- Elementary Education
Eligibility & Application
Application Deadline - Applications are now being accepted!
We will be accepting applications for the 2025-2026 school year beginning on October 1, 2024 through Cal State Apply until March 1, 2025!
Prerequisites for Applying
- Bachelor’s Degree
(If you don't already have a bachelor's degree, check out our Liberal Studies Elementary Education program.) - GPA 2.67 overall or 2.75 for the last 60 semester units.
A low-GPA appeals process is available. Contact Keshnee Naidoo at kmn67@humboldt.edu for more information.
Application
- Review CSU Credential Application Deadlines
- Apply to Humboldt with Cal State Apply (CSU) - Choose "Fall 2025" and "Multiple Subject Credential Program"
Program Requirements
View all these requirements and more in our application requirements PDF: EED Application Requirements (PDF)
(The Subject Matter Profiency requirement is the requirement that is most time consuming and most likely to be delayed. Please attempt the CSET (if needed) early as all subtests must be passed by August 1st.)
1. "Letters of Recommendation" (due with application):
To be considered for admission, you will need to request 2 digital letters of recommendation to be submitted directly to Cal State Apply. Contact your potential references prior to entering their information into Cal State Apply. Academic and professional recommendation letters are both acceptable. It might be more pertinent for you to ask a professor to give you a recommendation if you are applying to the credential program right out of school. Whereas, if you've already been in the workforce for several years, having a professional colleague give you a recommendation might be more relevant. Once you have saved an electronic recommendation to Cal State Apply, an email request will automatically be sent to the recommender on your behalf. Please advise your recommender to look for this email in their inbox, as well as their spam or junk-mail folder, as emails do occasionally get filtered out. The recommenders will rate you on various scales as well as provide a short typed recommendation through the link.
2. Apply for Certificate of Clearance (due if admitted by June 30)
This process can take up to 6 weeks so apply early!
3. Subject Matter Competency (due if admitted by June 30)
- There are multiple ways to meet this requirement.
- Typically met through CSET Multiple Subjects or degree in Liberal Studies or Elementary Education.
- Can be met through a transcript review once all official transcripts are sent to Cal Poly Humboldt admissions (digital is preferred) - apply early if you would like to take this route!
- If taking the CSET, at least one subtest must be attempted by June 30, 2025. All CSET subtests must be passed by August 1st. (Testing dates at Cal Poly Humboldt testing center are very limited in June and July!)
4. 45 hours of Early Fieldwork (due by interviews - mid April 2025)
- Observe a California Credentialed teacher for a minimum of 45 hours
- Suggested to be grade level specific (elementary level)
- Must be in a contained classroom (not an after school program or summer camp)
- Observation has to be of a California credentialed teacher.
- Course fulfilling this requirement offered at Cal Poly Humboldt: SED 210 and 410 (taken together) in Spring 2025
- Experience as a substitute teacher at the elementary level can count for half of the hours
- Experience as an instructional aide in a credentialed teacher's classroom at the elementary level can count for all of the hours
5. US Constitution Courses (due if admitted by August 1)
- All CSU graduates have already met this requirement.
- You may have met this requirement through your undergraduate degree by taking a course that specifically covers the principles and provisions of the US Constitution. If you did not, a test is required. If you are not a CSU graduate, contact Keshnee Naidoo, the Program Coordinator, at kmn67@humboldt.edu for information on how you will fulfill this requirement.
6. Valid CPR Certification (due if admitted by August 1)
- must be adult, child, AND infant
- must be either American Heart Association or Red Cross
- must be valid while in program
7. Heath Verification (due if admitted by August 1)
- recent TB screening/negative TB test
- proof of MMR immunization or MMR antibody blood titer test
View all these requirements and more in our application requirements PDF: EED Application Requirements (PDF)
After Graduating
After meeting basic credential requirements, you’ll be recommended for a preliminary credential through the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC), which is valid for five years. Within the first three years of being hired as an educator, you will be required to participate in an induction program to clear your credential.