Certificate Upgrade Advisor

ATTENTION: DO NOT ENROLL IN A DEGREE PROGRAM FOR AN UPGRADE UNTIL YOU READ THE INFORMATION BELOW!

Do you currently hold a certificate that can be upgraded?

The following types of certificates can be upgraded:
  • Renewable, professional certificates: Includes Standard Professional, Performance-Based Professional, Advanced Professional, and Lead Professional;
  • 5-year Induction certificates.
The following types of certificates may not be upgraded:
  • Permits, Provisional certificates, International Exchange Certificates, and Paraprofessional Licenses.
If you hold any other type of certificate or license, you do not qualify for a certificate upgrade and the Advisor will not be able to assist you.

Some degrees will not lead to a certificate upgrade! You may upgrade your certificate level by completing a degree program that matches one of your existing fields of certification, or by completing a degree program that prepares you for certification in a new field. If you choose to complete a new field upgrade please visit our Approved Programs page to search a list of GaPSC-approved programs and providers. The college/university at which you complete your advanced degree must also meet certain institutional accreditation requirements. To read more about certificate upgrade requirements, please visit this webpage or read the Certificate Upgrade Rule.

Steps in the Certificate Upgrade Process

To find advanced degrees that will allow you to upgrade your certificate, please follow these steps:
  1. Log into the Certificate Upgrade Advisor using the "Login" button below.
  2. Select an allowable advanced degree program in the Advisor:
    • To explore degrees that would allow you to upgrade within the certificate fields that you currently hold, click “Show Degrees” by each field;
    • To explore degrees that would allow you to add a new field to your certificate while upgrading, choose “New field upgrade” at the top of the page, choose your desired degree level, and choose the field you would like to add.
      Please note: completing a new field upgrade will require passing the appropriate content test in addition to completing the degree.
    • Click the checkbox next to any degree you think you might enroll in, then click “Add to List”.
  3. Save the selected degree program in the Advisor by clicking “Save List” at the bottom of the page. This will save the list of approved degrees to your certification file.
    Please note: you may save multiple lists.
  4. Enroll in the program within 1 year of saving approval confirmation.
    Please note: if you are unable to enroll in the program of your choice within 1 calendar year, simply revisit the Upgrade Advisor and resave the degree to extend the approval for another year.
  5. Complete the degree and submit all application materials to GaPSC.
Saving your selected program(s) of interest automatically creates a document on your certification file that will serve as a permanent record of the degree verification. No further approval confirmation is necessary. All information received through the Advisor is considered an official response, provided you have accessed the advisor through your MyPSC account and saved the information to the list. The GaPSC will not provide additional approval by phone or email for a program you have already confirmed through the advisor.

Login now! Use your MyPSC login credentials to access your advanced degree options which could lead to a certificate upgrade. The advisor will determine your eligibility for an upgrade and help you find acceptable in-field and new field degrees. You will be able to identify degree(s) of interest and save your results to your certification file as a record of GaPSC’s verification of eligibility. GAPSC will honor all upgrade advisor approvals up to one year. If you are unable to enroll in the program within 1 year, simply login to the Upgrade Advisor and check and save the updated approval.

Just browsing? Select the Quick View option for general certificate upgrade information. Since this option cannot access your current certification record, Quick View cannot determine your eligibility for an upgrade or give specific advice tailored to your certification. You will not be able to save Quick View search results.



Any degree that appears in the Upgrade Advisor has already been reviewed by the GaPSC. An in-field degree that is marked yes is approved to lead to an upgrade in your certificate field. One that is marked no will not lead to an upgrade in the certificate field that you have selected. New field degrees are not listed as yes or no; any new field degrees that appear in the advisor are approved to lead to an upgrade as long as you also pass the appropriate content assessment. Please note that if a degree is approved for an upgrade in any certificate field except for Educational Leadership, the resulting upgrade will apply to all of your fields.

Although we are currently expanding our Upgrade Advisor to include as many degree programs as possible, this database is not exhaustive. If you are considering a degree program that is not listed under the related certification field in the Advisor, please submit the program for review using the upgrade/leadership inquiry option on the Contact Form. We will then add the program’s approval status to the Advisor for the related certificate field(s).

What are Georgia certificate levels?

GaPSC designates a numerical certificate level for selected degrees; the certificate level is one of several factors that determine an educator’s placement on the GaDOE state salary schedule. Please click here to view a list of degrees and their corresponding GaPSC certificate levels. Please note that Georgia educators who complete an advanced degree leading to certification in a leadership field will receive a leader level which will be applied to their certificate along with the general level that they held before upgrading. A leader level will only be used to determine salary if the educator is working in a leadership position. Otherwise, the educator will be paid according to their general level.
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