The grid

Open your district's certificated salary schedule and you will almost always see a table. The rows are steps: one per year of credited service, up to a cap. The columns are lanes (some districts say "classes" or "columns"): education levels, written as a degree plus semester units. A typical set reads BA, BA+15, BA+30, BA+45, MA, MA+15, MA+30, MA+45 and sometimes a doctorate lane.

Your pay is the cell where your step and your lane meet. A step increase happens on its own each year, until the cap. A lane change happens only when you earn enough qualifying units and file the paperwork.

What counts as a qualifying unit

This is where districts differ, and where most of the confusion lives. The district's schedule, its collective bargaining agreement, or an HR "column advancement" page usually sets out:

  • Unit type. Semester or quarter units (quarter units are usually converted at two thirds). Some districts count only upper-division or graduate-level units; some accept lower-division units in limited numbers.
  • Timing. Units earned after the bachelor's degree, or after the date of the last degree, or after a stated date.
  • Relevance. Coursework related to the teacher's assignment or to education generally. Some districts have a "related field" list.
  • Pre-approval. Many districts require a request form before you enroll in non-degree coursework. Units taken without approval may not count.
  • Transcripts. Official transcripts from the issuing institution, received by HR before a stated date.
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Where to look. Search the district site for "salary schedule," "column advancement," "salary point" or "professional growth" together with the district name. If the rule is not written down, ask HR in writing and keep the reply.

The deadline

Most districts apply lane changes once a year, at the start of the pay year, and only for transcripts received by a stated date. Miss it by a week and the higher lane waits a full year. The date is set locally; there is no statewide date in locally bargained states such as California. States with statewide schedules, such as Hawaii, publish their own.

Plan backward. An official transcript can take one to three weeks after the grade posts, so the course needs to finish well before the filing date.

States with hour-to-credit conversions

In states that renew licenses by clock hours or professional-development units, the state often publishes a conversion that also helps with lane planning. Washington counts one semester credit as 15 clock hours (WAC 181-85-030). Oregon counts one semester credit as 30 PDUs. Nevada and Colorado count 15 contact hours per semester credit. These are renewal rules, not salary rules, but districts in those states often borrow the same arithmetic.

A worked example, without the dollars

A teacher at step 8 in the BA+15 lane earns 15 more approved semester units over a year. If the district requires pre-approval, the request goes in before the first course. The transcript arrives in HR in July, before an August 1 filing date. On the first pay period of the new year the teacher is placed at step 9, BA+30. The step would have happened anyway; the lane is the part the teacher earned.

How much that is worth depends entirely on the district's schedule, which is why we link to the schedules rather than quote a number.

Checklist

  1. Find your current step and lane on the schedule.
  2. Read the column-advancement rules and the filing date.
  3. Submit any pre-approval form before you enroll.
  4. Choose coursework that meets the unit type and relevance rules.
  5. Order the official transcript as soon as the grade posts.
  6. Confirm receipt with HR and keep the confirmation.

Sources: Washington Administrative Code 181-85-030; Oregon TSPC professional development unit guidance; Nevada regulation R088-23; Colorado Department of Education renewal guidance; district salary schedules linked from the state guides. Reviewed 2026-11-03.