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Apply for HALT accreditation
Assess your readiness
Steps to assess your readiness
Follow the steps on this page to check your eligibility and readiness to apply for Highly Accomplished or Lead Teacher (HALT) accreditation.
1
Check your eligibility
To be eligible to apply you need to be:
- an Australian citizen or a permanent resident
- a Proficient Teacher or above in NSW
- assessed as satisfactory in
- 2 of your most recent annual performance assessments, for Highly Accomplished
- 3 annual performance assessments, for Lead Teacher.
2
Choose your level of accreditation
You can read more about the characteristics of Highly Accomplished and Lead Teachers in the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (the Standards).
Highly Accomplished accreditation
Highly Accomplished teachers:
- work with other teachers to enhance their colleagues’ practice
- improve student or child learning in both their own and others’ learning environments.
Lead teacher accreditation
Lead Teachers:
- have an impact on their broader school or service community
- lead teaching projects and practices that have an impact on whole school or service change, student or child achievement and their colleagues.
Defining a colleague
For the purposes of HALT accreditation, a ‘colleague’ is an accredited teacher who you work with. Colleagues may include a teacher with Provisional or Conditional accreditation.
Deciding which level to apply for
You should consider the scope of your role and the opportunities you will have to demonstrate the Standards at the higher levels.
You can complete an optional online preliminary assessment in your NESA online account (eTAMS) to help you decide which level of accreditation to apply for. The assessment costs $65, which is deducted from your HALT application fee.
3
Discuss your readiness with your principal or service director
You should discuss with your principal or service director:
- your intention and readiness to apply
- which level of accreditation is appropriate.
If you start an application, your principal or service director will receive an email to verify your eligibility in eTAMS.
You will receive an email advising whether your principal or service director has verified your eligibility.
Casual teachers
If you are a casual teacher who works across several schools you will need to nominate the principal of one school to verify your eligibility.
Early childhood teachers
If you work in an early childhood service, you will need to contact NESA for advice about who can verify your eligibility.
4
Complete the HALT Orientation Course
You must complete the mandatory HALT Orientation Course on NESA Learning before you can start a HALT application. The course will help you to understand what is required by the HALT application process.
5
Pay your application fee
You need to pay the first application fee instalment before you start Module 1.
| Module | Cost for Highly Accomplished Teacher accreditation | Cost for Lead Teacher accreditation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $245 | $275 |
| 2 | $180 | $220 |
| 3 | $180 | $220 |
| Total cost | $605 | $715 |
6
Attend a NESA workshop
Applicant workshops are available online and in person. NESA strongly recommends you attend at least 1 applicant workshop before you submit your first module.
Situations that may affect your application
Learn more about situations that may affect your application.
HALT certification from another state or territory
If you hold national certification as a HALT in another state or territory, you are eligible for accreditation at the same level in NSW.
You first need to apply to NESA in eTAMS for accreditation in NSW.
You can then apply for mutual recognition by providing the following documentation to HALenquiry@nesa.nsw.edu.au:
- a certified copy of your HALT accreditation certificate
- evidence of completion of maintenance (renewal) where relevant.
NESA may contact another certifying authority to confirm your status before updating your record in eTAMS. You will start maintaining accreditation at the applicable HALT level on the day you are recognised at that level in NSW.
Your preliminary assessment result is 'not ready to apply'
If your preliminary assessment indicates you're not ready to apply for HALT accreditation, read the feedback in the report and:
- continue to review and analyse the Standards at Highly Accomplished Teacher or Lead Teacher to understand the level of practice required
- explore opportunities to further develop your practice aligned to the Standards identified in the report and discuss this with your principal or service director
- review the relevant evidence guide, for examples of practice and evidence
- consider applying for the Highly Accomplished Teacher career stage if you completed the Lead Teacher preliminary assessment.
You are a principal or service director applying for HALT
If you're a principal or service director, you need to notify NESA at HALenquiry@nesa.nsw.edu.au of your intention to apply for HALT and for advice on who can verify your eligibility.