How to Become a Teacher in Colorado
To become a teacher in Colorado, you need a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution, a CDE-approved educator preparation program, documented content competency for your endorsement area (through an approved exam, coursework, or CDE's Multiple Measures process), and a cleared background check. The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) reviews and issues every license. Alternative routes exist for career-changers who already hold a degree.
If you want to become a teacher in Colorado, your path to a license runs through one office: the Colorado Department of Education. Every candidate, traditional or alternative, ends up at the same checkpoint: a bachelor's degree, an approved preparation program, documented content competency for the endorsement they're seeking, and a clean background check. What differs is how you get there and how long it takes, which is generally how certification differs by state across the country, not just in Colorado.
Choose What You Want to Teach
Before you apply for anything, decide who you want in front of you. Elementary, middle, secondary, or special education each carries its own endorsement, its own exam requirements, and its own hiring market. Special education, in particular, is where Colorado has the deepest and most consistent openings, so it's worth a serious look even if it wasn't your first thought.
Earn a Bachelor's Degree and Complete an Approved Preparation Program
The Colorado Department of Education requires every licensure candidate to hold a bachelor's degree or higher, earned alongside or after a CDE-approved educator preparation program. Most candidates finish the education coursework as part of their undergraduate degree, which is the fastest route if you already know you want to teach.
Complete a Teacher Preparation Program
Your preparation program has to be state-approved and regionally accredited before CDE will count it toward licensure. Coursework or credits from a school that isn't approved simply won't count, no matter how good the program looks on paper.
CDE requires your bachelor's degree to come from a regionally accredited college or university, one of the six regional accreditation agencies the US Department of Education recognizes, which for this region is the Higher Learning Commission. That's a separate question from whether your educator preparation program is CDE-approved: institutional accreditation and program approval are two different checks, and a regionally accredited degree doesn't automatically mean the preparation program attached to it has cleared CDE's own approval process. Confirm both before you enroll, not after.
A Colorado preparation program combines coursework and fieldwork, classroom observation, an internship, and usually student teaching under a licensed mentor. The coursework side covers pedagogy, instructional technology, content-specific teaching methods, differentiated instruction, and assessment. If you didn't complete this as part of a bachelor's program, you can still get there through the post-baccalaureate or alternate route to certification.
Alternative Teacher Certification in Colorado
If you already have a bachelor's degree in something else, Colorado's alternative pathway is built for you. If you've already documented content competency for your endorsement area, CDE can issue you an Alternative Teacher License, and you start teaching under mentorship right away. If you haven't yet met that requirement, CDE issues an Interim Authorization instead, which lets you teach while you finish the coursework or assessment your endorsement calls for. Either route still requires a cleared background check; alternative doesn't mean a lower bar; it means a different sequence.
Alternative Teaching Preparation Programs
Most alternative programs run one to two years, and some special education programs extend longer than that. How much of that time is spent in mentored preparation versus full classroom teaching depends on your specific program and endorsement area, not a fixed one-year/two-year split. Depending on where you started and what you've completed, you advance from an Alternative Teacher License or Interim Authorization to an Initial or Professional Teacher License.
Demonstrate Content Competency for Your Endorsement
Colorado skips the general basic skills test that many states require. What you actually need is documented content competency for the specific endorsement you're seeking, and CDE accepts more than one way to show it: a Colorado-approved Praxis exam, an endorsement worksheet documenting relevant coursework, or approval through CDE's Multiple Measures of Content Competency process. Which of these apply to you, and how many pieces of documentation you'll need, depends entirely on your endorsement area rather than a single universal test. Check your specific endorsement's requirements before you start gathering paperwork, since the accepted methods change by subject and grade band.
Apply for Your Colorado Teaching License
Once you've documented content competency for your endorsement, CDE needs the following to issue your license:
- Completed application form
- Documentation demonstrating content competency for each requested endorsement (such as an approved exam score, endorsement worksheet, or CDE Multiple Measures approval)
- Fingerprint-based background check cleared through the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the FBI
- Official transcripts showing your degree and completed preparation program from an accredited school
- Non-refundable application fee, paid to CDE
Contact Information
Educator Licensing
201 E. Colfax Ave.
Denver, CO 80203
Phone: 720-739-3304
Find a Teaching Job in Colorado
Once CDE issues your license, you're clear to apply. Colorado's outlook here is better than the national picture: nationally, most core K-12 teaching roles are projected to hold flat or decline slightly through 2034, but Colorado's own labor department projects growth across nearly every teaching occupation in the state, driven by population growth and steady turnover. That's a meaningfully different story than what you'll read on a lot of generic "how to become a teacher" guides. If you're weighing options regionally, the requirements and outlook shift once you cross state lines: How to Become a Teacher in Arizona, How to Become a Teacher in Utah, and How to Become a Teacher in Wyoming each walk through that state's specific steps and job outlook.
Public School Teaching Jobs in Colorado
Colorado's public school teaching market is expanding faster than the country as a whole, and the state has partnered with teacher-recruitment platforms to help candidates from outside Colorado find openings without relocating first and hoping it works out.
Once you're hired, the Colorado Education Association (a union) and the Professional Association of Colorado Educators (non-union) both offer support for career growth and for the harder stretches of the job.
PERA (Public Employees' Retirement Association)
Colorado teachers don't pay into Social Security through their teaching jobs, instead, PERA provides a monthly pension and other retirement benefits, covering more than 500,000 public employees across the state.
Private School Teaching Jobs in Colorado
If public schools aren't the fit, Colorado's private schools are a real alternative, several hundred schools serve tens of thousands of students statewide. Pay, benefits, and licensure requirements can differ meaningfully from the public system, so ask directly about each before you commit.
Where Colorado Needs Teachers Most
The US Department of Education's Teacher Shortage Area report for the 2021-2022 school year listed these as Colorado's most persistent shortage areas:
- Mathematics, grades 6-12
- Science, grades 6-12
- Special Education, Cross-Categorical, PreK-12
- General Education, PreK-12
- ESOL, PreK-12
- Early Childhood, PreK-3
- Special Education, Speech and Language Impairment, PreK-12
If you're weighing endorsement areas and want better odds at hiring, these are the subjects where Colorado districts are still struggling to fill seats.
Colorado Teacher Salaries and Job Growth by Grade Level
Here's what the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports for median pay, and what Colorado's own labor department projects for job growth, across teaching roles in the state:
| Occupation | Median Annual Wage | Job Growth (2024-2034) |
|---|---|---|
| Preschool Teachers | $45,500 | +15.5% |
| Kindergarten Teachers | $62,870 | +12.8% |
| Elementary School Teachers | $63,410 | +12.8% |
| Middle School Teachers | $63,760 | +12.8% |
| Secondary School Teachers | $72,900 | +12.9% |
| Special Education Teachers, Preschool | $78,040 | +13.1% |
| Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary | $74,290 | +12.9% |
| Special Education Teachers, Middle School | $66,130 | +12.7% |
| Special Education Teachers, Secondary School | $67,240 | +12.9% |
Every one of these occupations is projected to grow in Colorado between 2024 and 2034, according to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, with elementary alone adding roughly 2,080 openings a year statewide. That's the opposite of the national trend, where most of these same roles are flat or declining.
Continue Your Education and Professional Development
Licensure isn't the finish line. CDE expects ongoing professional development built around instructional strategies that work for the range of students actually in Colorado classrooms.
Professional Development in Colorado
CDE runs regular professional development programming and funds districts' own development and retention efforts. CDE also publishes an updated calendar of approved workshops and conferences.
Renewing Your License and the Case for a Master's Degree
Colorado's license terms and renewal cycle changed in recent years, confirm your current Initial and Professional license lengths directly with CDE's teacher induction program page rather than assuming the timeline from a few years back still applies. Renewal has an educational component, generally 90 clock hours or 6 semester hours completed within the renewal window.
You're not limited to Colorado schools for that coursework. CDE accepts credit from any accepted regionally accredited institution, in-state or not, and the credit doesn't have to stay inside your current endorsement area. That's real flexibility if you want to add an endorsement or just take the program that actually fits your schedule.
A master's degree also tends to move you up a district's pay schedule, most Colorado districts pay a premium for a master's regardless of subject, on top of whatever the license renewal itself requires.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a teaching license to teach in a Colorado public school?
Yes, but "license" covers more ground than the standard route. Colorado public schools require classroom teachers to hold a CDE-issued credential, which can be a standard Initial or Professional Teacher License, an Alternative Teacher License, an Interim Authorization, or in some cases an emergency or substitute authorization. Private schools set their own requirements, so licensure rules can differ there.
Do I need to pass an exam for Colorado teacher certification?
Not necessarily. Colorado doesn't require a general basic skills test, and passing an exam isn't the only way to show content competency for your endorsement. CDE also accepts an endorsement worksheet documenting relevant coursework, or approval through its Multiple Measures of Content Competency process. Which options apply to you depends on your specific endorsement area.
How does Colorado's alternative certification program work?
It depends on whether you've already documented content competency for your endorsement. If you have, CDE can issue an Alternative Teacher License, and you start teaching under mentorship. If you haven't yet, you're issued an Interim Authorization while you complete what's required. Programs generally run one to two years, sometimes longer for special education, and you advance to an Initial or Professional Teacher License as you complete the requirements. Both routes require a bachelor's degree and a cleared background check.
How much do teachers in Colorado get paid?
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Colorado elementary school teachers earned a median annual salary of $63,410 as of May 2025, with secondary teachers at $72,900 and special education teachers earning more across most grade levels. Actual pay varies by district salary schedule and by degree level.
Is there a teacher shortage in Colorado?
Yes, particularly in math, science, special education, ESOL, and early childhood. Colorado's own job growth projections show teaching employment expanding across nearly every K-12 occupation through 2034, which is a stronger outlook than most states.
- One path, two speeds - Every Colorado teacher needs a bachelor's degree, a CDE-approved prep program, documented content competency for their endorsement, and a cleared background check. Alternative routes get you there while you work full-time.
- No basic skills test - Colorado skips the general skills exam that many states require. What matters is documented content competency for your endorsement, shown through an approved exam, coursework, or CDE's Multiple Measures process.
- Background checks run through the CBI - Your cleared Colorado Bureau of Investigation check is a hard requirement before licensure, not a formality.
- Colorado's job outlook beats the national trend - nearly every K-12 teaching occupation in the state is projected to grow through 2034, even as the same roles hold flat or shrink nationally.
- Math, science, and special ed are the easiest hires - these endorsement areas show up on Colorado's shortage list year after year.
2025 US Bureau of Labor Statistics salary figures for Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers, Middle School Teachers, High School Teachers, Preschool Teachers, and Special Education Teachers. Job growth projections (2024-2034) are from the US Department of Labor-sponsored resource, Projections Central, and from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment for state-specific figures. Figures reflect state and national data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed August 2026.
Certification is one track, but the program you pick changes how fast you get through it and what it costs along the way. The sponsored programs listed here include options built for people already working full-time, with several accepting applicants who hold a degree outside education.