Substitute certificate (NJDOE credential)

Your New Jersey substitute credential

To substitute in a New Jersey public school you need a credential issued by the New Jersey Department of Education through its NJEdCert system: a Substitute Credential (Instructional, Career & Technical, School Nurse or Educational Interpreter) or a standard instructional certificate. Since January 2021 credentials are issued digitally — there is no paper certificate in the mail. The document we need is the “Printable View” of your credential from NJEdCert.

Getting the document

1. 1. If you already hold a credential, download it from NJEdCert

   Sign in to NJEdCert, open My Certifications on your home page, click the blue License ID of your credential, then choose Printable View. Save it as a PDF (Print → Save as PDF) or take a full-page screenshot. That is the file to upload.

   Tip: Credentials issued before January 2021 were paper and do not appear in NJEdCert — upload a clear photo or scan of the paper certificate instead.

2. 2. If you need to apply: create your NJEdCert account

   Go to njdoe.my.site.com and register as an educator with the email you check most. NJDOE emails you a “Welcome to the NJEdCert Portal” message with a log-in link; the link asks you to complete your profile before it lets you set a password. The email also states your username — keep it.

   Tip: If you get interrupted before your profile is complete, go back to that email and click the link again to start over.
   Screenshot captured 2026-09-05. The screen may look a little different today — the steps are the same.

3. 3. Click Apply Now on your home page

   After signing in you land on the NJEdCert home page: your educator name and tracking number at the top, then the My Certifications, My Applications and My Cases tabs. My Certifications is empty until NJDOE issues something. Click the blue Apply Now button.

   Screenshot captured 2026-09-05. The screen may look a little different today — the steps are the same.

4. 4. Read “Before You Begin”, then Continue

   This page is worth reading once. Two lines matter most for substitutes: applications are not reviewed until payment and all documentation are in, and a paid application that is still missing documents expires after six months. Fees are non-refundable.

   Screenshot captured 2026-09-05. The screen may look a little different today — the steps are the same.

5. 5. Answer the education questions

   NJEdCert first asks whether you have a degree from an accredited college or university, then for each school: whether it is in New Jersey, in the United States, which country, when you attended, and whether you graduated. Answer for every college you attended — the Instructional substitute credential needs at least 30 college credits, which can come from an unfinished degree.

   Screenshot captured 2026-09-05. The screen may look a little different today — the steps are the same.

6. 6. Educated outside the United States? You need an evaluation report

   If any school is outside the US, NJDOE will not read the foreign transcript itself. You need a course-by-course Foreign Credential Evaluation (FCE) from an agency on NJDOE’s approved list, and it must be sent to NJDOE by the agency. Order it before you apply if you can — it typically takes a few weeks — and have the report in hand when you fill in the school details. The evaluation report supports the application; it is not the credential, so do not upload it to us.

   Tip: Official transcripts must be sent electronically by every institution to certapplication@doe.nj.gov, even if you sent them for an earlier application.
   Screenshot captured 2026-09-05. The screen may look a little different today — the steps are the same.

7. 7. Stopped part-way? Use Save & Resume Later

   Every page after the first has a Save & Resume Later button. NJEdCert confirms “Your progress has been saved”; to continue, sign back in and use the Resume button in the Saved Applications section of the home page. Then choose the substitute credential that matches your education, pay the state fee, and submit.

   Screenshot captured 2026-09-05. The screen may look a little different today — the steps are the same.

8. 8. After you submit

   The application shows under My Applications with a receipt; the credential itself appears under My Certifications only once NJDOE approves it. A criminal history background check approved within the last five months is also required, which is why the Background Check step runs alongside this one.

9. 9. Waiting for NJDOE?

   Tell us in the step’s message box or via “Need help?” — we can see your application receipt, but the step is not complete until the credential itself is issued.

What it looks like — examples

Example — NJEdCert “Printable View” of a substitute credential

What the credential looks like when printed from NJEdCert. The exact layout is NJDOE’s and changes over time; the numbered fields are what we check.

1. Your full name
2. Credential type — e.g. Substitute Credential, Instructional
3. License / certificate ID number
4. Issue date and, where printed, expiration date
5. New Jersey Department of Education as the issuer

Not this — the NJEdCert application receipt

A fee receipt or application confirmation shows you applied; it is not a credential and cannot be accepted in this step.

1. Says “Application” / “Payment received”, not “Credential”
2. No license ID and no issue date

Uploading it in EverTeach

1. 1. Open the Substitute Certificate step

   Sign in, open Onboarding, choose Substitute Certificate, and tick the acknowledgement. The upload card appears underneath.

2. 2. Read “What to upload & what we check” on the card

   Each card lists what we accept, what must be readable, and what does not belong there. If your file does not match, get the right document first — a wrong upload only adds a round trip.

3. 3. Choose your file

   Click Choose file and pick a PDF, JPG or PNG under 10 MB. A phone photo is fine when every word on the page is readable and nothing is cut off. You can also type the test date so we can remind you before it expires — optional.

4. 4. Check your upload in the review window

   Straight after the upload, your file opens next to a checklist. Look at each line and confirm your file shows it. If it does, click “Yes, this is my …”. If it does not — wrong document, blurry, cut off — click “No — replace this file” and choose another.

   Tip: If you pick a file we have already seen — for example the same file we could not accept last time — a warning asks you to choose a different one. You can still upload it if you are sure.

5. 5. Wait for review

   The card shows “Pending review”. Our team checks it within 1–2 business days. If something is missing you get an email and an in-app message naming the document and the reason, and the card shows “Rejected – re-upload” with the reason.

Questions we hear often

Sources

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