How to Become a Teacher in Georgia

To teach in a Georgia public school, you need a bachelor's degree, completion of a GaPSC-approved educator preparation program, passing scores on the required GACE exams, and a passing score on the Georgia Educator Ethics Assessment.

From a standing start with no degree, the traditional path takes about four years. If you already have a bachelor's degree in another field, you can take an alternative route, most commonly GaTAPP, and earn certification in 12 to 24 months while teaching full-time. Either way, the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) issues the certificate, and the GACE is the exam series you'll take to prove subject-area knowledge.

What's the Traditional Path to Teaching in Georgia?

f you're starting from a recent high school graduation or planning to switch into education from your current undergraduate program, this is the route most people take. Four steps, in order:

1. Earn a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university

Your major depends on the grade level and subject you want to teach. Elementary education candidates often major in elementary education or early childhood education. Secondary teachers typically major in their content area (math, English, history, biology) and pair it with a teacher preparation component.

GaPSC requires a minimum 2.5 GPA for certification. Some preparation programs set their own higher GPA minimums.

2. Complete a GaPSC-approved educator preparation program

This is non-negotiable. Georgia teaching certification requires completion of a GaPSC-approved program. Most candidates handle this through their undergraduate degree at a Georgia college or university with an approved program. If you already have a degree in another field, you'll complete a post-baccalaureate program instead (see the alternative path section below).

The program covers teaching methods, classroom management, child development, and a supervised student teaching placement, typically a full semester in a Georgia classroom.

3. Pass the required GACE assessments for your subject area and certification level

This is where most of the testing happens. Depending on your prep program start date and teaching field, you'll likely need to pass:

• A GACE Content Assessment for your subject (Mathematics, Biology, English, Early Childhood Education, Special Education, and so on). Each content area has its own exam or set of testlets. You need a passing scaled score of 220 at the Induction level, or 250 at the Professional level.
• A GACE Literacy Assessment if you're beginning an initial teacher preparation program on or after June 1, 2025. The literacy test you take depends on your field: most elementary, birth-through-kindergarten, and special education candidates take the Application of the Science of Reading (418), while middle grades and secondary candidates typically take the Fundamentals of the Science of Reading (350).

4. Pass the Georgia Educator Ethics Assessment and apply for certification

The Georgia Educator Ethics Assessment (test 351, GACE Ethics for Teachers) covers professional conduct standards for Georgia educators. It's a self-paced, module-based assessment you can complete online. You get up to five attempts per end-of-module test to pass.

Once you've passed all required tests and completed your preparation program, you apply to the Georgia Professional Standards Commission through your MyPSC account for an Induction Certificate, Georgia's entry-level teaching credential. The Induction Certificate is valid for 3 years and converts to a Professional Certificate after you complete the required teaching experience and any remaining program requirements.

Is There a Faster Way to Get Certified in Georgia?

If you already have a bachelor's degree in something other than education, you don't have to go back for a second degree. Georgia has alternative routes designed for career changers, including people moving in from industry, the military, or another career altogether.

GaTAPP (Georgia Teacher Academy for Preparation and Pedagogy)

GaTAPP is the most common alternative pathway. It's a job-embedded preparation program, meaning you teach full-time in a Georgia classroom while completing the program over 12 to 24 months. The length depends on your certification area and provider.

To get into GaTAPP, you generally need:

• A bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution
• A passing score on the Georgia Educator Ethics Assessment (test 351) — usually before or shortly after entering the program
• Employment as a full-time teacher of record at a Georgia-accredited school, charter school, or eligible private school in the subject area you're seeking certification in
• A passing score on the GACE content assessment for your field (some programs require this at admission; others allow you to complete it during the program)

GaTAPP is administered through Regional Educational Service Agencies (RESAs), some school districts, and approved universities. Each provider has slightly different admission requirements, costs, and seminar schedules.

Other routes

Some career changers go through post-baccalaureate programs at Georgia colleges and universities, or pursue a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT). Others come in through other GaPSC-approved non-traditional programs. The right route depends on your subject area, where you live, and whether you've already lined up a teaching job.

A real note on GaTAPP

GaTAPP is harder than it sounds. You're teaching full-time and completing a preparation program at the same time. Most candidates describe their first year as the hardest year of their career. It's also less flexible than traditional college coursework: seminars are usually in-person and on Saturdays. If you have the option to slow down and use a traditional or post-bac route, weigh it honestly before committing to the job-embedded path.

What GACE Tests Do You Need to Take?

The GACE (Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators) is administered by Evaluation Systems, Pearson in partnership with the Georgia Professional Standards Commission. There isn't one "GACE" — there are different tests depending on what you'll teach.

The exams every Georgia teacher candidate takes

1. A Content Assessment for your subject area. Subject-specific. Required for certification. Most content assessments cost $169 for the full combined assessment. Specialized exams like School Counseling, School Psychology, and School Librarian run $263. (Source: GACE Assessment Fee Schedule, Evaluation Systems, Pearson, verified June 2026 at gace.es.pearson.com.)
2. A Literacy Assessment. Required for candidates beginning initial teacher prep on or after June 1, 2025. The Fundamentals of the Science of Reading (350) and Application of the Science of Reading (418) each cost $90.
3. Georgia Educator Ethics Assessment (test 351). Self-paced training and assessment modules covering professional conduct. Required for all new educators. You get up to five attempts per end-of-module test to pass. The fee is $30.

How GACE scoring works

Most GACE content assessments use a 100–300 scaled score. To pass at the Induction level (entry-level certification), you need a 220. To pass at the Professional level (which qualifies you for a higher-tier certificate), you need a 250.

If you don't pass on the first attempt, you can retake the same exam or testlet after 30 calendar days. There's no limit on retakes, though each attempt costs the full exam fee.

How Much Do Georgia Teachers Get Paid?

Knowing what you'll make matters, especially if you're a career changer running the math on whether teaching can support your household.

Georgia's state minimum starting salary for the 2025–2026 school year is $43,592 for a teacher with a bachelor's degree on a 10-month contract.

The average Georgia teacher salary across all experience levels is around $64,461 per year (National Education Association data, most recent published figure). That puts Georgia roughly 20th in the nation for average teacher pay, and 39th for starting pay.

Two things to know about those numbers:

• The state minimum is a floor, not the actual salary. Many metro Atlanta districts, including Fulton County, Cobb County, DeKalb, Atlanta Public Schools, and Gwinnett, pay starting salaries well above the state minimum. Check each district's current salary schedule for specifics.
• Advanced degrees and certifications raise the base. A master's, specialist, or doctorate moves you to a higher step on the state schedule from day one. The schedule also increases with each year of experience.

Which Subjects Can I Teach in Georgia?

Georgia's Department of Education and the Georgia Professional Standards Commission identify several critical shortage areas:

• Special Education (all levels), Science (especially Chemistry, Physics, and Earth/Space Sciences), Math (middle and high school), World Languages (particularly Spanish, French, and ESOL), and Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education (CTAE).

• Middle Grades certifications are also in consistent demand. Rural districts across the state tend to face the most acute staffing shortages, which can mean faster hiring and, in some cases, loan forgiveness or tuition assistance for teachers in qualifying subjects.

Each subject has its own GACE content assessment and, in some cases, its own degree or coursework requirements. The right choice usually comes down to two questions: what you actually want to teach, and what kind of teaching job you can realistically get hired into in your area.

Is Teaching In Georgia The Right Move For Me?

This is the part most state guides skip. A few honest things to weigh before you commit to the path:

Teaching in Georgia might be a good fit if:

• You want a career with a clear, well-defined entry process and meaningful work
• You're okay with a starting salary in the $43K–$55K range (depending on district) while you build seniority
• You're comfortable with the GaTAPP option's intensity if you're career-changing — full-time teaching plus a preparation program is real
• You can commit to one school year at a time (Georgia teaching contracts are annual)

It might not be the right move if:

• You need to earn more than $50K in your first year and can't relocate to a higher-paying metro district
• You're considering it primarily because of the schedule — the 10-month contract is real, but the workweek during the school year is closer to 50+ hours than 40
• You haven't talked to current Georgia teachers about what the day-to-day actually looks like — that conversation is worth more than any guide

Most candidates we hear from describe the GACE itself as more manageable than the path to take it — once they know which test they're taking and put real time on the diagnostic, the exam stops feeling like the bottleneck.

Where to start

The path looks long when you're staring at it from the beginning. The reality is that most Georgia teachers describe the certification process as straightforward once they have the route figured out — the hard part is choosing the route.

Two things worth doing this week:

1. Identify the subject area you want to teach. Everything downstream — which GACE you take, which preparation programs are open to you, which districts will hire you — flows from this one decision.
2. Take a free GACE practice test for that subject. Before you spend money on a prep program, find out where you actually stand. A diagnostic tells you whether you need months of preparation or a few weeks of targeted review.