Frequently Asked Questions

The Arizona Teacher Residency is one of Arizona's most comprehensive teacher preparation and certification programs. Unlike traditional pathways, AZTR is intentionally designed to help aspiring educators become highly effective, well-supported teachers who remain in the profession and make a lasting impact on students and communities.

• Year-long clinical apprenticeship. Residents spend an entire school year apprenticing alongside an accomplished Supervising Teacher, gradually assuming instructional responsibility while receiving ongoing coaching, feedback, and support before becoming a teacher of record.
• Integrated master's degree and teacher certification. Residents earn a master's degree through Northern Arizona University while completing a rigorous teacher education program that directly connects coursework to their daily classroom experience.
• Financial and professional support. Through tuition assistance, living stipends, healthcare benefits, expert mentorship, and ongoing professional learning, residents receive the support needed to focus on developing their practice instead of accumulating debt.
• Preparation centered on the human side of learning. Residents learn how to build meaningful relationships with students, create inclusive learning environments, connect with parents and families, and deliver instruction that responds to the strengths and needs of every learner.
• Long-term career development. Support does not end when residents become teachers. Graduates receive two years of induction support and ongoing opportunities to pursue advanced credentials such as National Board Certification.
• A commitment to Arizona schools. Residents commit to teaching in partner districts after completing the residency, helping strengthen local schools and expanding access to highly prepared educators across Arizona.

The current partner districts include Osborn School District, Roosevelt School District, Tempe Elementary School District, Glendale Elementary School District, Maricopa Unified School District, Florence Unified School District (MUSD and FUSD are located in Pinal County), Marana Unified School District, Tanque Verde School District (Marana and Tanque Verde are in Pima County), and Safford Unified School District (in Graham County). 

Because we are an ADE-approved apprenticeship program, we can partner with any school district in Arizona as long as there is a mutual agreement to work together. Please visit our Partners page for more information.

Please sign up for updates about the Arizona Teacher Residency and mark your interest as a school or district in partnering.

Please reach out to us at aztr@aztr.org.

Supervising Teachers will be identified through a nomination process. From these nominations, we will invite teachers to apply. After careful review, selected teachers will be invited to participate in a virtual resident matching event. If they match with a resident, they will be invited to become an ST.

For eligibility information, please visit our Supervising Teachers page.

Selected Supervising Teachers will receive a $2,000 stipend during the residency year for their work in supporting their resident. Payments will be made in January and June in separate installments of $1,000. Supervising Teachers will also receive training and additional professional learning opportunities from the Arizona K12 Center.

For additional benefit information, please visit our Supervising Teachers page.

The Arizona Teacher Residency is a two-year graduate program, with each resident serving the first year as a teacher apprentice, then the second year as a teacher of record. Residents receive two years of induction support (in their second year in the program and the following year).

In total, residents commit to a school district for four years (one year as an apprentice, and three years as a teacher of record). We are currently on our fifth cohort of residents. 

In their first year of the program, residents will:

• Complete a five-day summer institute in Flagstaff, room and board paid for
• Work alongside a Supervising Teacher for the full year, July through May
• Work in a partnering school four days a week from Monday-Thursday during school hours. 
• Complete coursework in-person every Friday (9am–4pm) and a few additional courses delivered in an online asynchronous format.

In their second year of the program, residents will:

• Complete two summer courses online
• Secure employment in the district in a full-time teaching position
• Complete two online courses in the fall
• Receive induction support from an Arizona K12 Center mentor (which will continue through year three)
• Complete a capstone project/thesis based on their teaching experiences to be presented to their residency cohort in the spring

No. Residents must work in a partnering district throughout the residency year and be close enough to drive to Phoenix on Fridays for in-person coursework. 

Currently, we offer a master’s degree plus certification in elementary education which prepares an educator to teach kindergarten through eighth grade, and special education for mild/moderate disabilities. The coursework will be generalist in nature, as opposed to focused on a particular content area like math, science, or art.

No. In the first year, most coursework will be taught in-person by faculty affiliated with the Arizona Teacher Residency, Northern Arizona University in Phoenix. These courses will take place all day on Fridays and once a week after the K-12 school day.

In the second year, when residents become teachers of record, most of the coursework will be online. There is also required coursework during the summers before and after the resident’s first year that will be taught in a hybrid format.

This program was created for aspiring teachers. You are eligible to apply if you meet the following criteria: 

• A bachelor’s degree in any concentration before June
• Does not already have a standard Arizona Elementary Education K-8 Teaching Certificate (unless you are pursuing special education)
• Eligible for employment to work in Arizona school (i.e. eligible to work in the U.S., must attain Fingerprint Clearance Card)
• Eligible for FAFSA for Arizona Teachers Academy tuition coverage (U.S. Citizen, Lawful Permanent Resident, Asylee, etc.) 
• Eligible for AmeriCorps living stipend (U.S. Citizen, U.S. National, or Lawful Permanent Resident Alien)

Please review the Application Process for steps to apply.

Admission decisions will be announced twice a year: once in January and again in early April, prior to the start of a resident's first academic year.

We currently accept 30 residents but will be expanding the cohorts every year, resources permitting. The goal is to support annual cohorts of up to 100 residents across the state.

The first cohort began in July 2022 with a summer institute at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona. Residents began their apprenticeship in schools at the beginning of August 2022.

Yes. This program requires a four-year commitment in total: The first year as a teacher apprentice and three years as a teacher of record.

When residents enroll in the program, they must sign an agreement that states they will commit to serving as a teacher for the three years after their residency year in the same district/LEA in which they are prepared. This agreement amounts to a four-year minimum commitment to a partnering district.

In their first year of the program, residents will receive a 10-month living stipend, paid bi-weekly, through AmeriCorps. Additionally, the program can offer health care to residents who need it, as well as other sources of direct support.

In the second year, along with finishing their master’s degree coursework, residents will
be employed by the district and receive a salary for teaching full time.

Residents are placed in schools Monday–Thursday and attend class on Fridays, leaving evenings and weekends available for those who choose to take on part-time work. However, it is an intense program of study, and thus we do not advise residents to take on a lot of work outside the program.

Most applicants will have very little out-of-pocket cost. Arizona residents can apply to the Arizona Teachers Academy to cover their master’s degree tuition at NAU and other grants cover additional supports like the living stipend, healthcare, books, and more.

Residents are responsible for the cost of their Arizona Fingerprint Clearance Card, substitute certification, and a couple other small fees like that. It sounds too good to be true, but thanks to federal, state, district, foundation, and non-profit grants, we are able to offer residents these supports so they do not have to take on debt to become a teacher.

You are eligible to apply for ATA scholarship if you are:

• Admitted to NAU as an in-state or out-of-state student,
• Enrolled in an NAU ATA eligible degree program such as the degree program(s) offered through the Arizona Teacher Residency,
• Eligible for and have a current FAFSA on file with NAU’s Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid (OSFA),
• Willing to commit to the ATA teaching service commitment (for Arizona Teacher Residency participants, this will include two years of teaching in an Arizona public district, public charter, or Bureau of Indian Education school after you complete the two-year eligible degree program).

Yes. The MEd Elementary Education with Certification degree program being offered through the Arizona Teacher Residency will provide pedagogical content coursework designed to enhance your knowledge and skills regarding effective teaching practices—even if you have an Arizona teaching certificate, such as a/an:

• Emergency teaching certificate
• Emergency substitute certificate
• Subject Matter Expert Standard Teaching, Grades 6-12 Certificate
• Specialized Secondary STEM Certificate, Grades 6-12
• Or another Arizona teaching certificate besides an Arizona Standard Professional Elementary Certificate

Through your admission to NAU and enrollment in the MEd Elementary Education with Certification (as well as meeting the other ATA requirements), you will be eligible to apply for the ATA scholarship.

Only if you are interested in pursuing the special education pathway. If you already have an Arizona Standard Professional Elementary Certificate, and want to remain in a general education setting, you may want to consider pursuing another NAU ATA Scholarship eligible degree program. For more information, review the ATA’s degree programs and dual enrollment options.

No. Apprenticing under a mentor teacher is a required part of the program for all first-year teaching residents. This allows you to focus on learning and growing as a teacher while receiving hands-on coaching and support. 

It depends.

If you are already certified as an elementary teacher in another state, you may want to first apply for an Arizona Standard Professional Elementary Certificate through Arizona’s reciprocity procedures.

Although the Arizona Teacher Residency may not be a good fit if you are issued an Arizona Standard Professional Elementary Certificate through the reciprocity procedures, you may want to consider pursuing another NAU ATA Scholarship eligible degree program. For more information, review the ATA’s degree programs and dual enrollment options.

If you have an out-of-state teaching certificate in an area other than elementary education or special education and you are interested in teaching at the elementary level (Grades K-8), then applying for the Arizona Teacher Residency and MEd Elementary Education with Certification degree program may be a good fit for your interests and career goals.

We use a collaborative matching process in which your input is valued. We welcome and encourage your recommendations.

Your eligibility for the ATA scholarship will be evaluated by OSFA once your ATA Agreement is received. Your account is evaluated after you are registered for courses for the term and tuition and fee charges have been posted to your account.

An ATA scholarship will disburse to pay any remaining tuition and mandatory fees after all other federal, state, and institutional grants and tuition waivers are applied. The ATA scholarship is disbursed approximately 10 days prior to the first day of classes and applied to any remaining tuition and fees charges.

Yes! As long as you are eligible for AmeriCorps and FAFSA, you are welcome to apply. We do require that international bachelor's degrees undergo a credential evaluation prior to enrollment to verify equivalency to a U.S. bachelor's degree.

As long as you don't already hold a Standard Professional Elementary Certificate, you are still eligible to apply.

No — in Year 1, the graduate student health insurance covers the resident only and doesn't extend to family members. Once you move into Year 2 as an official employee of the school district, you'll have the option to add family medical coverage.

We partner with multiple school districts in the Tucson area, so completing your apprenticeship there is absolutely possible. Our Tucson-based residents carpool together each Friday to attend class at the Arizona K12 Center.

Once accepted, here's what to expect:

• April — Enrollment with NAU takes place
• June — Summer online coursework begins, along with a one-week Summer Institute held in Flagstaff
• Late July / Early August — The apprenticeship begins as students return to school (M-Th)
• August — Fall semester courses begin (Tuesday evenings online and Fridays in-person)

During the apprenticeship year, residents are in classrooms Monday through Thursday working alongside a mentor/supervising  teacher, with classes held on Fridays. In exchange for this commitment, residents earn an AmeriCorps living stipend paid biweekly over 10 months.

Due to this schedule, working an additional full-time job is generally not feasible. However, some residents do take on light part-time work in the evenings or on weekends.