Career & Technical Education Teacher Certification
In Washington State, those who want to teach career and technical education (CTE) classes in middle school or high school are required to hold a CTE Teacher Certificate or Endorsement. There are two routes to CTE certification: 1) Business and industry route (offered at Olympic College), 2) College or university route. Requirements for the certificate are: 1) Extensive professional experience: (6,000 documented hours of paid occupational experience in a specialty or sub-category area; 2,000 hours in an industry occupation and 4,000 hours in a combination of occupational hours and teaching hours). Military experience may be appropriate to this requirement, and 2) Completion of a CTE Teacher Certification Program. The program is based on the requirements in the Washington Administrative Code WAC 181-77-041. To learn more about the process visit the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) website at http://www.k12.21.us/certification/CTEMain.aspx.