Admissions
Meet with your advisor to find out if you meet all requirements to enter the Education Preparation Program. Applications open March/Fall, September/Spring, March/Summer.
You can register for these exams at utrgv.edu/p16/testing.
Submit a request to have an official transcript from the college or institution sent to the UTRGV Undergraduate Admissions office, then call 956-665-2999 to request that the information is posted to the UTRGV Student Information System.
You will need to complete a substitution form with the Department of Teaching and Learning.
The application review process begins after the application is received. Check your UTRGV email periodically for important admission information. You may also check your application status via your Tk20 account at utrgv.tk20.com.
- The letter will list the deficient requirement(s) and instructions for appealing to the Department Chair of Teaching and Learning.
- The applicant will need to drop all education courses.
- The applicant who is denied is encouraged to reapply once all requirements are met.
- The applicant reapplying will need to submit a current application with updated documents for the semester.
Testing and Certification
Registering for TExES
IMPORTANT – PLEASE READ
Texas Education Agency (TEA) System
- Submit Certification Exam Pre-Registration form to our office and pay for the exam. You must print your admission ticket from the ETS website because it must be presented to the staff on the day of the exam.
- Please be aware, you are not officially registered for the exam until you login to the TExES website, register.
- Go to: https://tealprod.tea.state.tx.us/
- FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS PROVIDED AT THE WEBSITE ABOVE to create a TEAL Account if you have not already done so.
TEA has provided instructions as well as a video to assist you with creating your account. The links to these resources are located at the website above in red underlined font. - After you have logged into TEAL, click on the blue Educator link to enter the Educator Certification Online System for Educators (ECOS for Educators).
- FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS PROVIDED AT THE WEBSITE ABOVE to create a TEAL Account if you have not already done so.
- Write down your TEA ID# for use when setting up your ETS Account. TEA ID will be found on the welcome screen.
- Click on View Examinations to see which exams have been approved as well as the Exam Route which was used to approve the exam
If you are having trouble creating your TEA account, please call TEA at the number below.
Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Telephone: 1-512-936-8400
Teacher Educator Certification Examination Program (Pearson)
- To register for the exam, log-on to http://www.tx.nesinc.com
- If this is the first time registering for an exam on Pearson, use the step-by-step guide found at http://www.tx.nesinc.com/PageView.aspx?f=GEN_Steps.html to create your account.
- If you have a question regarding the exam(s) that have been approved, please call our office at (956) 665-7952
Follow these instructions to apply for certification.
You will need to contact your department based on your content area. Here is the list of TExES Authorized coordinators that sign off on eligibility forms based on content area:
Program |
Department/School |
Coordinator |
|
---|---|---|---|
Bilingual and ESL |
Bilingual & Literacy Studies |
Patricia Robles, M.Ed. Program Chair Sandra Musanti, Ph.D. |
|
Early Childhood |
Human Dev. & School Serv. |
Program Chair John Lowdermilk, Ph.D. Irasema Gonzalez, Ed.D. |
|
Special Education |
Human Dev. & School Serv. |
Julia Pecina, M.A. |
|
Secondary / All Level |
Teaching and Learning |
Raul Garza, M.Ed. (Interim) James Jupp, Ph.D. |
|
Principal |
Organization & School Lead. |
Debra Arce, Ed.D. |
|
Superintendent |
Organization & School Lead. |
Jesus Abrego, Ed.D. |
|
Reading Specialist / MRT |
Bilingual & Literacy Studies |
Isela Almaguer, Ed.D. |
|
School Counselor |
Counseling |
Veronica Castro, Ph.D. |
Program |
Department/School |
Coordinator |
|
---|---|---|---|
Health |
Health and Human Performance |
Kendra Stine, M.P.H. |
|
Physical Education |
Health and Human Performance |
Ulku Karabulut, Ph.D. |
Program |
Department/School |
Coordinator |
|
---|---|---|---|
Art Education |
Art |
Lilia Cabrera, B.F.A. |
|
Theatre |
Theatre |
Brian Warren, Ed.D. |
|
Music |
Music |
Kurt Martinez, D.M.A. |
|
Dance |
Dance |
Dr. Rebeca Gamborino |
Program |
Department/School |
Coordinator |
|
---|---|---|---|
English |
Literature & Cultural Studies |
David Bowles, Ph.D. |
|
History/Social Studies |
History |
Thomas Daniel Knight, Ph.D. James Mills, MAIS |
|
Journalism/Mass Com. |
Communication |
Jennifer Lemanski, Ph.D. |
|
Spanish |
Literature & Cultural Studies |
Ana Pena-Oliva, Ph.D. |
Program |
Department/School |
Coordinator |
|
---|---|---|---|
Math 4-8 & 7-12 |
Mathematical and Statistical Sci. |
Eleftherios Gkioulekas, Ph.D. |
|
Science 4-8 & 7-12, Life Science 4-8 & 7-12 |
Biology |
Dr. Teresa Feria Arroyo |
|
Chemistry 7-12 |
Chemistry |
Kenneth Smith, Ph.D. |
|
Physical Science 6-12 |
Physics & Geology |
Liang Zeng, Ph.D. |
Program |
Department/School |
Coordinator |
|
---|---|---|---|
UTeach |
UTeach Math and Science |
Angela Chapman, Ph.D. |
|
UTeach |
Mathematical and Statistical Sci. |
Kenneth Smith, Ph.D. |
You will find your TEA ID number when you login at tealprod.tea.state.tx.us/.
Certification Exam Vouchers
A Certification exam voucher is a form of payment that enables candidates to use an authorization code to take a certification exam at an authorized Pearson testing center.
The following criteria must be met to be eligible to receive a certification exam voucher:
- Must be accepted into the educator preparation (teacher education) program.
- Must meet all requirements to obtain test approval.
Eligible teacher candidates may receive vouchers for up to 2 of the following certification exams:
- 1st attempt for PPR.
- 1st attempt for Content exam in declared field.
(e.g., Core Subjects (391) for EC-6 certification, ELAR (217) for ELAR 4-8 Certification, Music (177) for Music (EC-12) certification). - 1st attempt STR.