Short answer
How do Northside ISD teachers move to a higher column on the salary schedule?
Northside has a single pay column. Its 2026-27 schedule pays by experience level, 0 through 35+, on 187 days. A master's or doctorate shown on a transcript from a regionally accredited college adds one equal amount at the teacher's level. Honorary degrees and hours short of a degree do not qualify. Principals submit stipend requests for Compensation Director approval.
Source: 2026-2027 New Classroom Teacher Hiring Schedule and Regulation BUS-08, Northside ISD. Checked .
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How is the Northside ISD teacher salary schedule organized?
Northside's Human Resources compensation page sorts jobs into three pay groups. Teachers belong to the hiring schedules; most administrative and support roles sit on midpoint schedules with pay grades instead. Classroom teachers use the 2026-2027 New Classroom Teacher Hiring Schedule, labeled "Eligible for Teacher Retention Allotment." Its rows are experience levels from 0 to 35+, and it has just two figures per row: the 26-27 General Increase and the resulting 26-27 Teacher Salary.
The footnotes carry the rules:
- The schedule applies to employees hired in 2014-2015 or later.
- Salaries are based on 187 days.
- A master's degree adds a set amount "to the base schedule at the corresponding experience level," and a doctorate adds the same amount.
- A maximum new-hire salary caps placement.
The term "classroom teacher" comes from Texas Education Code §5.001, which limits it to educators whose daily academic or CTE teaching averages four hours or more. Counselors, librarians, registered nurses and speech-language pathologists use the separate Other Educational Professionals schedule, which has the same degree notes; counselor rows already build a master's stipend into base pay. The compensation page describes the hiring schedule as based on "years of experience and college degree level," which in practice means the experience row plus the degree add-on, not separate lanes. For lane vocabulary in other states, see salary lane names.
Do graduate-level hours raise pay at Northside ISD?
Only as part of a finished degree. BUS-08, reissued in August 2026 by the Business office, sets the eligibility rules for both degree stipends:
- Master's Degree Stipend: the employee must be on a teacher pay schedule and hold a master's "noted on a transcript issued by a college or university which is accredited by a regionally recognized accrediting agency."
- Doctorate Degree Stipend: the same accreditation test applies to the doctorate.
- For both, "Honorary degrees are not eligible for stipends."
Because the two add-ons are equal on the 2026-27 schedule, a teacher who already holds a master's gains no further pay from finishing a doctorate. The schedule's wording does not say a teacher can collect both. Coursework below the degree threshold, whether 12 hours or 30, has no place on the schedule.
The two documents describe the add-on differently. The hiring schedule says the amount is added to the base schedule; BUS-08 says stipends are extra-duty or supplemental pay "not calculated in the base pay." If the distinction matters for your planning, ask the Compensation Department which treatment applies. BUS-08 also lists grandfathered stipends, including some for "specific master's degrees," that continue only while the holder stays continuously employed by Northside.
Our article on whether a district will accept a course covers the accreditation questions in more detail.
Does Northside ISD require approval before you take a course?
No course-level approval appears in either document. The approval step comes after the degree. Under BUS-08, stipend requests are submitted by principals and department heads, then authorized and processed by the Compensation Director and authorized reviewers. The principal or program department official is responsible for verifying that the employee meets the stipend requirements. A teacher therefore does not file the degree stipend alone; it goes in through the principal or department head. For how these forms work elsewhere, see pre-approval forms.
When are transcripts due, and when does the new column take effect?
Neither the hiring schedule nor BUS-08 sets a filing date for degree paperwork, and Northside does not describe retroactive degree pay. What BUS-08 does set is a notice cycle. From July through September, the Compensation Department sends every employee a Summary of Compensation showing the new base pay and the stipends assigned for the year. Check that summary for the degree stipend. Employees must tell Human Resources right away about any change that affects a stipend, and the district recovers stipend overpayments in full when it finds them.
National Board certification follows a different calendar. Teachers holding both a Texas certificate and a National Board certificate receive that stipend through the Teacher Incentive Allotment in June, and Northside passes 90 percent of each TIA allotment to the designated teacher.
Do the same units count toward Texas license renewal?
Yes. Hours that never add up to a degree still renew a certificate. A Texas classroom certificate renews on 150 CPE hours over five years. Under 19 TAC §232.11, a three-hour course from an accredited college supplies 45 of them, at 15 per semester hour. See the renewal rules in the Texas guide and the full Texas overview.
Where can Northside ISD teachers earn graduate-level units?
Every district, Northside 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 Northside ISD's human resources office is the safest record to have before you pay.
Northside ISD pays by completed degree, certificate level or rating rather than by units, so courses short of a degree do not change a Northside 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 Northside ISD or Texas names in writing.
| Question | What Northside ISD says | What to look for on the provider's site |
|---|---|---|
| Type of unit | Northside ISD: Completed degrees only; regionally accredited; master's and doctorate add the same amount | 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 | Northside ISD: None published; report changes to HR right away | Published grading and transcript-posting time, and any rush option |
| Approval | Northside ISD: None for courses; principal submits the stipend request | 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)
- PD Courses (University of La Verne): online or pdf, semester-based, units through University of La Verne; $420 for 3 credits (price notes)
- Teaching Channel: self-paced, units through a choice of eight universities; $489 for 3 credits (price notes)
- TLC Graduate Credits: self-paced, units through CSU Pueblo; $425 for 3 credits (price notes)
- Upward Teachers: self-paced, 1 to 6 months, letter grade, units through UMass Global; $240 sale 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 Northside 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.
Northside ISD salary questions teachers ask
Does Northside ISD pay more for a doctorate than a master's?
No. On the 2026-2027 New Classroom Teacher Hiring Schedule the master's and doctorate add-ons are the same amount at each experience level.
What makes a degree eligible for the Northside stipend?
Under BUS-08, the degree must appear on a transcript from a college or university accredited by a regionally recognized accrediting agency. Honorary degrees are excluded, and the master's stipend also requires being on a teacher pay schedule.
Who submits a Northside degree stipend request?
Principals and department heads submit stipend requests, which the Compensation Director and authorized reviewers authorize and process.
How do I see whether my Northside stipend was added?
Check the Summary of Compensation the Compensation Department issues between July and September. It lists the new base pay and the stipends assigned.
Where can Northside ISD teachers take graduate-level courses for license renewal?
Northside 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, PD Courses (University of La Verne), Teaching Channel, TLC Graduate Credits and Upward Teachers. 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 New Classroom Teacher Hiring Schedule, Northside ISD. Checked
- Stipend List and Eligibility, Regulation BUS-08 (August 2026), Northside ISD. Checked
- Compensation, Northside ISD Human Resources. Checked
- Other Educational Professionals Hiring Schedule 2026-2027, Northside ISD. Checked
- 19 TAC Chapter 232, Subchapter A, §232.11, Texas Education Agency. Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error