Eligibility

Eligibility requirements for the Denver Teaching Fellows are dictated by the Colorado Department of Education and Denver Public School district and are therefore non-negotiable. Candidates must meet all of the requirements listed below to be considered for the program, so please read this entire section very carefully to determine whether you are eligible.

• You must possess a bachelor's degree (conferred no later than June 1, 2012).
• Your undergraduate GPA must be 2.75 or higher. Candidates with a GPA under 3.0 (2.75-2.99) will be asked to provide additional context on the application (see additional details below).
• You must be a permanent resident of the United States.
• You must meet testing requirements to teach your subject area.
• You cannot be a current or previously certified teacher in any subject area in any state (holding a substitute license is acceptable)
• You cannot have already participated in another alternate route certification program or have completed an education degree that included a student teaching component that led to certification (an education degree is fine as long as it did not lead to certification).   

You must possess a bachelor’s degree (conferred by June 1, 2012).

You must possess a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution of higher learning (college/university) or be on track for a bachelor's degree to be conferred no later than June 1, 2012 in order to apply.

Graduates of foreign universities must have their transcripts evaluated by one of the following foreign credential evaluation agencies prior to applying:

• American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers
• Educational Credential Evaluations
• World Education Services

When requesting an evaluation, you should ensure that the evaluating agency includes a full list of coursework and specifically states that you earned the U.S. equivalent of a bachelor's degree in your field of study.

Your undergraduate GPA must be 2.75 or higher.

You must have an average undergraduate GPA of 2.75 or higher in order to apply. A graduate GPA cannot be used in place of the undergraduate GPA requirement. Individuals with an average undergraduate GPA under 3.0 (between 2.75 and 2.99) will be asked to provide additional context. If your GPA falls in this range, you must make the case for why your achievement should be considered as exceptional on your application when prompted. Individuals with an undergraduate GPA under 2.75 will not be considered.

You must meet ALL legal eligibility requirements to work in Denver.

You must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, and you must agree to provide a criminal history report from every county in which you have lived on your application. You also must pass a background check upon enrollment.

You must meet all credit and testing requirements to teach your subject area.

You may be admitted to the Denver Teaching Fellows prior to passing required test examinations, but passing scores must be submitted by May 1, 2012 in order to enroll in our Pre-Service Training. All final acceptances are contingent upon passage of the required test; we therefore strongly encourage you to register and take the required test as early as possible. All applicants accepted into the program to teach special education, at any level, will also be required to take and pass additional Special Education tests during their second year teaching.   

Testing requirements are outlined in the table below:

You cannot possess a teaching license/certificate from any state.

Denver Teaching Fellows provides an accelerated pathway into the teaching profession for outstanding recent graduates and accomplished mid-career changers. It is therefore not open to individuals who hold a license or have ever held a license in any state as well as individuals who have participated in other alternate route programs. However, TEFL or TESOL licenses are acceptable. If you are currently enrolled in an education program that leads to licensure, you cannot have completed the student teaching component in order to apply to our program. Fellows who have previous education credits must still complete the full program, including all required licensure coursework. Education credits cannot be transferred.