- The TExES 118 costs $116 and consists of 100 selected-response questions in a 5-hour appointment.
- Social Studies Content makes up 71% of the exam, so history, geography, economics, and government dominate prep time.
- A passing score is 240, and statewide, 62% of 815 test takers passed on their best attempt in 2024-25.
- Most candidates test through a Texas educator preparation program or another TEA-authorized route, not on their own.
What Is the TExES 118 Certification?
The TExES Social Studies 4-8 (118) is the state-mandated content certification exam that Texas requires of candidates seeking to teach social studies to students in grades 4 through 8. It is administered on behalf of the Texas Education Agency by Pearson, and passing it is one of the final gates between finishing an educator preparation program and standing in front of a middle-grades classroom. If you're still confused about how this credential fits into the broader Texas certification landscape, our overview of what the TExES 118 actually is and the plain-language breakdown of TExES 118 meaning are good starting points before diving into exam specifics.
Unlike a general knowledge exam, the TExES 118 is deliberately narrow: it exists to confirm that a prospective teacher has mastered the specific content and pedagogical knowledge needed to teach social studies at the upper-elementary and middle-school level. That focus shapes everything about how you should prepare, from the topics you review to the way you pace your study calendar.
Who Hires TExES 118-Certified Teachers
Texas public middle schools and many upper-elementary campuses that structure grades 4-6 departmentally rely on TExES 118-certified teachers to staff their social studies classrooms. Districts hiring for these roles are typically looking for candidates who can teach Texas and U.S. history, world cultures, geography, economics, and government to students in that 4-8 grade band. Charter school networks and some private schools that follow Texas certification norms also list this credential as a hiring requirement or strong preference.
Because certification is tied to a specific grade band and content area, holding the TExES 118 opens doors that a general elementary certificate does not. If you're weighing whether the investment of time and money is worthwhile relative to the career opportunities it unlocks, the analysis in our ROI breakdown and the market context in the salary guide can help you make that call with real numbers rather than guesswork.
Exam Format and Registration Mechanics
Every candidate sits for the same structure: 100 selected-response questions delivered on computer at a Pearson-administered test center. Some of those items may be unscored field-test questions embedded to help the state evaluate future exam content, so you won't know which questions count and which don't - the practical implication is that you should treat every question with equal seriousness.
The full appointment runs five hours. That includes a 15-minute tutorial and compliance agreement at the start, followed by 4 hours and 45 minutes of actual testing time. That's a long sitting, and pacing matters: with 100 questions spread across nearly five hours, you have roughly 2.85 minutes per question on average, though the real skill is banking extra time on easier items so you have room to think through the harder analytical ones.
- Fee: $116 per attempt
- Scheduling: offered year-round by appointment rather than in fixed windows, so you book a seat at a test center once you're eligible
- Eligibility: testing normally requires approval through a Texas educator preparation program or another TEA-authorized route - you generally cannot simply register on your own without that approval
For a full walk-through of eligibility mechanics, including what counts as an authorized route, see TExES 118 requirements. If your priority is nailing down the flexible scheduling and how to plan around your prep program's deadlines, check exam dates and scheduling. And if budgeting is a concern, the certification cost breakdown lays out the $116 fee alongside other expenses you might not be anticipating.
Key Takeaway
Because approval through an educator preparation program typically comes before you can register, start that approval process early - it's often the longest step in the whole certification timeline, not the exam itself.
The Two Domains You Must Master
The TExES 118 is built around just two domains, but they are not weighted evenly, and that imbalance should directly drive how you allocate study time.
Domain 1: Social Studies Content (71%)
This domain carries nearly three-quarters of the exam and covers the substantive academic content a 4-8 social studies teacher must know cold: U.S. and Texas history, world history, geography, economics, government and citizenship, and the interconnections among them. Because it's the dominant domain, weak content knowledge here is the single biggest reason candidates fall short of the 240 passing score.
- Chronological reasoning across major eras of Texas and U.S. history
- Physical and human geography, including how geography shapes economic and political development
- Economic systems, personal finance concepts, and the roles of markets and government
- Structures of government, citizenship, and the rights and responsibilities tied to civic participation
Domain 2: Social Studies Foundations, Skills and Instruction (29%)
This smaller domain tests your ability to translate content knowledge into effective teaching: how to build inquiry-based lessons, how students at this age develop historical and geographic thinking skills, and how to use primary and secondary sources, maps, charts, and other social studies tools in instruction.
- Instructional strategies suited to grades 4-8 social studies classrooms
- Interpreting and teaching with primary sources, maps, and data displays
- Assessment approaches that measure historical thinking and civic reasoning, not just recall
For a deeper dive into every tested competency within each domain, our complete guide to all content areas breaks each domain into its component skills with specific examples. Pair that with a structured study plan like the one in our first-attempt study guide to turn domain weighting into an actual week-by-week plan.
Passing Score and What It Means
You need a scaled score of 240 to pass the TExES 118. That number isn't a raw percentage of the 100 questions - it's a scaled score derived from your performance across the exam, calibrated to account for item difficulty. Statewide, the 2024-25 best-attempt pass rate was 62% among 815 test takers, which tells you that a meaningful share of candidates need more than one attempt to clear the bar.
That statistic is worth sitting with. It doesn't mean the exam is impossible, but it does mean surface-level review usually isn't enough, particularly for the content-heavy Domain 1. For a closer look at how that pass rate breaks down and what it implies about difficulty, read our pass rate analysis and the broader difficulty guide. If you want the exact scoring mechanics explained in more depth, our passing score breakdown covers what 240 represents and how the field-test items factor into scoring.
| Exam Element | Detail |
|---|---|
| Total questions | 100 selected-response (some possibly unscored field-test items) |
| Total appointment time | 5 hours (15-min tutorial + 4 hrs 45 min testing) |
| Passing score | 240 |
| 2024-25 statewide pass rate | 62% (best attempt, 815 test takers) |
| Exam fee | $116 |
| Largest domain | Social Studies Content (71%) |
Certification Pathway and Ongoing Requirements
Passing the TExES 118 is a milestone, not the finish line. Most candidates reach the exam through a Texas educator preparation program or another TEA-authorized route, which means coursework, field experience, and program-level sign-off typically happen before you're cleared to register. Once you pass, the resulting Texas standard classroom-teacher certificate is valid for five years. Renewing it requires completing 150 hours of continuing professional education within that window - a requirement that keeps certified teachers engaged in ongoing professional learning throughout their careers.
If you're still early in the process and unsure which preparation route fits your situation, the requirements guide walks through the typical prerequisites step by step. And if you're wondering what doors this certificate opens once you've earned it, our jobs overview and the training resources guide are useful next stops.
A Domain-Weighted Prep Schedule
Generic study advice - flashcards, timed drills, review sessions - only helps if it's mapped onto the TExES 118's specific domain weights. Because Social Studies Content is 71% of the exam, your calendar should reflect that ratio almost literally: roughly seven weeks of content review for every three weeks spent on instructional pedagogy, if you're working on a ten-week timeline.
U.S. and Texas History Foundations
- Build a timeline of major eras and turning points
- Practice selected-response items on historical cause-and-effect
Geography and World Cultures
- Review physical and human geography concepts
- Practice map-reading and spatial-reasoning question formats
Economics and Government
- Master economic systems, markets, and personal finance basics
- Study branches and structures of government and civic participation
Domain 2: Instruction and Skills
- Study inquiry-based lesson design and primary-source instruction
- Review assessment strategies specific to social studies classrooms
Full-Length Practice and Review
- Take full-length timed practice sets to build stamina for the 4-hour-45-minute testing window
- Target weak areas identified in earlier practice
Running full-length timed practice through our TExES 118 practice test platform in the final weeks is one of the most reliable ways to simulate the real pacing demands of a nearly five-hour appointment. Combine that with a domain-specific review pass using our one-page cheat sheet for last-minute reinforcement of must-know facts across both domains.
Frequently Asked Questions
It certifies you to teach social studies - history, geography, economics, and government - to students in grades 4 through 8 in Texas public schools.
The exam has 100 selected-response questions, some of which may be unscored field-test items. The full appointment is 5 hours, including a 15-minute tutorial and 4 hours 45 minutes of testing time.
You need a scaled score of 240. Statewide in 2024-25, 62% of 815 test takers passed on their best attempt.
Typically no. Testing normally requires approval through a Texas educator preparation program or another TEA-authorized route before you can schedule an appointment.
The Texas standard classroom-teacher certificate is valid for five years, and renewal requires completing 150 hours of continuing professional education.