Education Programs Licensure and Certification

Completion of a state-approved teacher preparation program is a requirement for teacher certification. All Cairn University teacher preparation programs have been approved by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The School of Education currently offers the following degree programs and certifications:

Degree programs: BS in Education; BS in Special Education; BS in Bible/BS in Education; Dual-Level BS in Bible/MS in Education; Dual-Level BS in Education/MS in Education; Dual-Level BS in Education/MS in Special Education (Instruction); Dual-Level BS in Education/MA (Applied Behavior Analysis)

PA Instructional I Certification: PK–4 Elementary/Early Childhood; 7–12 Secondary English, Math, Social Studies; PK–12 Health and Physical Education; PK–8 and 7–12 Special Education (to change to PK–12 in 2022); PK–12 ESL Program Specialist

We encourage all students to contact the Pennsylvania Department of Education to not only confirm certification requirements in Pennsylvania, but also the requirements of any other state in which they may plan to teach in the future. State certification requirements can vary by state and territory and are also subject to change. Additional state requirements can include professional examinations, further coursework and/or seminars, state background checks and fingerprinting requirements, and/or years of work experience. 

PLEASE NOTE: Because state certification requirements vary and change, we cannot confirm whether our teacher preparation programs meet the requirements for certification in states other than Pennsylvania. Out-of-state students may contact the Department of Education in their state to inquire about their requirements. To assist you in this task, we have provided a link to the Teacher Certification page of each state Department of Education below, as well as included additional information for a few bordering states.