Masters Plus (M+) Credits and Salary-Lane Advancement (Units A & B)

CPS teachers and Unit B administrators can earn Master's Plus Credits through:

• The completion of graduate-credit bearing coursework at an accredited college or university; and/or

• The completion of one or more approved Masters Plus (M+) eligible CPS in-service course(s) listed on the Professional Learning Platform (PLP).

Approved M+ credits can be applied towards salary-lane advancement in CPS.

Please note that only credits earned while you are employed by the Cambridge Public Schools may be counted towards CPS salary-lane advancement. Credits earned prior to beginning employment with CPS are credited towards your salary at the time of hire, to the extent allowable. For example, if you had Master's Plus 33 when hired, you would be placed on the Master's Plus 30 salary level, and you would lose the 3 remaining credits. The Office of Human Resources only banks credits for present employees. Please see this FAQ document from the Office of Human Resources for more info.

Many CPS educators engage in professional learning outside of the Cambridge Public Schools, including enrolling in graduate degree-bearing programs (i.e. pursuing an additional Master's Degree, Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study (CAGS), or Doctoral Degree). Others enroll in discrete, individual graduate courses that offer graduate credits for an additional fee (which, in most instances, is the responsibility of the educator). Graduate credits earned beyond the Master's Degree may be applied towards salary-lane advancement in CPS and are transferrable to other districts.

Requests for graduate credits from accredited college and university courses must be accompanied by an official transcript. Copies of transcripts and Grade Reports are not acceptable. 

Many CPS educators engage in continued professional learning through approved in-service courses and workshops that are designed and facilitated by CPS employees. Many of these in-service courses and workshops offer one or more Master's Plus (M+) credits which can be applied towards salary-lane advancement. CPS in-service M+ credits are not transferrable to other districts.

In order to earn an internal CPS Masters Plus credit for an in-service workshop, a teacher or Unit B administrator must:

• Have already completed their 10-hour contractual choice course requirement (Unit A only). This contractual requirement must be satisfied prior to earning any Master's Plus credit(s). 

• Have registered for an approved Masters Plus course that meets the district guidelines.

• Have completed the contact hours and coursework OUTSIDE of their contractual time. Contractual time includes the school day, early release days, full-day professional days, and the 38 professional learning hours described here.

• Not have earned a monetary stipend for the same CPS professional learning course. 

No more than 45 CPS in-service M+ credits can be applied toward salary-lane advancement.

Please note that CPS only offers CPS M+ credits for approved CPS in-service workshops. If you have earned graduate credits outside of the district (i.e. through a local college/university or through another outside professional development provider), you may submit your transcripts directly to the Human Resources department (see section above).

After you have completed your first year of employment - and once you have earned 15 credits for in-service M+ workshops and/or graduate credits from an accredited college or university - you can apply for salary lane advancement. Completed applications and official transcripts should be submitted before the contractual deadline of July 31st each year via TalentEd, following the steps below:

1. Log-in to your TalentEd account (https://cpsd.tedk12.com/records)

2. Click on the “Available Forms” tab on the left side of your homepage. 

3. Here, you will be able to find the applications where you can complete it and attach the necessary supporting documents.

Requests for M+ credits obtained by attending in-service workshops must be accompanied by the Certificate of Completion and a transcript from the Professional Learning Platform (PLP). If you have any questions about the PLP, please contact Chad Leith.

Please note that you may not request salary-lane credit for coursework that you have previously used to satisfy the 10-hour choice course requirement.

Please see this updated guidance from the Office of Human Resources on the new M+75 salary lane.