NEVADA
STATE RESOURCES

Alabama requires all special educators to obtain a Bachelor's degree.

More information at https://doe.nv.gov/educator-licensure/general-license-requirements-and-fees 

All educators must pass the Core Academic Skills for Educators (Core) Praxis to apply for licensure. Additional Praxis tests are required for those wishing to become special educators, depending on their specialization area.

More information on testing requirements can be found here: https://praxis.ets.org/state-requirements/nevada-tests.html 

Step 1: Complete general requirements for all educator licenses

• These include completing the required Praxis exams and completing the required Parental Involvement and Family Engagement (PIFE) and Multicultural Education coursework.

• These requirements can be found here.

Step 2: Complete a Bachelor's or more advanced degree from an accredited college or university 

• Candidates must complete at least 8 credits for student teaching involving students with disabilities.

• Candidates must complete at least 30 credits of course work in each of the following area:

  • Human growth and development 

  • Educational psychology 

  • Methods and materials of teaching reading or mathematics 

  • Additional studies in methods of teaching reading or mathematics 

  • Introduction to special education or the education of pupils who have disabilities. 

  • The characteristics of pupils who have specific learning disabilities, emotional disturbances, intellectual disabilities, health impairments, orthopedic impairments, or traumatic brain injuries. 

  • The assessment of pupils who have disabilities. 

  • Behavior management 

  • Parental involvement in programs for pupils who have disabilities. 

  • Curriculum development or methods and strategies of pupils who have specific learning disabilities, emotional disturbances, intellectual disabilities, health impairments, orthopedic impairments, or traumatic brain injuries

  • Education or planning for the transition for pupils who have disabilities from their current placement to placement in additional educational programs, employment and living independently as an adult. 

More information can be found here: https://doe.nv.gov/educator-licensure/special-education-licenses-and-endorsements/  

For existing teachers with a valid license, Nevada offers an interim route to certification for special educators. The interim route allows for teachers to be placed in a special education assignment area for three years while completing coursework and requires these teachers to complete at least two years of instruction in that assignment area. More details can be found here.

Nevada offers other alternate routes for those who hold a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution and are currently accepted into a qualified program for alternative licensure. More details can be found here.

Nevada's Department of Education maintains a list of accredited schools for educator preparation programs: https://doe.nv.gov/educator-effectiveness/educator-develop-support/teacher-education-programs-traditional/.

• Nevada Division on Career Development and Transition (NV-DCDT) - https://nvdcdt.org/ 

• Nevada Special Education Technology Assistance Project (NSETAP) - https://www.unr.edu/nced/projects/nsetap 

• Nevada State Education Association Student Program - https://www.nsea-nv.org/about-nsea/our-members/aspiring-educators 

• Teach Plus Nevada - https://teachplus.org/nv/ 

• Teach Nevada Scholarships 

• Incentivizing Pathways to Teaching Scholarship 

• Nevada Teacher Advancement Scholarship (NTAS)

• Kenny C. Guinn Memorial Scholarship

• TEACH Grant Program

• PEF Teacher FastTrack Program