Document Submission

Mississippi Educator Career Continuum Archive (MECCA) system

All educators are encouraged to apply for licensure requests online through the MECCA system. MECCA is the fastest, most secure way to submit your application and supporting documents to the Division of Educator Licensure. Your educator management account will provide you with your Educator ID number and allow you to upload certain documents for your application. 

Existing Educators 

To access your MECCA account, go to the MECCA system and click MY MECCA. 

New or Prospective Educators

To create a new user account, go to the MECCA system and click Create a MECCA profile to begin the process. 

Licensure Applications

The Division of Educator Licensure cannot, by law, process any requests without receipt of an official completed licensure application submitted by the prospective or practicing educator. The licensure application submitted to the MDE Division of Educator Licensure will expire 180 days from the date it is received, and date stamped by the Division of Educator Licensure.

• Some licensure requests require the submission of an institutional recommendation prior to the submission of an application, such as initial and standard certifications by traditional and alternate routes as well as endorsements to be added by an approved program.
• Most licensure applications are available for submission through your MECCA account.
• If the application is not available in your educator management system account, you may submit a paper application by uploading it in your educator management system account. Please contact the Office of Licensure after the paper application has been successfully uploaded. 
• Please ensure all sections of the paper application are completed and legible to prevent the delay of processing your request.

Official Transcripts

All transcripts from all institutions must be submitted directly by the university or college electronically in a secure electronic format via National Student Clearinghouse, Parchment, or any other transcript exchange service provider. For efficient document-to-applicant verification, please request that the institution include the following information as part of the official transcript: 1) your date of birth 2) the last four digits of your social security and 3) your first and last name as it appears in your educator management system account. Transcripts uploaded in your educator management system account will not be accepted for licensure review.

Electronically submitted transcripts

• The Office of Educator Licensure accepts electronic transcripts through Parchment, National Student Clearinghouse, or any other transcript exchange service provider.
• This is the fastest and most secure way to get your transcripts to the Office of Educator Licensure.
• Electronic transcripts may be transmitted by the university or college to transcript@mdek12.org. This email address is used for the purpose of submitting official transcripts only.
• Please note that academic transcripts submitted to any other MDE email inbox will not be processed and applicants should only use the above designated email address to avoid delay of receipt of transcript and application processing.
• Applicants are responsible for having all transcripts representing degrees and/or coursework earned outside of the United States, as well as any other correspondence, translated and evaluated by an evaluation agency prior to submission of a licensure application to the Mississippi Department of Education. Please submit a detailed course-by-course foreign credential evaluation report. Information regarding acceptable evaluation agencies may be accessed at NACES (click on “Choose An Agency” to gain access to contact information for those listed as “Current Members”). The Office of Educator Licensure currently accepts electronic evaluation reports from World Education Services (WES) and International Education Evaluations (IEE). 

Official Test Scores

All test scores required for certification must be submitted electronically from the testing company. Photocopies or scores reports uploaded to your educator management system account are not accepted at this time.

Praxis and Foundations of Reading Score Reports

• If you test within the state of Mississippi, your test score results are automatically reported to the MDE.
• To ensure successful retrieval of scores automatically reported to the MDE, please be sure to include your full and correct social security number.
• If you test out of state, please designate the MDE as a score recipient during the test registration process.

Registration and additional information regarding Mississippi Praxis assessment(s) can be found at: Mississippi Praxis Assessments 

Registration and additional information for the Foundations of Reading test can be found at: Mississippi Foundations of Reading Assessment. 

SAT or ACT Scores

SAT and ACT scores can be electronically submitted directly from ACT to the Office of Educator Licensure.

Professional Development

Eligible professional development includes continuing education units (CEUS), contact/clock hours, official transcripts, SEMI credits, valid standard out-of-state license, proof of retirement from the Mississippi Public Employee Retirement System, and national board certification or re-certification.

• CEU certificates, American Speech Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) transcripts, and national board letters can be uploaded in your MECCA account.
• Proof of completing the national board process must be in the form a letter provided by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
• When uploading CEU certificates, please review the correspondence page of your MECCA account to ensure all applicable certificates totaling the correct amount of CEU credits for your class type are successfully uploaded prior to submitting your renewal application. 
• Please upload each CEU certificate one time. Duplicate certificates will not be counted towards the renewal of your license and will delay processing your request. 
• For professional development training sponsored by CEU granting agencies, please ensure the continuing education certificate displays the name of the agency, the credit value, and signature of the facilitator. 
• SEMI credits are sent to the Office of Educator Licensure via your educator management system account by the SEMI provider(s). The certificates do not need to be submitted electronically, unless otherwise requested.
• If you are submitting an official transcript as a part of your professional development, please follow the instruction listed under “Official Transcripts”.

Other forms and/or Supporting Documents

All forms required for specific licensure types can be located here. Please review the Licensure Application Checklist to ensure you have all required documentation necessary to submit a completed application for evaluation. Note: Only the current version of the respective forms below will be accepted for licensure application review and processing. To not delay the review and processing of your licensure request, please only use the forms provided on the webpage.

• Fill all forms out in its entirety.
• If you did not submit the Verification of Lawful Presence (VLP) form and required identification with a previously submitted licensure request, a copy of a valid and acceptable form of identification must be uploaded with your next most immediate licensure application submission.
• Some forms must be notarized or embossed. Please read the instructions of the selected form(s) prior to submitting it to the Division of Educator Licensure. If the form requires an embossed seal, please ensure it is visible on the uploaded document.