Supplementary Authorizations (CL-629)

Supplementary Authorizations for Multiple Subject and Standard Elementary Teaching Credentials

Holders of Multiple Subject or Standard Elementary Teaching Credentials may have one or more of the subjects listed below added to their credential as a Supplementary Authorization by verifying completion of the following requirements.

• A Supplementary Authorization added to a Multiple Subject or Standard Elementary Teaching Credential authorizes the holder to teach the subject matter listed on the credential in departmentalized classes in grades 9 and below.

Requirements for Holders of Multiple Subject and Standard Elementary Teaching Credentials

Applicants must satisfy one of the following requirements:

1. Official transcripts showing the completion of either 20 semester units (or 10 upper-division semester units) of non-remedial course work in the subject, completed at a regionally accredited community college, college, or university.
• 20 semester units are required if a combination of upper- and lower-division units are completed.
• At least one course in each of the specified areas listed.
• The balance of the 10 or 20 units may be in any course within the subject category.
• A grade of “C” or higher is required in every course used to meet this requirement.
  
  

Unacceptable coursework includes:

• Coursework that is not applicable toward a bachelor’s degree or higher degree (remedial), including professional development or continuing education units.
• In-service training or workshops.
• Coursework that does not cover the subject matter authorized by the requested supplementary authorization, unless a letter is provided from the chair of the subject area department stating that the course is equivalent to one offered by that department.
  
  
2. A collegiate major from a regionally-accredited college or university in a subject directly related to the subject to be listed.
   • Note: Refer to credential leaflet CL-560C for requirements to earn the full authorization that allows instruction in all grade levels.
     
     
3. Possession of a professional level teaching license earned in a state other than California, with a middle school or departmentalized classroom teaching authorization that is not comparable to a full single subject content area issued by the Commission, but aligns with a Supplementary Authorization.
   
   
4. Achieve a passing score on the appropriate subject-matter examination(s). Information, including passing scores and registration, can be found in Commission leaflet CL-674S entitled Verifying Subject-Matter Competence for Single Subject Teaching Credentials. 
   • Note: Refer to credential leaflet CL-560C for requirements to earn the full authorization that allows instruction in all grade levels.
     
     
5. Successful completion through a combination of coursework and examination options that meet or exceed the domains of the subject matter requirements adopted by the Commission in the content area of the Single Subject Credential. Such mixing of options may only be completed by a Commission-approved preparation program.
   • Note: Refer to credential leaflet CL-560C for requirements to earn the full authorization that allows instruction in all grade levels.

Supplementary Subjects

The subjects that may be listed on the credential are printed below in bold. If meeting the requirements to obtain a Supplementary Authorization based on coursework, the applicant must verify the completion of at least one course in each of the areas listed after that subject.

• Agriculture: animal science, plant science, and agricultural mechanics.
  
  
• Art: drawing and painting, art history or appreciation, and crafts.
  
  
• Business: business management, business marketing or introduction to business, computer concepts and applications, economics, business communications or business English, and accounting.
  
  
• Computer Science: computational thinking, computing practice and programming, computer and communication devices, and impacts of computing (e.g., social, ethical, legal). Impacts of computing topics may be included within courses that cover any of the other content areas.
  
  
• Dance: jazz dance, contemporary dance, and dance theory.
  
  
• English: grammar or language structure, composition, and literature.
  
  
• Health Science: substance abuse (including alcohol, drug, and tobacco); family life education (including human sexuality, HIV/AIDS, and sexually transmitted diseases); nutrition; comprehensive school health systems or programs; and health education theory, behavior, or foundations.
  
  
• Home Economics: food and nutrition, clothing, child development, and family life and parenting (Course of study must include course work in both food and nutrition, but the areas may be covered with one course; the same is true for the family life and parenting area. At least one course must include a laboratory component).
  
  
• Industrial Arts: drafting or graphic arts, woods or metals, and electricity or electronics.
  
  
• Mathematics: algebra, geometry, and development of the real number system or introduction to mathematics; or three courses in calculus or other mathematics courses for which intermediate algebra and geometry are prerequisites. All coursework must be at least at a level for which intermediate algebra is a prerequisite.
  
  
• Music: vocal music, instrumental music, music history or appreciation, and music theory.
  
  
• Physical Education: team sports and games; fundamental and creative movement skills (such as dance and gymnastics); human movement, motor development, and/or motor learning; and individual, dual, nontraditional and global sports and games (such as aquatics, conditioning, and archery).
  
  
• Science: biological sciences, chemistry, geosciences, and physics (Course of study must include a one-year sequence of courses in at least two of the listed subject areas. At least one course must include a laboratory component).
  
  
• Social Science: United States history, California history, world history, geography, and United States government.
  
  
• Theater: acting, directing, and stagecraft.
  
• World Languages (Specify): grammar, composition, conversation, and literature, plus oral language proficiency (See below for information on verifying the oral language requirement).
  

How to Apply

Applications for adding supplementary authorization content areas to a credential may be submitted to the Commission by mail including the following items:

1. A completed application (form 41-4).
2. Official transcripts verifying qualifying degree held or coursework completed. You may be required to submit photocopies of the catalog course descriptions or a course syllabus if the content of any course you wish to use to qualify for a supplementary authorization is not clear from the course title.
3. Application processing fee.
   

Oral Language Proficiency

Oral language proficiency in the language to be listed on the credential may be verified by one of the following:

1. Passage of the Language and Communication subtest of the California Subject Examinations for Teachers (CSET) in World Languages Examinations in the target language.
2. Obtain a letter from the chair of the Language Department of a regionally accredited four year college or university stating that the applicant’s oral proficiency is equivalent to that of a person with a bachelor’s degree with a major in that language.
3. Obtain a letter from the person authorized to issue verification at a college or university that has an approved Bilingual Authorization program stating that the applicant's proficiency in the language to be listed on the credential is equivalent to the level required to complete that program.
4. Possession of a three-year or higher degree from an out-of-country institution in which all instruction was delivered in the target language. The out-of-country institution must be equivalent in status to a regionally accredited institution of higher education in the United States.

Supplementary Authorization in Portuguese

Teachers seeking a supplementary authorization in Portuguese may also fulfill the oral language proficiency requirement by verifying passage of the Bilingual assessment administered by the following Commission approved assessor agency:

California State University, Stanislaus
1 University Circle
Turlock, CA 95382
(209) 667-3638
Contact: Dr. Elmano Costa
CSU Stanislaus Center for Portuguese Studies
ecosta@csustan.edu

Resources:

Additional information regarding the issuance of supplementary authorizations may be found in the Supplementary Authorization Guideline Book available on the Commission’s website.

Appendix B

Reference:

California Education Code, Sections 44225 and 44256; and Title 5, California Code of Regulations, Sections 80057.5

CL-629  April 2025