Teacher Certification Pathways (TCP)
Teacher Certification Pathways (TCP) offers three distinct paths for people who hold a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university to earn a Pennsylvania Instructional I certification.
In 1985, the Pennsylvania Department of Education approved the Wilson College Teacher Intern Pathway (TIP). Wilson offers TIP certification in: early childhood (Pre-K-4) education; English/language arts, mathematics, science or social studies at the middle (4-8) level; in English, biology, chemistry, mathematics or social studies at the secondary (7-12) level; and Pre-K-12 special education; Spanish; business, computer and information technology; or health and physical education.
While offering the same certifications as TIP, the Teacher Online Pathway (TOP) was created in 2018 to provide an online and accelerated pathway that is accessible statewide. The certification program requires successful completion in three areas: course work, state testing and the student/intern teaching practicum component.
The Foreign Language Intern Pathway (FLIP) was created in 2017 to offer Pre-K-12 certification in the following: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Latin, Mandarin, Russian, and Spanish. To enter this pathway, the FLIP student must have passed all state testing and be employed as a foreign language teacher. Once admitted to the program, the student is eligible for the intern certificate issued by the state of PA, allowing the student to complete student teaching while employed.
In 2020, the Education Division received approval to offer PA certification to out-of-state residents.The Teacher Online Pathway out-of-state
(TOP OS) is recommended for students who live and teach in another state and want to earn Pennsylvania certification. TOP OS offers the same certifications as TIP and TOP. All courses, excluding intern teaching, are offered online. After completing the program, the candidate can transfer the PA certification to another state. View more information on
how teacher credentials cross state lines. In order to be eligible for this program, the candidate must hold a PK-12 teaching position in one of the TOP certification areas. Pennsylvania state testing must be passed prior to completing intern teaching. In addition, the candidate will be required to apply for a Pennsylvania Intern Certificate through PDE prior to intern teaching.
Wilson College offers the traditional post-baccalaureate route to Pennsylvania Instructional I certification: application, acceptance, student-specific program design, coursework, standardized state testing and student teaching, which rounds out the program, resulting in achievement of the state-issued certificate. An alternate route may also be taken.
The concept of the intern certificate was developed to provide an alternate route to certification for an Instructional I certificate. The Wilson Teacher Certification Pathways, in compliance with PDE guidelines, has incorporated this option into the program. The student can begin his/her prescribed program of study once accepted, but must pass state-required testing and secure professional paid employment to obtain the intern certificate which is valid for three years. The intern student can complete student teaching while employed, and will receive continuous, long-term supervision while simultaneously taking the academic coursework required for the Instructional I certification.