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Certified teacher education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a certified teacher. Certified teachers usually study elementary education, education, or business. 65% of certified teachers hold a bachelor's degree, and 20% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 2,381 real certified teacher resumes to see exactly what certified teacher education sections show.
The most common colleges for certified teachers are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.
There are also many online certified teacher courses to help get the education required to be a certified teacher.
There are certain certified teacher certifications that you should consider. These certified teacher certifications include Microsoft Certified Educator (MCE) and Educational Certificate: K-12 (Ed:).
What education do you need to become a certified teacher?
What degree do you need to be a certified teacher?
- Bachelor's, 65%
- Master's, 20%
- Associate, 9%
- High School Diploma, 2%
- Other Degrees, 4%
What should I major in to become a certified teacher?
- Elementary Education, 20%
- Education, 15%
- Business, 8%
- Psychology, 7%
- Other Majors, 50%
Most common colleges for certified teachers
| Certified teacher common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Phoenix | 10.95% |
| Arizona State University | 8.10% |
| Northeastern State University | 5.24% |
| Walden University | 5.24% |
| Florida State University | 5.24% |
Best majors for certified teachers
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elementary Education | 20.1% |
| 2 | Education | 14.7% |
| 3 | Business | 8.1% |
| 4 | Psychology | 7.0% |
| 5 | General Education, Specific Areas | 6.4% |
Best colleges for certified teachers
The best colleges for certified teachers are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Vanderbilt University.
A certified teacher with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for certified teachers. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become certified teachers.
1. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
2. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$50,420
Enrollment
7,582
3. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
4. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Enrollment
18,946
5. New York University
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$51,828
Enrollment
26,339
6. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$53,948
Enrollment
17,238
7. University of Washington
Seattle, WA • Private
In-state tuition
$11,207
Enrollment
30,905
8. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
9. Brown University
Providence, RI • Private
In-state tuition
$55,466
Enrollment
6,752
10. SUNY at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$10,099
Enrollment
21,404
20 best online courses for certified teachers
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In this course you will learn how to design lesson plans around the needs of your ELL students and their language level through the analysis of content language and cognitive demands. You will learn how to align language objectives to the adopted standards of your school and content area. You will learn how to modify existing course materials as well as develop graphic organizers and languages frames to support ELLs’ access to content. Analysis of second language acquisition theories will be...
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13. THINK GLOBAL: TEACHERS TRAINING COURSE (IDP-ICE)
A group of seven European partners from Catalonia, Belgium, and Wales worked together on the Erasmus+ funded ‘Think Global’ project on global competence. The project seeks to address the following research question through development and piloting of practical classroom activities: What is global competence, and how can it be learned effectively? The Think Global project explores, through international collaboration, how global competence is defined, taught, learned, and measured in the...
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Top 10 most affordable universities for certified teachers
The most affordable schools for certified teachers are Baruch College of the City University of New York, hunter college of the city university of new york, and california state university - long beach.
If the best universities for certified teachers are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for certified teachers.
1. Baruch College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,262
Cost of attendance
14,046
2. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Cost of attendance
13,998
3. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
4. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York
Brooklyn, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,240
Cost of attendance
13,991
5. Lehman College of the City University of New York
Bronx, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,210
Cost of attendance
14,359
6. Queens College of the City University of New York
Queens, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,338
Cost of attendance
14,281
7. California State University - Fullerton
Fullerton, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,886
Cost of attendance
17,645
8. USF Sarasota-Manatee
Sarasota, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,587
Cost of attendance
13,043
9. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
10. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for certified teachers
The hardest universities for certified teachers to get into are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Vanderbilt University.
Some great schools for certified teachers are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for certified teachers based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
2. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
3. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
4. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,520
5. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
6. New York University
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
20%
SAT average
1,419
7. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
22%
SAT average
1,420
8. Brown University
Providence, RI • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
9. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
10. University of Rochester
Rochester, NY • Private
Admissions rate
29%
SAT average
1,422
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for certified teachers
The easiest schools for certified teachers to get into are Gwynedd Mercy University, barry university, and felician university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a certified teacher without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for certified teachers.
1. Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private
Admissions rate
92%
SAT average
1,031
2. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
3. Felician University
Lodi, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
999
4. Holy Names University
Oakland, CA • Private
Admissions rate
70%
SAT average
849
5. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
6. The University of Texas Permian Basin
Odessa, TX • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,046
7. College of New Rochelle, The
New Rochelle, NY • Private
Admissions rate
83%
SAT average
982
8. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
9. Curry College
Milton, MA • Private
Admissions rate
93%
SAT average
1,026
10. Saint Martin's University
Lacey, WA • Private
Admissions rate
96%
SAT average
1,111
Average certified teacher salary by education level
| Certified teacher education level | Certified teacher salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $58,266 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $49,224 |
| Doctorate Degree | $57,868 |
Certified teacher education FAQs
Have more questions? See all answers to common education, training, and library questions.
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025