The professional license is a license of a higher gradation than the standard license. A person may apply for a professional license (valid for one ten-year period and then valid for five-year periods under Rules 46/47 or prior bulletins), if certain requirements have been completed. The following steps are necessary:

1. Request and receive an evaluation (PDF) from the Office of Professional Preparation and Licensure.

2. Earn a Master's Degree, which includes specific coursework in education and the content areas on the license.

3. Complete five years of teaching experience in an accredited school. Such teaching experience must be at the level and in one or more of the subject areas on the license.

With majors and minors, you may professionalize only one area of your license. However, you would be required to drop the areas from your license that  you have not professionalized. It is possible to professionalize only a minor. If you hold a science major or social studies major with primary/supporting areas, you would be required to professionalize a minimum of one primary area and one supporting area for science and one primary and two supporting areas for social studies. Contact a licensing advisor in the Office of Professional Preparation and Licensure if you plan to drop an area from your license.

Applicants who met the professionalization requirements prior to September 1, 1990 are eligible for a professional license valid for life. Contact the Office of Professional Preparation and Licensure for further information.

Instructions and Application for a Professional License (PDF)

At the time the Office of Professional Preparation and Licensure receives the license application, a postcard will be sent to you indicating that the packet is complete/incomplete and by what date the application will be sent to the Indiana Department of Education Office of Educator Licensing and Development with Purdue's recommendation.  The Office of Professional Preparation and Licensure reviews course work, GPAs, and other requirements to ensure that standards are met.

When the license application is sent to the Indiana Department of Education Office of Educator Licensing and Development with a recommendation, a letter will be sent to you indicating the recommendation for a professional license, which will be valid for ten years under the current Rules 46/47. This letter can serve as an eligibility letter for a school corporation for employment purposes.

Expect 4-6 weeks for the Indiana Department of Education Office of Educator Licensing and Development to process your application.  The license will be sent to you.