Certification endorsements reflect completion of specialized training in addition to an educator's certification fields.  Some endorsements may be required to teach a specific course in a South Carolina public school district, while others serve as testaments to an educator's dedication to continuing professional development in a specialized area.

Certification Endorsements

• Advanced Placement (AP)
• English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)
• Gifted and Talented
• Online Teaching
• Project-based Learning
• Read to Succeed Literacy Requirement
• Read to Succeed Literacy Teacher
• Read to Succeed Literacy Coach
• Read to Succeed Literacy Specialist
• Science, Technology, Arts, Engineering, Mathematics (STEAM) Education
• Secondary Transition Specialist
• Teacher Leader
• Teaching Children of Poverty

Endorsement Eligibility

Requirements for adding certification endorsements vary; please refer to the Guidelines and Requirements for Adding Certification Fields and Endorsements for eligibility advisement.
To add any specialized endorsement to a teaching certificate, an educator must meet the following pre-requisites:

• Bachelor's degree or higher;
• Initial, Professional, or Alternative Route certificate at the early childhood, elementary, middle, secondary, or PK-12 Level*; and
• Completion of all required coursework with an equivalent grade of “C” or better.

An examination/assessment is not required to add an endorsement.

Adding Endorsements

Once all eligibility criteria are met, educators must submit all of the following in order to add a certification endorsement:

• Submit a request using My SC Educator Portal
• Submit Official Sealed Transcripts (if semester credit coursework is required)
• Submit certificates of completion (if training or professional development is required)
  • Certificates may be uploaded using My SC Educator Portal

Online Teaching Endorsement Waiver Requirements

Online Teaching is an optional specialized certification endorsement intended to enhance an educator’s skills and knowledge beyond that required for traditional teaching and to prepare the individual to teach classes within an online environment. The online endorsement is only valid for educators to teach in the specific content area(s) in which they are certified.
Coursework required to complete this endorsement may be waived and certification in Online Teaching granted for teachers who have successfully taught three online courses through an accredited educational institution or professional development program that meets the following requirements:

1. The courses must have been taught within three calendar years of the date of application for the waiver.
2. The courses must have been designed to be delivered in a fully online course format.
3. The courses must have been delivered utilizing fully online facilitation methods.
4. The duration of the courses must have represented an entire credit of academic course work.
5. The courses must have been taught through an accredited education institution or professional development program approved by the SCDE. Qualifying programs include State Board of Education-approved district virtual programs under Proviso 1.91, a state-authorized virtual charter school, an SCDE-approved virtual program, or a regionally accredited institution of higher education.

Educators that meet these criteria may apply for an Online Teaching endorsement waiver by submitting the following materials to the Office of Virtual Education at OnlineTeachingWaiver@ed.sc.gov:

• A signed verification statement from a school administrator on school letterhead that states: 
  • the applicant's name,
  • the applicant's certification number,
  • the name of the course(s) taught online, and
  • the date that the courses were taught online at their institution
• A completed Online Teaching Endorsement Waiver Form

After being evaluated and approved by the Office of Virtual Education, educators can then submit a request and upload their signed form using My SC Educator Portal.