Alternative Teacher Certification in Colorado

Colorado alternative certification requirements, step by step

Each requirement below is stated as Colorado Department of Education — Educator Licensing publishes it, with the governing source cited.

1. 1

   Hold a degree, pick an endorsement, and enroll in an approved alternative program

   Colorado alternative preparation lets you teach while completing a program aligned to the Teacher Quality Standards. Most programs last one to two years; special education generalist may need a third year. Alternative licenses and interim authorizations are issued in one content area only.

   Source: ed.cde.state.co.us

2. 2

   Choose Alternative Teacher License or Interim Authorization

   Use the Alternative Teacher License if you have already shown content knowledge via a degree in the content area, 24 semester hours on an official transcript, or a passing Colorado-approved Praxis score. Early childhood, early childhood special education, elementary, and special education generalist must use the exam or an “adequate evidence” Multiple Measures notice. Use Interim Authorization if you have a teaching position and program enrollment but have not yet demonstrated content knowledge—you must do so during the program.

   Source: ed.cde.state.co.us

3. 3

   Secure a teaching position and submit CBI fingerprints

   Interim authorization candidates must have a teaching position and be enrolled in an approved Colorado alternative program. All applicants submit fingerprints to CBI for CDE licensure purposes and apply in COOL within 30 days of CDE receiving the check. Alternative candidates print under the Educator Licensing Act, not the student-teaching statute.

   Source: ed.cde.state.co.us

4. 4

   Apply for ALTERNATIVE TEACHER in COOL

   Upload official transcripts (unofficial copies are never accepted), program documentation, content-competency evidence or the interim pathway materials, and identification. CDE will notify you in COOL and by email if items are missing; you have 60 days from the first notification to upload them. Upon issuance, interim holders receive notice of what they must still do to demonstrate content competency.

   Source: ed.cde.state.co.us

5. 5

   Finish the program and apply for an Initial teacher license

   Alternative licenses last the length of the program. Interim authorizations last one year and may be renewed if needed for a two-year program; CDE says you may renew an interim authorization only once. Completing the alternative program and content competency qualifies you for the three-year Initial teacher license, then induction and the seven-year Professional license.

   Source: ed.cde.state.co.us

The Alternative versus Interim split is Colorado’s way of separating candidates who already own content from those who do not. Hiring a candidate on Interim without a plan for Praxis or Multiple Measures during the program leaves them unable to finish. CDE will tell interim holders, at issuance, exactly what content evidence is still due. Ignoring that notice is how a one-year authorization expires with no Initial license behind it.

Elementary and special education generalist candidates cannot use “I have a bachelor’s in something nearby” as content proof for the Alternative Teacher License. CDE requires the exam or an adequate-evidence Multiple Measures outcome for those fields. Secondary math or science candidates with 24 transcripted semester hours have an easier on-ramp—and should not assume their elementary colleagues can copy that worksheet strategy.

One content area only is a staffing constraint. An alternative license or interim authorization will not carry a stack of endorsements the way a Professional license might after additional worksheets. Districts that need a teacher to cover two preps in unrelated fields must plan a second endorsement path after Initial, not on day one of alternative preparation.

The 60-day deficiency clock inside COOL is separate from the 30-day fingerprint clock. Prints get you into the application; the 60 days start when CDE first says a document is missing. Candidates who change email addresses and miss that COOL/email notice can watch a complete-looking file close. Re-opening means new uploads and, if prints aged out, new fingerprints.

Required exams and fees

Colorado uses Colorado-approved Praxis exams with Multiple Measures of Content Competency (coursework or portfolio) as an alternative demonstration of content knowledge. Fees and cut scores appear only when published by the cited source (as of September 2026).

Moving a license to Colorado

The Alternative Teacher License and Interim Authorization are Colorado program-and-employment credentials. Out-of-state teachers who already completed preparation should use CDE’s out-of-state teacher checklist rather than alternative authorization. CDE’s out-of-state FAQ states licenses never directly transfer and that Colorado requirements for the license sought must still be met.

Official Colorado reciprocity guidance