• Bachelor's Degree from an accredited institution
  Degree must be verifiable through an official transcript showing date the degree was conferred (unofficial transcripts may be used for the appointment with act.houston)

• Minimum cumulative grade point average (gpa) of 2.5 on a 4 point system, or 2.75 on the last 60 hours of coursework completed

Step 1 - Appointment for Program Overview and Acceptance

• Completed Program Application (can be downloaded or completed at the time of the appt.

• Critical Thinking Skills Admission Test - a minimum score set by ACT with 1 retake allowed to meet this minimum score 

• Competence in speaking and writing English
• Transcript* Evaluation to determine approved certification for the following areas.
  *Please note that unofficial transcripts may be used at the time of your appointment to evaluate your coursework; however, upon acceptance into the program, official transcripts must be delivered to the ACT Houston office. 
  ***Just a reminder.... Bring copies of ALL of your transcripts.
  
  EC-4 & 4-8 Generalist, EC-4 & 4-8 Bilingual Generalist, EC-12 Special Education, and EC-4 and 4-8 English as a Second Language Generalist certifications:
  Minimum 2.5 gpa for 24 hrs. in English, Mathematics, Science & Social Studies. 
  In addition, for EC-4 & 4-8 Bilingual Generalist:  a 2.5 gpa for 6+ hrs. in Spanish/proficiency in Spanish.  Bilingual candidates will also register, pay for ($82), and take the TOPT (Texas Oral Proficiency Test).
  
  4-8 certifications:
  Minimum 2.5 gpa for 24 hrs. in single specialized area, Mathematics or English Language Arts and Reading, with 12 advanced (upper level) hours in this area and gpa of 2.75 for these advanced (upper level) hours
  Science:  minimum 2.5 gpa for 24 hrs. from a combination of 3 of these 4 areas:  Biology, Chemistry, Physics, or Geology/Astronomy and 2.75 for 12 advanced hrs. of the total 24 
  Social Studies:  minimum 2.5 gpa for 24 hrs. in Social Studies courses such as history, government, geography/economics and 2.75 gpa for 12 advanced hrs.
  English Language Arts-Reading/Social Studies: minimum 2.5 gpa for 12 hrs. of English and 12 hrs. from a combination of Social Studies (History, Government, or Geography/Economics) and a 2.75 gpa for 6 advanced hrs. of English & 6 advanced hrs. of Social Studies courses
  Mathematics-Science:  minimum 2.5 gpa for 12 hrs. of Math and 12 hrs. of Science from a combination of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, or Geology/Astronomy and a 2.75 for 6 advanced hrs. in Math and 6 advanced hrs. from any of the Sciences
  
  8-12 certifications:
  Minimum of 2.5 gpa for 24 hrs. in single specialized area (Mathematics, English Language Arts & Reading, History, or Life Science [Biology]) and a 2.75 gpa for 12 advanced hrs. of the 24
  Science:  minimum 2.5 gpa for 33 hrs. with 9 hrs. in Physics, 9 hrs. in Cheminstry, and 15 hrs. in Biology and a 2.75 gpa for 18 advanced hrs (8 of which must be in Biology)
  Physical Science:  minimum 2.5 gpa for 33 hrs. with 15 hrs. in Physics and 15 hrs. in Chemistry and 2.75 gpa for 18 advanced hrs., 9 from each area
  Social Studies:  minimum 2.5 gpa for 33 hrs. with 21 hrs. in History (12 in U.S. and 9 in World) plus 12 hrs. from a combination of Geography, Government, Political Science, and Economics and a 2.75 gpa for 18 advanced hrs. of the 33
  
  EC-12 Art, Music, and Physical Education certification:
  Minimum of 2.5 gpa for 33 hrs. in specialized area and a 2.75 gpa for 24 advanced hrs.
  
  Other certifications include:
  Technology Applications, Computer Science, Family & Consumer Science, Health Science Technology Education, Health, Speech Communication, Journalism, Theatre, Dance, Spanish, French, German, Latin, American Sign Language, Physics/Mathematics, Physical Science/Mathematics/Engineering

Step 2 - Institute (Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer) Preparation Program 
               Components 

• Foundations for Effective Teaching
• Classroom and Behavior Management
• Curriculum Planning and Research-based Instructional Strategies, including technology

• Human Development Preparation

• Process of Becoming a Reader

• Equity for the Exceptional Learner

• Equity for the English Language Learner

• Assessment and State Accountability  

Step 3 - The Two-Semester Teaching Internship

The two-semester teaching internship begins when an ACT Houston candidate signs a contract as a full-time teacher of record and receives a salary paid by the employing school district.  The Internship Fee described below (Program Fees Disclosure) is payroll-deducted by the school district during the two-semester internship.

The Internship Fee is determined by the date when a teaching contract is signed -- not by the date of the Institute attended.  For example, all interns who began teaching during the first semester of the 2005-2006 school year, will pay the 2005-2006 Internship Fee described below. 
 

The fees described above do not include the following fees that must be completed and paid online by the Intern:
$52 - Probationary Certificate (paid prior to the start of Internshiip)
$77 - Standard Certificate (paid upon completion of Internship & all program requirements)
$52 - Fingerprint Fee (intern must pay this processing fee as well as the digital print fee of $9.95
$82 (PBT) or $117 (CAT) - Registration Fee for the TExES Content Exam taken during the Institute.
$82 (PBT) or (CAT) - Registration Fee for the TExES PPR (Pedagogy & Professional Responsibility) Exam.
(Both the TExES Content & PPR exams are required for certification and to be considered "Highly Qualified" as defined by "No Child Left Behind".

EC-4 Bilingual Generalist candidates will also pay:
$82 Registration Fee for the TOPT (Texas Oral Proficiency Test)

NOTE: Interns requiring an additional one-year Probationary Certificate will be charged $500.00 (processing fee/ review sessions). Intern must pay online for the prob. cert. ($52.00).