The government on Thursday has taken a decision to extend the validity period of the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) qualifying certificate from seven years to a lifetime with retroactive effect from 2011, Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ announced.

“This will be a positive step in increasing the employment opportunities for candidates aspiring to make a career in the teaching field,” said Pokhriyal.

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Furthermore, he added that necessary actions will be taken by respective state government and union territories to recertify or issue fresh TET certificates to those candidates whose period of seven years has already lapsed.

This change has been made according to the guidelines dated February 11, 2011 of the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE). It stated that TET would be conducted by the state governments and the validity of the TET Certificate was seven years, from the date of passing TET.

What is Teachers Eligibility Test (TET)?

One of the essential qualifications for a person to be eligible for appointment as a teacher in schools is – Teachers Eligibility Test (TET).

Previously, although the validity of the TET pass certificate was for seven years, there was no restriction on the number of attempts a person can take for acquiring a certificate. Also, a person who has qualified in the exam was permitted to appear again in order to improve their score.

It must be noted that states conduct their own TET, whereas the Central TET or the CTET is conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).