity with other countries. The Department of Public Instruction cannot issue a Wisconsin educator license solely on the basis of licensure, teaching experience, and/or advanced degrees in another country or territory.

However, teachers prepared outside the United States may be eligible for a license to teach in Wisconsin. Due to vast differences among nations in training and license requirements, before the department can determine if you are eligible for a Wisconsin license, you must have your transcripts of credit, pattern of training, and degrees awarded evaluated by a professional evaluation service. Only through this detailed or course-by-course evaluation process can it be determined if foreign preparation is equivalent to the preparation required for a license in Wisconsin. Note: A credential evaluation is not required for applicants prepared in a U.S. territory at a regionally accredited institution.

Step 1: Contact a private agency for an assessment of your credentials in terms of degree, course equivalence and translation of course titles. There are numerous foreign transcript evaluation agencies and fees vary. A listing of agencies accredited through the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) is available at the NACES website. You may also use the course-by-course evaluation service provided to individuals by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers.

Step 2: Carefully review the credential evaluation report prepared by the evaluation service. You may be eligible for a Wisconsin teaching license if the evaluation indicates that you have either:
A) earned the equivalent of a bachelor's degree in education, or
B) earned the equivalent of a bachelor's degree with teacher training and received a teacher certificate or credential.

Step 3: If you believe that you are eligible for Wisconsin licensure, based on the credential evaluation report, then submit a PI-1602-OS application form to the Department of Public Instruction. Attach the course-by-course evaluation report to your application. Your credential evaluation report will be accepted as documentation for the Institutional Endorsement section of the application form.

Note: The department cannot issue a license until the applicant has supplied his or her social security number or submitted a notarized statement that he or she does not have a social security number. You may obtain a social security number by following the instructions on the Social Security Administration's website. You must furnish DPI with a social security number as soon as one is obtained. Some applicants will also be required to submit fingerprint cards.

Send the completed license application form, fee payment, detailed credential evaluation and all other required documentation to:
DPI Teacher Licensing, Drawer 794, Milwaukee, WI 53293-0794.

NOTE: If your credential evaluation does NOT verify at least a bachelor's degree in education or completion of a teacher training program BUT DOES indicate that you have a bachelor's degree in any subject area, you may be eligible for a three-year short-term substitute teaching permit. This permit allows the holder to accept substitute teaching assignments of 20 or fewer days.

An employing school district must request the substitute permit on behalf of the applicant. If you are interested in obtaining this permit, submit a PI-1602-SP application form to the Department of Public Instruction. Attach the course-by-course evaluation report to your application. Your credential evaluation report will be accepted as documentation of your bachelor's degree. As noted above, fingerprint cards may be required.

Please direct any questions to Educator Licensing.

Last updated on 7/1/2008 1:48:42 PM