Welcome
Stonehill College students in the Education Studies Department majors that seek teacher licensure at the end of their program must successfully complete the following steps.
Register and create an account as a teacher candidate in the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) Electronic Licensure and Renewal (ELAR) system.
Receive satisfactory ratings on the Candidate Assessment of Performance (CAP).
Complete the approved course of study leading to a bachelor’s degree (or graduate degree) and endorsement for licensure.
Receive passing scores on all MA Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL), specific to the teacher licensure area.
Apply for licensure through the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).
Additional information is provided below.
Education Studies majors seeking a teacher license must set up an Electronic Licensure and Renewal (ELAR) account through the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). Through this process, students will receive a unique, 8-digit Massachusetts Education Personnel ID (MEPID) number, which you will need to report to Stonehill (see below).
This is required before:
You can sign up for MA Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL),
You can be assigned to a practicum in the Candidate Assessment of Performance (CAP) system, a necessary mechanism for all data to be shared with DESE, and
Stonehill can endorse you for licensure when you complete the program and degree requirements.
To set up an ELAR account:
Click on this link to set up an ELAR account:
Use your personal, not Stonehill email address.
Receive and record your MEPID (Massachusetts Education Personnel ID), a unique identifier assigned in ELAR.
Complete this form to automatically report your MEPID number to the college CAP manager.
CAP assesses a teacher candidate's readiness in relation to the Professional Standards for Teachers (PSTs). CAP parallels the Massachusetts Educator Evaluation system in order to better prepare teacher candidates and ensure that they are ready to be effective on day one. It measures teacher candidates' practice across a range of key indicators as outlined in the Guidelines for the Professional Standards for Teachers and supports them in improving their practice based on the results.
Successful completion of CAP is required to complete all teacher preparation programs. Stonehill is required to send to DESE all formative and summative ratings for all CAP participants by uploading their data to the CAP Online Platform.
Passing the MTEL Communication and Literacy Skills test (reading and writing subtests) is required for all types of licenses (teacher, specialist teacher and administrator). In addition, other MTEL assessments are required, including a subject matter test(s) for most teacher and specialist teacher licenses. For information about specific license requirements, including required tests, see the Department's Office of Educator Licensure web page.
To obtain an Initial License through the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, students must meet the following criteria:
Have a bachelor's degree from an approved educator preparation program in Massachusetts.
Have passed all required MTEL tests.
Hold the SEI endorsement (core academic teacher, principal/assistant principal, or supervisor/director only).
Successful completion of an approved educator preparation program.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
