Short answer
How do Austin ISD teachers move to a higher column on the salary schedule?
There are no degree columns. New hires are placed by verified experience on a 187-day table running from 0 (Uncertified) to 30+, and after one year pay grows through PPfT points. A completed master's or higher adds Advanced Degree Compensation to base pay if documentation arrives by June 1.
Source: 2026-2027 Compensation Manual, Austin ISD. Checked .
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How is the Austin ISD teacher salary schedule organized?
The 2026-2027 Compensation Manual, linked from the district's Human Capital compensation page, contains a "New Hire Pay Plan for Teacher/Librarian." Its rows are years of verified experience: a row for uncertified teachers at zero, a combined 0-2 row, then single years from 3 through 29 and a final 30+ row. Each row shows a daily rate and the matching salary for a 187-day year. There is no column for a master's, a doctorate or a block of hours past the bachelor's.
That table is a starting point, not a ladder. The manual says new teachers and librarians are placed on the Teacher/Librarian Compensation Placement Table by verified experience, and that after their first year with AISD teachers are "removed from the pay schedule." From then on, pay is set by points earned in PPfT plus any increase the Board of Trustees approves. Librarians receive board-approved raises after hire. The manual adds that step increases "are not automatic and are subject to board approval," so an added year of experience does not by itself move anyone.
PPfT came out of work between the district and a steering committee that included teachers, campus administrators and Education Austin. The board approved a consultation agreement to start it in 2016-2017, and every AISD teacher has been enrolled since 2020-2021. Points come from five elements:
- Current Year of Service: one point per year of participation.
- Appraisal: points by rating (Effective, Highly Effective or Distinguished) and by campus type (Standard, Title 1 or Enhanced).
- Professional Development Unit (PDU): three points.
- Leadership Pathways: 15 points after a two-year process of four micro-credentials, or 7 for the one-year pilot.
- LP Plus 3: three points.
Points are cumulative. They are calculated at the end of the school year, once final PPfT appraisal ratings are in, and the resulting raise is added to base salary starting the next year. It stays as long as the teacher remains in a qualifying AISD teaching position. Readers used to step-and-lane grids may find our guide to how to read a salary schedule useful for seeing what Austin has replaced.
Do graduate-level hours raise pay at Austin ISD?
Not on their own. The compensation manual contains no provision that pays for semester hours short of a degree, so 12 or 24 graduate-level hours leave base pay where PPfT and board raises put it. What changes pay is a completed degree. Under the Advanced Degree Compensation section, teachers and librarians who hold or earn a master's degree or higher from an accredited college or university receive the additional amount. Before 2023-2024, staff hired after 2019-2020 received it as a monthly stipend; since 2023-2024 it has been part of base pay for everyone eligible.
Two limits apply. Other professional and administrative employees are not eligible. And a teacher who later moves outside the teacher/librarian pay structure is placed in the new structure minus any PPfT and Advanced Degree Compensation already built into the teaching salary.
The PDU element is the only part of PPfT tied to professional learning. The manual presents it as one of the optional learning opportunities inside the PPfT system and does not link it to college coursework. Our article on a master's degree versus loose credits covers the trade-off Austin's rules create.
Does Austin ISD require approval before you take a course?
The manual sets no pre-approval step for degree programs or courses. Eligibility turns on the result: a master's degree or higher from an accredited college or university. The accreditation requirement is the check to make before enrolling, because the manual does not list any other condition on field of study or program format. Leadership Pathways and PDUs are elements of PPfT itself, earned through the district's own system.
When are transcripts due, and when does the new column take effect?
June 1 is the date that matters. If an advanced degree is finished during the school year, the documentation must be submitted by June 1 to be considered for that year. Documentation received after June 1 but before the next school year begins applies to the following school year, or from the date it is received, provided the employee stays in an eligible position.
A worked example: a teacher whose master's is conferred in May and whose documentation reaches the district before June 1 is considered for that school year. If the same paperwork lands in late June, it counts toward the next year instead. PPfT raises follow their own calendar: points are set after year-end ratings and paid from the following year. The general mechanics of filing windows are in our article on transcript deadlines.
Do the same units count toward Texas license renewal?
Yes, and this is where loose graduate-level hours earn their keep in Austin. A Texas standard certificate renews every five years with continuing professional education (CPE). Classroom teachers need 150 CPE hours; librarians, who share Austin's teacher/librarian pay structure, need 200. Under 19 TAC §232.11(b), one semester credit hour from an accredited college or university equals 15 CPE hours, so a single three-hour course supplies 45. See the Texas renewal rules for required topics, and the Texas guide for how other districts pay for degrees.
Where can Austin ISD teachers earn graduate-level units?
Every district, Austin ISD 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 Austin ISD's human resources office is the safest record to have before you pay.
Austin ISD pays by completed degree, certificate level or rating rather than by units, so courses short of a degree do not change a Austin ISD 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 Austin ISD or Texas names in writing.
| Question | What Austin ISD says | What to look for on the provider's site |
|---|---|---|
| Type of unit | Austin ISD: Completed master's or higher, accredited | 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 | Austin ISD: June 1 for the current year | Published grading and transcript-posting time, and any rush option |
| Approval | Austin ISD: None in the manual | 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)
- Dominican CA Online: self-paced, units through Dominican University of California; $477 for 3 credits (price notes)
- For Teachers By Teachers: self-paced, units through CSU Pueblo or UMass Global; $285 CSU Pueblo for 3 credits (price notes)
- Fresno Pacific University CE: self-paced, up to 1 year, units through Fresno Pacific University; ≈$475 for 3 credits (price notes)
- Graduate Credit Courses: self-paced, units through Cal Poly Humboldt; $570 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 Austin ISD has approved a provider or course; only the district can do that. TeacherPayGuide has commercial relationships with some providers it lists; how listings work.
Austin ISD salary questions teachers ask
Does Austin ISD pay more for a master's degree?
Yes. Teachers and librarians with a master's or higher from an accredited college or university receive Advanced Degree Compensation, which has been part of base pay since 2023-2024.
What is the Austin ISD deadline to submit a new degree?
June 1. A degree earned during the school year must be documented by then to count for that year; later documentation applies to the following year or from the date received.
Do 30 graduate-level hours without a degree raise Austin ISD pay?
The 2026-2027 Compensation Manual has no provision for hours short of a degree. Pay grows through PPfT points, board-approved increases and Advanced Degree Compensation.
When do PPfT points turn into a raise?
Points are calculated at year end after final appraisal ratings, and the increase is added to base salary starting the following year.
Where can Austin ISD teachers take graduate-level courses for license renewal?
Austin ISD 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, Dominican CA Online, For Teachers By Teachers, Fresno Pacific University CE and Graduate Credit Courses. 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 Compensation Manual (New Hire Pay Plan, Advanced Degree Compensation, PPfT Compensation), Austin ISD. Checked
- Compensation, Austin ISD Human Capital. Checked
- PPfT Compensation, Austin ISD. Checked
- 19 TAC Chapter 232, Subchapter A, §232.11, Texas Education Agency. Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error