Welcome to the Division of Educator Licensure! Our mission is to assist all Mississippi current and prospective educators to obtain and maintain standard certification and to implement licensure guidelines set by the Mississippi State Board of Education. We appreciate the opportunity to serve you as you serve the children of Mississippi. On this landing page, you will find applications, forms, and other helpful tools to assist you in navigating the licensure process. Please do not hesitate to reach out to our office if we can support you in any way.
Click here for the frequently asked questions regarding the impact of COVID-19 on certification requirements.
Please visit our "Licensure Updates" page for information related to licensure processing and test center closures.
**REMINDER**: Please be mindful effective with completed application packets received July 1, 2021, and thereafter, Citizens of the United States are required to submit appropriate documentation for verification once during their next most immediate licensure application submission. Non-US citizens are required to submit appropriate documentation for verification with each licensure application submission, or when their United States Citizenship and Immigration Services documents expire, whichever comes first. Required forms and additional information found therein, can be accessed via the following web link: [https://www.mdek12.org/OEL/Forms].
Now processing:
• Renewal applications received the week of September 17, 2021
• All other applications received the week of September 16, 2021
Please note that we are experiencing an enormous increase in the number of application requests received. This has caused an increase in the application processing time. To help us in our efforts to process your application more efficiently, we ask that you please allow at least three to five weeks of processing time before contacting the Division of Educator Licensure to inquire about the status. You may also continue to visit your ELMS account to review the status. As always, we value and appreciate the opportunity to serve you.
Effective for licensure applications received and/or new required documents uploaded on or after August 17, 2021
All application statuses are placed in one of four categories: Open, Pending, Closed, or Re-Opened. Each category is defined as follows:
Open: Application received, but not yet reviewed by a licensure specialist.
Pending: Application received and reviewed by a licensure specialist. It was determined that additional documentation is required for further review. Please refer to the requirements letters submitted to you by email or view the letter on the “Correspondence” page of your ELMS account. See the comment section of the pending application(s) on the “Credentials” page of your ELMS account for updates.
Closed: Application received and reviewed by a licensure specialist. Closed requests should result in an issuance of license. If your licensure application is more than 180 days old, your application will be closed with no further action taken by the MDE. Should you desire, you may submit a new licensure application for review.
Reopened: Application previously received and reviewed by Licensure Specialist. Additional documentation was received from you by request of your Licensure Specialist via a requirements letter, which was sent to you by email, postal mail and/or accessed via your ELMS account. Your application is open for further review.
Contact Us
Email: teachersupport@mdek12.org
Call: 601-359-3483
Call Center Hours of operation: Monday-Friday 9:00am- 4:00pm CST
When calling the Division of Educator Licensure to speak with a member of the Licensure Team, please note that the average hold time is between four (4) to seven (7) minutes. Please do not hold the line for longer than ten (10) minutes. Click teachersupport@mdek12.org and request a call back, or try your call again later.
To check the status of your application, log into your ELMS account.