Short answer
How do DeKalb teachers move to a higher column on the salary schedule?
DeKalb's 2026-2027 teacher schedule, effective July 1, 2026, has four in-field slots: E04 bachelor's, E05 master's, E06 specialist and E07 doctorate. You move to the next slot when GaPSC issues a certificate at the higher level. Thirty steps cover years 0 through 29+; stray course hours carry no salary value.
Source: 2026-2027 Teacher Salary Schedule, DeKalb County School District. Checked .
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How is the DeKalb teacher salary schedule organized?
The current sheet is titled "2026-2027 Salary Schedule (effective 7.1.2026)" and is built on 190 work days of eight hours. Under the heading "Professional Infield Position" sit four degree columns, each showing a daily rate and an annual figure:
| Column heading | Slot | GaPSC level |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's Degree | E04 | 4 |
| Master's Degree | E05 | 5 |
| Specialist Degree | E06 | 6 |
| Doctorate Degree | E07 | 7 |
Rows pair "Actual Years Experience" with a salary step. Zero years is Step 1, one year is Step 2, and so on to 29 or more years at Step 30, so every year of service has its own row. A separate line at the bottom covers staff on a provisional certificate, who receive one provisional rate whatever their experience.
DeKalb's archived 2024-2025 Salary Placement Guidelines show how a full placement code is built. The schedule letter (E for teachers), the certificate level and the step run together. Their worked example is a new teacher with an SRT-4 certificate and three prior years: experience counted as of June 30 of the last fiscal year, plus one, gives step 04, so the code is E0404. The same document lists level codes 01 technical, 02 associate, 04 bachelor, 05 master, 06 specialist and 07 doctorate. If column names in other districts confuse you, this code is the DeKalb equivalent of a lane label.
Pay arrives every two weeks: 26 evenly distributed checks for the school year. A year of experience credit requires working 63% of the full work calendar or at least 120 days in an academic year, per the state rule on experience for salary purposes.
What moves a DeKalb teacher to a higher certificate level on the schedule?
A footnote on the 2026-2027 sheet answers this directly: salary placement rests on "the educator's current year of teaching and GAPSC certificate," and the guidelines follow State Board Rule 160-5-2-.05. DeKalb reads the level off your certificate, not off a transcript count.
For a teacher in E04 the route to E05 runs through GaPSC Rule 505-2-.33. That rule recognizes a master's for level 5, an education specialist degree for level 6 and a doctorate for level 7, provided the program qualifies. An In-Field program must sit in a field already on your certificate and come from a provider with acceptable accreditation when you enrolled; a New Field program must be state-approved and paired with a passing GACE content assessment. Provisional, permit and non-renewable certificates have to be converted before any upgrade.
What does not move the slot: individual graduate-level credit or professional learning units on their own. Those can matter for renewal, but the salary schedule has no partial columns. The units that count article sets out why certificate-level states treat coursework differently from unit-ladder states.
Does DeKalb require approval before you take a course?
DeKalb publishes no course pre-approval form for salary purposes. The checkpoint that matters is GaPSC's, because the commission decides whether a degree earns an upgrade. Use the commission's upgrade tools before you enroll.
Inside the district, two offices split the work. The Certification Department evaluates qualifications for "certificate endorsements and upgrades; re-certification; and certificate conversions" and lists Certificate Upgrades among its services. The Compensation and Classification Department uses employment history, military service and certificate degrees to calculate salary placement, and takes questions through the district's Incident IQ ticketing system.
Colleges may send official transcripts electronically, through services such as Parchment or e-Script, either to the district or straight to GaPSC. Applications are worked in the order GaPSC receives a complete package, so watch your MyPSC account for status updates and correspondence.
When are transcripts due, and when does the new column take effect?
The current schedule took effect July 1, 2026, and step placement counts experience through June 30 of the prior fiscal year. DeKalb has not posted a cutoff date for upgrade paperwork or a rule on the date an upgraded certificate starts paying. Two facts help with timing:
- The Certification Department warns that GaPSC processing time varies with workload and runs longest in the busy summer months.
- State Board Rule 160-5-2-.05 bases pay on the certificate's validity date within the contract year, so a certificate issued later carries a later validity date.
Submitting soon after the degree is conferred, and outside the summer rush when possible, is the practical response. Transcript deadlines covers the order of steps.
Do the same units count toward Georgia license renewal?
Renewal is a separate process with its own clock. Under GaPSC Rule 505-2-.36 a standard professional certificate lasts five years. Teachers working in a Georgia district renew by participating fully in that district's professional learning, documented by a supervisor, and by passing a criminal background check. Requests are taken from December 1 of the year before expiration through June 30. In DeKalb, re-certification is handled by the same Certification Department that processes upgrades.
Coursework you complete for renewal keeps the certificate in force but does not change your E-slot. The Georgia renewal section explains the state rule in more detail.
Where can DeKalb teachers earn graduate-level units?
Every district, DeKalb included, decides for itself whether a course counts for the purpose a teacher needs it for: license renewal, an added endorsement or a degree program. No provider, university or website can make that decision, so the rules above come first, and written approval from DeKalb's human resources office is the safest record to have before you pay.
DeKalb pays by completed degree, certificate level or rating rather than by units, so courses short of a degree do not change a DeKalb salary on their own (see units that count). Where graduate-level units still help is license renewal, explained in the renewal section, and any other purpose DeKalb or Georgia names in writing.
| Question | What DeKalb says | What to look for on the provider's site |
|---|---|---|
| Type of unit | DeKalb: Certificate level only; no credit-based columns | Semester or quarter units, graduate-level or not, and the university named on the transcript and its accreditor |
| Grade | See units that count | Letter grade or pass/fail on the transcript |
| Deadline | DeKalb: None posted; summer processing is slowest | Published grading and transcript-posting time, and any rush option |
| Approval | DeKalb: No district form; GaPSC rules on upgrades | Course descriptions or syllabi you can attach to an approval form |
| Price | Not set by the district | All-in price per credit, including any university or first-course fee (compare) |
Graduate-level credit providers, listed with the same facts
For renewal, or for a future move to a district that pays for units, many providers issue graduate-level units through accredited universities. Providers listed on this site, each with the same facts:
- Teacher Friendly: self-paced online, units through University of the Pacific; $336 first course for 3 credits (price notes)
- Credits for Educators: self-paced online, units through University of the Pacific; $297 for 3 credits (price notes)
- CE Credits Online: self-paced, 180 days, units through Valley City State, Augustana, Adams State or Cal Poly Humboldt; from $449 for 3 credits (price notes)
- Connected Classroom Courses: self-paced, letter grade, units through CSU Pueblo; $389 + university fee for 3 credits (price notes)
- Credits for Teachers: self-paced, 6 months, units through Valley City State, Adams State, UMass Global or CSU Pueblo; from $349 for 3 credits (price notes)
- Dominican CA Online: self-paced, units through Dominican University of California; $477 for 3 credits (price notes)
The provider directory lists 28 providers and programs by what teachers need them for, and Compare sets published prices for 16 of them side by side, with transcripts from 11 universities. A listing on this site does not mean DeKalb has approved a provider or course; only the district can do that. TeacherPayGuide has commercial relationships with some providers it lists; how listings work.
DeKalb salary questions teachers ask
What does a DeKalb placement code like E0404 mean?
In the 2024-2025 Salary Placement Guidelines, E is the teacher schedule, the first 04 is the certificate level (bachelor) and the second 04 is the step: three prior years plus one.
How many days count as a year of experience in DeKalb?
At least 63% of the full work calendar or a minimum of 120 days in a full academic year.
Does DeKalb give experience credit for substitute teaching?
No. DeKalb gives no teaching experience credit for substitute, teacher aide, student teaching or paraprofessional work. Active military service can add up to three years with a DD214.
Can my college send transcripts straight to DeKalb?
Yes. The Certification Department accepts official electronic transcripts sent by the college through services such as Parchment or e-Script; colleges may also send them to GaPSC.
Where can DeKalb teachers take graduate-level courses for license renewal?
DeKalb does not raise pay for units short of a degree, so check the renewal rules on this page and confirm with human resources or the state agency before you enroll. Providers that teachers compare include Teacher Friendly, Credits for Educators, CE Credits Online, Connected Classroom Courses, Credits for Teachers and Dominican CA Online. They differ in format, transcript university, grading time and price; the provider directory and the Compare page list 16 providers with the same facts for each.
Sources
- 2026-2027 Salary Schedule, Teacher (effective 7.1.2026), DeKalb County School District. Checked
- Salary Placement Guidelines 2024-2025, DeKalb County School District, Internet Archive copy. Checked
- Compensation and Classification Department, overview and FAQ, DeKalb County School District. Checked
- Certification Department and FAQs, DeKalb County School District. Checked
- 505-2-.33 upgrade rule, Professional Standards Commission. Checked
- State Board of Education experience rule 160-5-2-.05. Checked
- 505-2-.36 certificate renewal, Professional Standards Commission. Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error