Short answer
How do Michigan teachers renew a certificate and move up the salary schedule?
Michigan's Professional Teaching Certificate is valid for five years and renews with 150 hours of education-related professional learning earned since the last issue or renewal. Six semester credits meet it (one credit counts as 25 hours), as do 150 SCECHs, 150 hours of district PD, or a mix. Pay columns come from each district's bargained agreement.
Source: Michigan Department of Education, Professional Teaching Certificate Renewal. Checked .
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How do you renew a Michigan Professional Teaching Certificate?
The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) handles certification through the Michigan Online Educator Certification System (MOECS). Its renewal page describes the Professional Teaching Certificate as a five-year certificate with unlimited renewals; each renewal adds five years, and you may apply any time after January 1 of the expiration year.
The main requirement is 150 education-related professional learning hours earned since the issue date of the most recent certificate or renewal. MDE lists three ways to reach it:
- College credit. Six semester credit hours appropriate to the content and grade level of the certificate and endorsement, from a regionally accredited college, or six semester hours in a planned course of study, which can include an education-related master's or an endorsement program.
- SCECHs or district PD. 150 State Continuing Education Clock Hours (SCECHs), or 150 hours of District Provided Professional Development (DPPD), appropriate to the certificate's content and grade level.
- Any combination. The units mix freely at MDE's conversion rates: one semester credit equals 25 professional learning hours, and one SCECH or DPPD hour equals one.
Two filing details catch people. The hours must be entered into MOECS before you apply, or the system will not recognize your eligibility. College credits go in on a transcript with the application, and MDE accepts unofficial transcripts or copies; SCECHs appear in your MOECS profile once the sponsor submits the program and you complete its evaluation. MDE also allows a valid out-of-state K-12 teaching certificate to be used for renewal one time.
A worked example: a teacher who finishes a three-credit course (75 hours) and logs 75 hours of district PD has 150 hours and meets the requirement. Six credits on their own do the same. Our clock hours, CEUs and semester credits article explains how the units compare, and the license renewal hub lines Michigan up against other states.
Renewal hours and salary credit are separate tests. MDE accepts unofficial transcripts and district PD for renewal. A district salary schedule usually wants official transcripts and, past the master's, graduate-level coursework. Our renewal versus salary credit guide sets the two side by side.
How do Michigan teachers move to a higher salary column?
Michigan has no statewide teacher salary schedule. The Public Employment Relations Act requires a public employer to bargain with its employees' representative over "wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment" (MCL 423.215), so each district's schedule sits in its master agreement.
One state rule that once shaped those schedules is gone. MCL 380.1250, which set a required method of compensation for teachers and administrators tied to job performance, was repealed by 2023 Public Act 224, effective July 1, 2024. Since then, steps, degree columns and credit rules are matters for each district and its union.
The two agreements below share a pattern: few columns, set mainly by degree. Neither has a column for a bachelor's degree plus credits that a current hire can reach, so credits short of a master's do not move pay in either one. After the master's, Utica pays a higher column for 15 more graduate hours. For the general sequence of a move, see how lane changes work, and for a cost-benefit view, a master's versus credits.
What do Detroit and Utica require?
Detroit Public Schools Community District
The 2026-2028 tentative agreement package with the Detroit Federation of Teachers keeps its main teacher salary schedule at four columns, Bachelors, Masters, Masters+30 and PhD, for 2026-27 and 2027-28. The 2024-2026 agreement the district posts uses the same four columns.
- Steps: the package advances teachers one step in each of 2026-27 and 2027-28, and Step 2 becomes the new starting step.
- Alternative certification: teachers start on Step 1 "according to the degree held" and do not advance a step until they hold valid Michigan certification.
- Columns: placement follows the degree held, so the package has no column for credits short of a master's.
Utica Community Schools
The 2025-2028 master agreement with the Utica Education Association pays on BA, MA, MA+15, education specialist and doctorate columns over a 184-day year. Its BA+15 schedule applies only to teachers employed before July 1, 1972.
- MA+15: courses "must be on the graduate level and completed after the issuance of the MA."
- Long master's programs: a master's of 60 graduate hours places on MA+15; with 46 to 60 hours, a teacher may earn the rest to reach 60.
- Second master's: courses must be approved in advance by the Superintendent.
- Degrees: from July 1, 2025, from any university accredited by an agency the U.S. Department of Education recognizes.
- Deadline: official transcripts (non-student copies) by the second Friday in November; exceptions rest with Human Resources and are not grievable.
Full district guides for Michigan
Before you enroll
- Check your renewal window. Count 150 hours earned since your certificate was issued or last renewed.
- Match the course to your certificate. MDE wants coursework appropriate to the content and grade level of your certificate and endorsement.
- Read your district's columns. In Detroit and Utica, credits short of a master's do not open a new column; in Utica, graduate hours after the MA do.
- Get approvals first where required. Utica requires advance approval for second-master's courses.
- Plan two transcript copies. Upload one to MOECS for renewal and send an official copy to HR by your district's date, the second Friday in November in Utica. See transcript deadlines.
The provider directory groups semester-credit providers by need, and the comparison table shows their costs and formats side by side.
Michigan questions teachers ask
How many hours renew a Michigan Professional Teaching Certificate?
150 education-related professional learning hours earned since the issue date of the most recent certificate or renewal. They can be college credit, SCECHs, district-provided PD or a combination.
How many professional learning hours is a semester credit worth in Michigan?
25. MDE converts one semester credit to 25 professional learning hours, so six semester credits equal the full 150.
Does MDE need official transcripts for renewal?
No. MDE's renewal page says college credits must be documented on a transcript submitted with the application, and unofficial transcripts or copies are acceptable. District salary offices set their own rules; Utica accepts only official, non-student copies.
When can I apply to renew a Michigan certificate?
Any time after January 1 of the expiration year, once your hours are entered in MOECS.
Do credits beyond a master's raise pay in Utica?
Utica's MA+15 column requires graduate-level courses completed after the master's was issued. Official transcripts are due by the second Friday in November.
Sources
- Professional Teaching Certificate Renewal, Michigan Department of Education. Checked
- MCL 423.215, Collective bargaining, Michigan Legislature. Checked
- MCL 380.1250 (repealed), Michigan Legislature. Checked
- DPSCD and DFT tentative agreement package, 2026-2028, Detroit Public Schools Community District and Detroit Federation of Teachers. Checked
- DPSCD and DFT agreement, July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026, Detroit Public Schools Community District. Checked
- Master agreement, July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2028, Utica Community Schools and Utica Education Association. Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error