Accompanying students on the journey from discovery to proficiency in another language is an incredibly rewarding process. Interested in making an impact on the world with a career in education? Explore paths to credentialing, scholarships, and resources for future language teachers.

Why Become a Language Teacher?

Whether introducing early childhood learners to unknown lands or discussing cultural complexities with high school students in a second language, teachers shape the ways in which their classes engage with the world around them.

��̽�� Educator Spotlight

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Consider these reasons why becoming a language educator could be the right choice for you!

You’re passionate about language and culture: The language classroom is an exciting, dynamic environment, filled with authentic materials, interaction, collaboration, and community engagement—a far cry from the formal recitations and memorization of years gone by. This is your opportunity to share what you love with others.
You’re innovative: Language students no longer have to board an airplane to speak with their peers a world away. Educators draw upon their digital savvy and an international network of colleagues to reach beyond the textbooks, integrating the latest technology into their lessons—including video chatting, social media platforms, online pen-pal collaborations, blogs, games, and interactive message-board apps.
You’re a team builder: Language educators are leaders who create and sustain meaningful connections between their students, at their institutions, in their communities, and in the profession by celebrating languages and cultures and sharing resources.
Your skills are in demand: Language teacher shortages exist in nearly all U.S. states, making the current demand for qualified educators paramount. It’s truly a job seeker’s market for new teachers no matter where they aspire to teach, with some districts adding bonuses and other hiring incentives to the package.
You’ve dreamt of this: It’s never too late to make your dream a reality. Language educators come to the profession from countless backgrounds, each of which gives their classes a unique depth and perspective. Some teachers take a traditional route and receive their credentials upon graduating from college with a degree in education or in their target language. Others acquire teaching credentials after beginning their career in another field.

Credentialing and Teacher Preparation Programs

With assistance from STARTALK, a government program based at the University of Maryland’s National Foreign Language Center, LangCred, an online tool for identifying language credential routes and/or teacher preparation programs by state, has been created.

The extensive database provides a succinct overview of all relevant details needed for choosing the perfect program to suit your needs, including: program website and contact information; program type and degree/credentialing outcome; whether online classes are available; and application schedule and fees, if applicable.

To get started, select your state on the LangCred interactive map or search by keyword.

While choosing a degree program, consider if you prefer majoring in Education or in the language you will be teaching. Your university’s education and language departments will be excellent resources for understanding the various pathways open to you which lead to certification.

National Scholarships and Grants

You’ve found the right program, but you’re unsure about tuition and/or certification costs? Fortunately, there are many opportunities to secure additional funding for your teacher preparation experience.

Start locally, inquiring about financial assistance at your university and looking into scholarships specific to your state. Regional language teachers’ associations, ethnic organizations, and local honor societies are excellent places to begin. You’ll also want to review nationally available opportunities, such as the selection of scholarships for future teachers listed below.

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Explore Funding Opportunities

The American Federation of Teachers offers $8,000 college scholarships to be paid out over four years to dependents of AFT members, as well as one-time $1,000 grants to members.

Depending on the length and location of their service, educators may be eligible for teacher loan forgiveness for Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans, Direct Unsubsidized Loans, Subsidized Federal Stafford Loans, and Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans, as well as teacher cancellation for Federal Perkins Loans.

Each year, the Foundation awards five $1,000 awards to students majoring in elementary education.

An essay on voluntary and compulsory unionism is part of the selection criteria for this NILRR award supporting future teachers.

The National Education Association provides a yearly $2,500 award to an NEA Student Program member pursuing a degree in teacher education.

Every year, the PDK Educational Foundation Scholarship Program awards about 100 scholarships across all membership types. One-time and renewable awards range from $500 to $5,000. A member in good standing of one of the following associations: Educators Rising, Educators Rising Collegiate, Pi Lambda Theta, and/or PDK Association; pursuing a career in public education; and enrolled in an institution of higher education full- or part-time for the fall semester of the application year.

PraxisExam.org awards an education major student with a $1,000 scholarship to increase access to the college education necessary to become a teacher.

The TEACH Program offers federal grants up to $4,000 a year to students earning degrees in education. Recipients must teach students from low-income families in a high-need field for at least four years after graduation to prevent the grant from becoming a loan.

Teacher.org offers a one-time $2,500 scholarship to future and current teachers pursuing a variety of Education degrees.

Zeta National Educational Foundation, Inc. (Z-NEF) offers financial assistance to students enrolled in elementary or secondary education degree programs.
The AAEE offers an $800 award to students in teacher preparation programs leading to certification in an area of critical teacher shortage, including many languages.

Open to students from states represented by the Southern Conference on Language Teaching (SCOLT), this $1,000 scholarship is intended for a high school senior who plans on a career as a world language educator.
Future Teacher Scholarship Program
This renewable award provides merit-based scholarships of $1,500 per academic year to graduating high school seniors and current undergraduates committed to pursuing the language teaching profession in languages other than English (for a cumulative total of $6,000 per recipient). Scholars also receive complimentary ��̽�� membership.

The New York City Department of Education provides funding for future NYC teachers specializing in Bilingual Special Education, Monolingual and Bilingual Speech Language Pathology, Monolingual and Bilingual Visually Impaired, and Bilingual School Psychology to earn a master’s degree and certification at a participating university.
American Sign Language (ASL)
The Society offers scholarships to students from campuses with an active chapter who are majoring or minoring in ASL, Deaf Studies, Deaf Education, and Interpreter Preparation.

French
The AATF awards one $2,000 scholarship annually to a future French teacher to help fund his or her long-term study abroad experience.

German
Each year, the National German Honorary Society awards $500 and a student membership to the American Association of Teachers of German to undergraduate or graduate members seeking certification.

Japanese
JLSF provides $3,000 and round-trip airfare for current and future Japanese language teachers and graduate students wishing to complete a project of their choice in Japan.

Latin
ACL scholarships awarded to League members may be applied to Latin Certification class expenses, among other costs.
- New Latin Educators Scholarship: the NLE awards 5 renewable awards of $2,000 to high-school seniors and college undergraduates planning to teach Latin.
- The Sally R. Davis Graduate School Scholarship: the NLE offers a one-time $2,000 scholarship for postgraduate study leading to teaching K-12 Latin and/or Greek.
In addition to the National Junior Classical League offers a $2,000 award to student League members majoring in Latin, Greek, or the Classics and planning to teach.

The CSC offers a scholarship for future Latin teachers preparing for certification; Society membership is not required for consideration.
Don’t forget that membership associations and other organizations specific to your language are great places to go for community, direction, and resources.

ASL
Arabic
Chinese – Mandarin
French
German
Greek
Hebrew
Hindi & Urdu
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Latin
Native American Languages
- (and Conference)
Persian
Portuguese
Russian
Spanish
Turkish

See also these guides to and created by PraxisExam.org to explore additional funding opportunities.

There are students in critical need of your passion, expertise, and drive. Your path to becoming a language educator could begin as soon as today.

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Become a Language Educator