Educational Psychology
Self-paced online Educational Psychology course (Psychology 120). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →South DakotaTeachers
Renewing a South Dakota licence when you are not in a classroom
By the team. Checked 15 Nov 2026.
The short answer
To renew a South Dakota teaching certificate while not teaching, use the six-credit route in ARSD 24:28:17:12: six education-related credits in five years, three transcripted. College courses, contact hours from listed providers and a passed content test do not need a teaching job. Finish by 1 October of the expiry year.
Which routes need a classroom
Rule 24:28:17:12 gives three routes. Two of them are hard to use away from a school: national board certification asks for classroom evidence, and the mentor route asks for two years as a mentee or mentor in a state-approved programme.
The third route, six education-related credits with three transcripted, has no employment condition in the rule. That is the route most people on leave, at home with family, or working outside schools will use.
What still works out of the classroom
Look at each item in 24:28:17:07 and ask whether you can do it without a school job.
- Transcripted college credit: yes, from any regionally accredited college, if education-related and a C or better.
- Contact hours: yes, from an educational service agency, education-related organisation, health care or public safety organisation, as well as districts.
- A passed state content test toward adding an endorsement: yes, one credit.
- Employment with the Department of Education: only if you work there.
Keeping the dates straight, and what to ask
Credits count only if earned between the issue date of your current certificate and 1 October of the expiry year (24:28:17:02). Renewal opens on 1 January and runs to 30 June of that year, and the certificate becomes invalid if the work is not complete by 1 October (24:28:17:01).
Out of the classroom, nobody reminds you. Put the expiry year in your calendar and plan to finish credits the autumn before.
Send one short email before you start, and keep the reply with your renewal papers. Name each course or training and ask directly.
- Will this course, on a regionally accredited college's transcript, count as education-related transcripted credit for my endorsement?
- Does this provider type count for contact hours?
- I hold a master's degree: how does rule 24:28:17:29 change what I must show?
- What proof do you want for each item?
If your certificate lapses
A certificate that is not renewed by 1 October becomes invalid. To renew it, you complete all renewal requirements and pay the invalid educator status fee (24:28:17:10). If you are returning to work, a one-year temporary certificate may be issued while you finish; it cannot be renewed (24:28:17:11).
The separate inactive-certificate rules were repealed in September 2026. If you hold an older inactive certificate, ask the Department how rule 24:28:17:32 on interim certificates applies to you.
A one-year plan from home
Here is one way a teacher on leave might do it. Every item must be education-related, and the transcript must come from a regionally accredited college.
- Autumn: one three-credit course tied to your endorsement or pedagogy, posted via a college transcript.
- Winter: 45 contact hours from an educational service agency or education-related organisation.
- January to June of the expiry year: send transcripts and certificates and renew online.
Where UPI Study fits
UPI Study offers Educational Psychology, Psychology of Diversity and Abnormal Psychology on PRO at $99 a month, self-paced. They are ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended. We are not a college and not accredited, so a course counts toward renewal only via a transcript from a regionally accredited college, and only if the Department agrees. Ask it in writing first.
What to ask in writing
Before you enrol
Before you enrol, email the South Dakota Department of Education's certification office and ask in writing whether the named course, posted via a college transcript, will count as education-related transcripted credit for your renewal, and keep the reply.
UPI Study is not a college and is not accredited. ACE and NCCRS review our courses and recommend credit; a college decides whether to give that credit and records it on its own transcript.
ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
Questions people ask
Do I need a school to sign off on my renewal credits?
The six-credit route in ARSD 24:28:17:12 has no employer sign-off in the rule. You send official transcripts and contact-hour certificates. Ask the Department what proof it wants for each item.
Can I let my certificate lapse and renew later?
You can, but it becomes invalid after 1 October of the expiry year. To renew, you complete all requirements and pay the invalid status fee, so staying current is usually easier.
Do substitute teaching days count toward renewal?
Renewal credits come from the items in ARSD 24:28:17:07, and teaching days are not on that list. Ask the Department whether any training your district offers substitutes counts as contact hours.
Courses that fit
ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended courses, studied online at your own pace.
Psychology of Diversity
Self-paced online Psychology of Diversity course (Psychology 112). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
Abnormal Psychology
Self-paced online Abnormal Psychology course (Psychology 180). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →Start when you have it in writing
Ask the Department of Education in writing first, then take the courses that fit your endorsement.
Sources
- South Dakota Administrative Rules, chapter 24:28:17 Certification renewal (sdlegislature.gov) (official)24:28:17:12: certificate valid five years; renew by national board certification, two years as mentee or mentor in a state-approved programme, or six education-related credits, three transcripted (source 53 SDR 22, eff. 8 Sep 2026). 24:28:17:07: transcripted credits; 15 CE contact hours = 1 credit; 1 year of employment with the department = 1 credit; 1 semester teaching in an approved preparation programme = half a credit; 1 passed state content test toward a new endorsement = 1 credit. 24:28:17:04: transcripted credit education-related, C or higher or pass, official transcript from a regionally accredited institution. 24:28:17:06: education-related defined. 24:28:17:01: renew 1 Jan to 30 Jun of expiry year; invalid if not complete by 1 Oct. 24:28:17:13 and :14 repealed. 24:28:17:29: advanced certificate or master's may verify six education-related credits. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.