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In order to meet the licensure requirements, you must pass the appropriate Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL), or an approved alternative assessment.* Passing the MTEL Communication and Literacy Skills test (reading and writing subtests) is required for all types of licenses (teacher, specialist teacher, support personnel and administrator). In addition, a subject matter test(s) is required for teacher and specialist teacher licenses. For information about specific license requirements, including required tests, see the Department's Office of Educator Licensure web page.
*In October of 2020, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (the Board) approved a regulatory pilot to accept alternative assessments to the MTEL through June 30, 2024. The Board subsequently voted to extend the regulatory pilot through June 30, 2025. See Pilot of Alternative Assessments to the MTEL for more information. Please continue to check Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL) for more updates on alternatives as they become available.
No. You may apply for a license before or after you take the tests. If you take an MTEL, your scores will automatically be sent to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and will be kept on file until you apply for your license. If you take one of the approved alternatives, please review Pilot of Alternative Assessments to the MTEL to learn how to have your scores reported. To apply for a license, refer to the Department's Office of Educator Licensure web page. If you are enrolled in a teacher preparation program, contact your academic advisor for information about program completion requirements.
Yes. The Evaluation Systems, Pearson MTEL registration process is separate from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's licensure application process. You must complete applications for both, individually. In order to facilitate the processing of your license application, and prevent delays, use the identical first and last name on both your MTEL registration and license application.
In October of 2020, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education approved a regulatory pilot to accept alternative assessments to the MTEL through June 30, 2024, which was subsequently extended to June 30, 2025. See Pilot of Alternative Assessments to the MTEL for more information about the approved alternative assessments, including alternatives to the Communication and Literacy Skills test and candidate eligibility. Only approved alternative assessments can be used in lieu of the MTEL during the pilot period. Please continue to check Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL) for more updates on alternatives as they become available.
Out-of-state candidates applying for an educator license in Massachusetts must pass all applicable MTEL tests or an approved alternative. However, for some MTEL tests offered in other states (e.g., Foundations of Reading [190], General Curriculum [03]), candidates may request to have their scores reported to the MA Department of Elementary & Secondary Education. Learn more about the Interstate Score Reporting Request .
No. Candidates who do not receive qualifying scores may retake the tests as often as necessary at regularly scheduled test administrations.
Alternative testing arrangements may be provided for candidates who would not be able to test under standard conditions:
Examinees with physical disabilities (e.g., visual impairments, motor disabilities, illness, or injury) or cognitive or emotional disabilities (e.g., learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder).
Examinees for whom English is not a primary language.
Nursing mothers
If you have a documented disability or require accommodations and wish to request alternative testing arrangements, you may refer to the MTEL website for additional information.
No. If you do not have a social security number, request a temporary identification number from the Office of Educator Licensure by sending an email to Christiana.Erekosima@mass.gov .
To determine testing dates, please visit the MTEL website homepage, navigate to the dropdown search bar that reads, "Select your test" and click "Go." When you have reached the page for the MTEL that you are looking for, navigate to the "Test Dates" heading, where you can check appointment availability.
To determine testing locations, please visit the MTEL website homepage, navigate to the dropdown search bar that reads, "Select your test" and click "Go." Navigate to the "Test Centers" heading to search for test centers near you.
A Massachusetts Education Personnel ID (MEPID) is required to register for an MTEL. You will need to wait up 24 hours after receiving your MEPID to register.
Please check your ELAR profile to confirm that your MEPID, Social Security Number, name, and date of birth are an exact match between your MTEL account and ELAR account.
If you are still receiving an error after you have checked that all of your information is an exact match, please contact testhelp@doe.mass.edu who will review your profile for potential issues. This process may take several weeks to complete depending on the nature of the issue.
You need a MEPID to register for an MTEL. There are no coursework or degree requirements to take an MTEL.
Select MTEL tests are available for online proctoring. Please visit the MTEL website's About Online Proctoring page for more information.
Please visit our Test Preparation Materials and Courses List page, which you can find using the menu on the left. The Right Start Foundations of Reading course is now available. The Department has a free online ESL test preparation course available. The Department is in the process of developing additional free, online test preparation courses for Foundations of Reading, General Curriculum, and Early Childhood MTELs and we hope to have it available on our website Spring of 2025.
In order to become a licensed educator in Massachusetts public schools, you must pass the appropriate MTEL test(s) or an approved alternative assessment. You may take the test(s) as many times as necessary to achieve a passing score.
No. The test is required by Massachusetts law.
Your score report will be emailed to you, if you requested this option when you registered via the MTEL registration website, and will be available in your MTEL account beginning at 10:00 p.m. eastern time on the score report date for your test date. Score reports are available for 2 years in your account. From your account, you may view, print, and save your score report during that period. Your testing history for all tests taken, reported as pass/fail status, is always available to you through your account.
After the 2-year period, you may request a copy using the reprint request form .
If you have not received your score report two weeks after the score report date, contact Evaluation Systems . Under no circumstances will your score report information be released in person or by telephone or fax.
As of April 23, 2024, candidates may request to provide copies of their score reports to additional recipients of their choice. Candidates who need to report their test results to additional recipients, including a preparation program contact, may find this service of use. Please visit the View Scores and Testing History section within your account on this website for more information on this service.
No. The test booklets, answer documents, and all other test materials must be kept secure from disclosure in order to ensure that the test remains a fair and effective assessment of candidates for licensure. Materials are therefore not available for review either before or after taking the test. Practice tests and other preparation materials for the MTEL are available via the MTEL website for most tests. Practice tests can be found at Practice Tests or under the Test Info page in the "Prepare" section for specific tests.
For alternative assessments, please check the provider websites for information about practice tests.
Please view the MTEL website's Scores page and navigate to "Score Report Dates."
In order for scores to be successfully uploaded to your ELAR account, all of the information in your MTEL account must be an exact match to your ELAR account. Please check that all information is an exact match, including your name, date of birth, MEPID, and Social Security Number.
If you took the MTEL prior to having an ELAR account, your test scores may not have been reported to your ELAR account. In these instances, you need to contact Evaluation Systems Group of Pearson to ensure that your MEPID number has been added to your account and to update any other information that may no longer match your ELAR account. Once your information is up to date, please notify testhelp@doemass.edu that you are missing old test scores in your ELAR account and which test scores you are missing. Test help will request that Evaluation Systems Group of Pearson resubmit your scores. This process may take up to a month.
Last Updated: March 31, 2025