Massachusetts · Educator Licensing
Massachusetts teacher certification lookup on the DESE Public Lookup.
The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) licenses teachers, professional support personnel and administrators, and publishes a Public Lookup for Educator Licensure. This page explains what that lookup does and does not tell you.
Short answer: open the DESE Public Lookup and search by first name, last name or license number. A “no results” answer does not by itself mean an educator is unlicensed. This page does not look anyone up.
What the Public Lookup covers
DESE says educators, including teachers, professional support personnel and administrators, are generally required to hold a DESE-issued licence to be employed in Massachusetts public schools. The Public Lookup “provides information about the current status of educator licenses” and endorsements.
You can search by first name, last name or license number (at least one filter is required, a partial name returns all matches, and only the first 250 results are returned). Results list name, licence number, category, field, level, status, type, effective date and expiration date.
DESE says the tool reports any revocation or suspension it has imposed on a licence or endorsement since 2009. For suspensions it shows whether a licence is currently suspended, not prior history.
Open the official search
What the statuses mean
DESE defines three statuses on its lookup page. Approved means the educator has met the requirements for an endorsement (a supplementary credential). Licensed means the licence is current and the educator is eligible for employment under it. Inactive/Invalid means a licensed educator may be legally employed under the licence for two years while completing the professional development required to renew it.
Why you might see no results
DESE lists situations where the tool returns “your search returned no results”: the educator is not licensed, the licence was revoked before 2009, the educator’s name has changed, or the name is misspelled. It also notes that state law allows a few exceptions to the licensure requirement. Treat a blank result as a reason to ask, not as an answer.
Hiring decisions
DESE tells school and district administrators not to rely on the Public Lookup for hiring and to confirm through its Educator Licensure and Renewal (ELAR) system, which is for authorised users. For other questions, the Licensure Call Center is 781-338-6600 on business days, 9:00 am to noon and 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm (as listed on DESE’s licensure page).
Format
This page publishes no licence-number format or check-digit rule, because none is documented on the pages read. The DESE page also mentions a Massachusetts Education Personnel ID (MEPID) used for ELAR and MTEL registration; DESE does not describe it as the licence number, so do not assume the two are interchangeable.
Official sources used
- www.doe.mass.edu/licensure/lookup/ (retrieved November 2026)
- www.doe.mass.edu/licensure/ (retrieved November 2026)
Common mix-ups
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Often assumedThe Massachusetts lookup shows every past suspension an educator has had.
What the source saysDESE says the lookup reports any revocation or suspension it has imposed on a licence or endorsement since 2009. For suspensions it shows whether a licence is currently suspended, not prior history. [1]
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Often assumedA broad name search returns every matching educator.
What the source saysA partial name returns all matches, but DESE says only the first 250 results are returned and at least one filter is required. Narrow by licence number or full name when the list runs long. [1]
Checked against these sources on .
Frequently asked questions
How do I check a Massachusetts teacher license?
Open the DESE Public Lookup for Educator Licensure and search by first name, last name or license number.
Does the lookup show disciplinary history?
DESE says it shows revocations and suspensions imposed since 2009, and whether a licence is currently suspended, but not any history of prior suspensions.
Why does the lookup say no results for a real teacher?
DESE lists several causes: the educator is unlicensed, the licence was revoked before 2009, the name changed, or the name was misspelled. State law also allows a few exceptions to the licensing requirement.
Can a school use the Public Lookup to hire?
DESE says no. Administrators making employment decisions should confirm through the ELAR system.
Does this page verify a licence?
No. It describes the official lookup and links to it.
Guide only — not a verification tool
This page describes official registers and links to them. It does not check anyone’s licence status, does not copy or proxy any register, and nothing you might type here is transmitted anywhere. Registers change and licensing rules differ by state and city; use the official source linked above and contact the regulator to confirm anything that matters. This is general information, not legal advice.