Short answer
How do North Carolina teachers renew a license and move up the salary schedule?
A North Carolina Continuing Professional License (CPL) renews every five years on 8 CEUs, and one CEU equals 10 clock hours of professional development. College courses count with an official transcript. Pay comes from the state schedule by years of experience and license level, plus a local supplement; a master's degree moves pay only for teachers who meet a 2013 cutoff.
Source: NC Department of Public Instruction, Renew or Update Your Professional Educator's License. Checked .
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How do you renew a North Carolina teaching license?
The Licensure Section of the NC Department of Public Instruction (DPI) handles renewals. Its renewal page says the CPL "must be renewed every five years on or after April 15th of the year that a license expires." For a license to stay current, every renewal credit has to be earned by the expiration date. The Initial Professional License is different: DPI's licensure FAQ describes it as a three-year license that is "non-renewable," and an expired CPL is reinstated with 8 CEUs earned within the most recent five years.
The requirement is 8 CEUs, or 80 clock hours. The State Board rule for teachers, 16 NCAC 06C .0360 (amended effective July 1, 2026), splits the eight by grade band:
- Pre-K through grade 5: three CEUs in the teacher's license area, three related to literacy, and two general CEUs "germane to the K-12 educational environment."
- Grades 6 through 12: four CEUs in the license area and four general CEUs.
The literacy credits for elementary teachers have a defined focus. G.S. 115C-270.30 says they "shall include evidence-based assessment, diagnosis, and intervention strategies" for students not reading proficiently, grounded in the Science of Reading. A general children's literature course may not satisfy that wording, so the subject of a literacy course is worth checking before enrolling.
Three kinds of activity count, according to DPI: college or university courses, documented with official transcripts (grade reports are not accepted); local in-service courses or workshops, which the school system certifies; and classes or workshops approved by a school district, documented by the sponsor. The general renewal rule, 16 NCAC 06C .0363, adds two details:
- National Board certification earns all eight CEUs for the cycle in which it is achieved, and renewing it earns two.
- Each school unit adopts its own approval procedures. It weighs the activity's link to the educator's job, the school improvement plan and State Board priorities, and it may add local requirements.
Teachers employed by a local board also need a proficient rating on their most recent annual evaluation to renew, under the same rule. For how clock hours, CEUs and semester credits relate in general, see our explainer on clock hours, CEUs and semester credits; the license renewal hub compares cycles across states.
In North Carolina, a course is a renewal tool, not a raise. College coursework counts toward the eight CEUs, but the state salary schedule has no column for credits short of a degree. Ask your school system how it converts a transcripted course into CEUs before you enroll.
How do North Carolina teachers move up the salary schedule?
North Carolina sets teacher pay at the state level. DPI's FY2026-27 State Salary Schedules, effective July 1, 2026, list monthly and ten-month annual salaries by years of experience, from 0 through 25 or more, on separate schedules for each license level:
- Bachelor's ("A"), the base schedule.
- Master's ("M").
- Advanced (sixth year) and doctorate.
- National Board versions of each. The schedules note that the National Board difference "is based on the 'A' (Bachelors) scale + 12% differential," and it first appears at year 3 of experience.
So a North Carolina teacher moves across the schedule in two ways only: another year of experience, or a change in license level. There are no BA+15 or BA+30 lanes to climb with coursework.
Degree pay has a further limit. G.S. 115C-302.10, enacted in 2013, allows the "M" schedule, or the six-year and doctoral supplements, only for three groups:
- Certified school nurses and instructional support staff in positions that require a master's for licensure.
- Teachers who were already paid on that schedule before the 2014-2015 school year.
- Teachers who finish a master's, six-year or doctoral degree for which they took at least one course before August 1, 2013, and who would have qualified under the State Board policy in effect on June 30, 2013.
For a teacher who started graduate work after that date, a new master's does not move state pay. Some districts have stepped in with their own money, as Wake County shows below. On top of the state base, each district adds a local supplement from county funds, and that supplement is where most of the difference between districts lies. Our article on a master's degree versus stacking credits covers the trade-off in states that do pay for credits; in North Carolina the question is mostly about renewal and local degree pay.
What do the largest North Carolina districts pay for?
Wake County Public School System
The 2026-2027 Teachers/Certified Staff salary schedules show a state base plus a local supplement for every step from 0 to 31+, with separate figures for traditional and year-round calendar schools. Classroom teachers and special education classroom teachers have their own sets of "A" and "M" schedules, each with a National Board version.
- Local Graduate Pay: if WCPSS Human Resources approves graduate pay and DPI does not, the teacher goes on the "LGP" schedule, a bachelor's base with a larger local supplement that together "equal the state master's degree schedule."
- Who qualifies: the district's compensation page says teachers who began their master's, advanced or doctoral degree after the state's August 2013 cutoff are eligible for degree pay beginning July 2023.
- Degree match: eligibility rests on graduate degrees recognized by DPI "that match the area of assignment."
- Advanced and doctoral certification: a monthly add-on to the "M" schedule.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
The 2026-2027 Certified Salary Schedules, approved July 22, 2026, run on state rate codes tied to years of experience, from A00 upward, each with an annual state base, a local supplement and 10-, 11- and 12-month totals. There are four schedules, "A," "M," advanced "S" and doctorate "D," plus a National Board version of each.
- Placement: pay is based on completed years of experience and the licensure level DPI determines, per the district's salary schedules page.
- Degree pay: the district's advanced-degree page says a teacher must have "completed a course toward your degree prior to August 1, 2013" that is relevant to the subject taught.
- Review: the CMS Licensure department reviews and approves advanced-degree eligibility.
- Administration degrees: a master's in administration held by a classroom teacher must meet the same state criteria.
Neither district lists a credit-based lane. In both, coursework short of a degree helps with license renewal, while a completed graduate degree is what can change the schedule a teacher is paid on.
Full district guides for North Carolina
Before you enroll
- Find your expiration date. All eight CEUs must be earned before the license expires, and renewal opens on or after April 15 of that year.
- Sort the credits into categories. K-5 teachers need three license-area, three literacy and two general; grades 6-12 need four license-area and four general.
- Check how your district converts college credit. Each school unit sets its own approval procedures, so ask before a course is counted on.
- Order the official transcript. DPI does not accept grade reports for college courses.
- Check degree pay separately. A new master's moves state pay only under the 2013 rule; Wake's Local Graduate Pay is a district decision, not a state one. Our renewal versus salary credit guide explains the difference.
The provider directory groups semester-credit providers by need, and the comparison table shows their costs and formats side by side.
North Carolina questions teachers ask
How many CEUs do North Carolina teachers need to renew?
Eight CEUs, or 80 clock hours, every five years. One CEU equals 10 clock hours of professional development, and all of it must be earned before the license expires.
Do college courses count toward North Carolina license renewal?
Yes. DPI lists college or university courses among accepted activities, documented with an official transcript. Grade reports are not accepted, and each school unit applies its own approval procedures.
Do extra credits raise a North Carolina teacher's salary?
Not on the state schedule. It pays by years of experience and license level (bachelor's, master's, advanced, doctorate), with no column for credits short of a degree.
Does a master's degree still raise pay in North Carolina?
On the state schedule, only for teachers who meet G.S. 115C-302.10, such as those who took a degree course before August 1, 2013. Wake County uses Local Graduate Pay for some teachers who started later; Charlotte-Mecklenburg applies the state cutoff.
Does National Board certification count for renewal?
Yes. Under 16 NCAC 06C .0363, earning National Board certification covers all eight CEUs for that cycle, and renewing it counts for two. It also adds a 12% differential on the state salary schedules.
Sources
- Renew or Update Your Professional Educator's License, NC Department of Public Instruction. Checked
- Forms and FAQs, NC Department of Public Instruction. Checked
- 16 NCAC 06C .0360, License renewal for teachers, NC Office of Administrative Hearings. Checked
- 16 NCAC 06C .0363, General license renewal requirements, NC Office of Administrative Hearings. Checked
- G.S. 115C-270.30, Licensure renewal, North Carolina General Assembly. Checked
- G.S. 115C-302.10, Qualifications for certain education-based salary supplements, North Carolina General Assembly. Checked
- Fiscal Year 2026-2027 North Carolina State Salary Schedules, NC Department of Public Instruction. Checked
- Compensation, Wake County Public School System. Checked
- Teachers/Certified Staff Salary Schedules 2026-2027, Wake County Public School System. Checked
- Salary Schedules, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. Checked
- 2026-2027 Certified Salary Schedules, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. Checked
- Master's Degree or Higher Pay, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error