Short answer
How do Ohio teachers renew a license and move up the salary schedule?
Ohio teachers renew a five-year professional license with 6 semester hours of coursework, or 18 CEUs (180 contact hours), approved by their employer's Local Professional Development Committee under an Individual Professional Development Plan. Pay follows each district's schedule; state law sets minimum training columns from bachelor's through master's, and districts add their own lanes above that.
Source: Ohio Administrative Code 3302-24-08. Checked .
TeacherPayGuide is not affiliated with or endorsed by Ohio's state education agency or any Ohio school district. This guide summarizes published state rules and district documents as read on ; the agency and your district decide what counts for you. It is general information, not legal or employment advice. Disclaimer Report an error
How do you renew an Ohio teaching license?
The renewal rule is Ohio Administrative Code 3302-24-08, effective November 4, 2021. It covers the five-year professional and associate licenses. For an employed educator, the requirement is one of the following, completed while the current license is valid:
- 6 semester hours of coursework "related to classroom teaching and/or the area of licensure," approved by the Local Professional Development Committee (LPDC);
- 18 continuing education units, which the rule equates to 180 contact hours; or
- other equivalent activities the LPDC approves. Coursework, CEUs and equivalent activities may be combined.
The rule ties everything to a plan. Each educator designs an Individual Professional Development Plan (IPDP), the LPDC approves it, and the coursework or activities should follow it. Coursework "shall be completed at an accredited institution of higher education," and the rule expects it to build new knowledge in the licensure area and relate to student achievement, success or wellness. Districts must also offer a local appeal process if the committee turns something down.
Timing matters in two places. The State Board of Education's Professional Development Conversion Chart says work must be completed after the issue date of the expiring credential and after the date the IPDP was approved. And the rule sets a deadline with a penalty: if a license lapses, the educator needs 9 semester hours instead of 6. The rule avoids that result for teachers who finish the 6 hours and submit the application "by October first of the year that the professional license expires."
Educators who are not employed by an Ohio district apply to the state directly with 6 semester hours, or with CEUs approved through a regional provider's LPDC. Two exceptions shorten the path: National Board certification earned during the license term meets the requirement for the next cycle, and the rule exempts consistently high-performing teachers who earned the top evaluation rating in four of the past five years and met a leadership criterion in three of them.
The LPDC approves CEUs and contact hours. The conversion chart states that "The LPDC must approve all CEUs or contact hours." Get your IPDP approved before you enroll, so the course can count from day one.
The chart's conversions are simple: 1 CEU equals 10 contact hours, 3 CEUs equal 1 semester hour, 30 contact hours equal 1 semester hour, and 1.5 quarter hours equal 1 semester hour. So 6 semester hours, 9 quarter hours, 18 CEUs and 180 contact hours are the same requirement in different units. Our clock hours, CEUs and semester credits article walks through how these units relate, and the license renewal hub compares cycles across states.
How do Ohio teachers move to a higher salary lane?
Ohio has no single statewide salary schedule. It has a minimum schedule in Ohio Revised Code 3317.13, and each board adopts its own schedule at or above it. The statute defines four training columns, each multiplied across twelve service steps (0 through 11) as a percentage of a base amount:
- less than a bachelor's degree;
- bachelor's degree;
- five years of training, meaning at least 150 semester hours or the equivalent along with a bachelor's, without a master's;
- master's degree or higher.
Three phrases in the statute matter for lane moves. "All credited training shall be from a recognized college or university." "Each teacher shall be fully credited with placement in the appropriate academic training level column." And boards may not restrict placement by column. A year of service requires 120 days under a teacher's contract, military service counts for up to five years, and outside service credited to a newly hired teacher stops at ten years.
Districts build on that frame. Columbus and Cincinnati both add columns above the master's, and each contract decides which hours count, when movement takes effect and what paperwork HR needs. Our article on how to read a salary schedule explains the grid, and how lane changes work covers the usual sequence.
A worked example: a Columbus teacher on the master's lane needs 30 semester hours earned after the master's for MA+30, in graduate study in education or related to the certification area. If those same hours are also approved by the LPDC under an IPDP, they can count toward license renewal too. Whether they count for either purpose is the district's and the committee's decision.
What do the largest Ohio districts require?
Columbus City Schools
Read the full Columbus guide →
The 2025–2028 master agreement with the Columbus Education Association, as filed with the State Employment Relations Board, uses an indexed schedule. Article 901.06 states that "Recognition of training shall be on the basis of transcripts of credit."
- Lanes: pre-license bachelor's, bachelor's, 150 hours and bachelor's, master's, master's plus 30 semester hours, and Ph.D.
- What counts: MA+30 and Ph.D. tracks require "graduate study in the field of education or graduate study which is generally related to the teacher's area of certification."
- Timing: MA+30 counts credit earned after the master's was conferred.
- Effective date: a column change takes effect the earning period after the documentation reaches Human Resources.
- Steps: a full increment needs 120 or more days of service; outside experience counts up to 10 years.
Cincinnati Public Schools
Read the full Cincinnati guide →
The agreement with the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers runs from July 1, 2025 to December 31, 2028. Appendix A sorts teachers into classes, with steps 1 through 30.
- Classes: II bachelor's; III 150 semester hours with a bachelor's; IV master's; V 30 semester hours after the master's; VI 45 semester hours after the master's or a doctorate.
- What counts for V and VI: graduate or undergraduate hours, "providing the undergraduate hours are earned after July 1, 2021, and those hours are not duplicative of prior coursework."
- CEUs: "Three CEU's are equivalent to one semester hour on the salary schedule," for state-approved CEUs toward Class III or Class V, but "CEU's are not acceptable for Master's or Doctorate equivalence."
- Deadline: new hires turn in verifications and transcripts by October 1, or within 60 days if hired mid-year, for retroactive placement.
Full district guides for Ohio
Before you enroll
- Get your IPDP approved first. Coursework and CEUs count only after the plan's approval date and the license's issue date.
- Decide what the course is for. Renewal, a district lane, or both. Our renewal versus salary credit guide sets the tests side by side.
- Check the subject against your contract. Columbus wants graduate study in education or related to your certification; Cincinnati accepts some undergraduate hours for Classes V and VI.
- Check the unit. Cincinnati converts CEUs at three to one semester hour for some classes, never for master's equivalence.
- File early. Renewal hours and the application by October 1 of the expiration year; transcripts to district HR as your contract requires.
The provider directory groups semester-credit providers by need, and the comparison table shows their costs and formats side by side.
Ohio questions teachers ask
How many hours do I need to renew an Ohio five-year license?
Six semester hours, or 18 CEUs (180 contact hours), or equivalent activities, approved by your LPDC under your IPDP. The units can be combined.
What happens if my Ohio license expires?
Under OAC 3302-24-08, a lapsed professional license requires 9 semester hours instead of 6. Finishing the 6 hours and submitting the application by October 1 of the expiration year avoids that.
How do CEUs convert to semester hours in Ohio?
The State Board's conversion chart sets 3 CEUs, or 30 contact hours, equal to 1 semester hour. One CEU equals 10 contact hours.
Does Ohio have a state teacher salary schedule?
Ohio sets a minimum schedule in ORC 3317.13 with four training columns and twelve steps. Each district adopts its own schedule at or above that minimum; Columbus and Cincinnati both add columns above the master's.
Do undergraduate credits count for a lane change in Cincinnati?
For Classes V and VI, the Cincinnati agreement accepts undergraduate hours earned after July 1, 2021 that do not repeat prior coursework. The district decides whether a given course qualifies.
Sources
- Ohio Administrative Code 3302-24-08, Renewal of licenses, Legislative Service Commission. Checked
- Professional Development Conversion Chart, Ohio State Board of Education. Checked
- Ohio Revised Code 3317.13, Minimum salary schedule, Legislative Service Commission. Checked
- Columbus Education Association master agreement 2025–2028, State Employment Relations Board filing. Checked
- Cincinnati Public Schools and Cincinnati Federation of Teachers agreement 2025–2028, Cincinnati Federation of Teachers. Checked
- Collective bargaining agreement, Cincinnati Federation of Teachers. Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error