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Middle school principal education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a middle school principal. Middle school principals usually study educational leadership, education, or elementary education. 50% of middle school principals hold a bachelor's degree, and 37% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 982 real middle school principal resumes to see exactly what middle school principal education sections show.
The most common colleges for middle school principals are the Texas A&M; University and the Texas A&M; University.
There are also many online middle school principal courses to help get the education required to be a middle school principal.
There are certain middle school principal certifications that you should consider. These middle school principal certifications include Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) and Educational Certificate: K-12 (Ed:).
What education do you need to become a middle school principal?
What degree do you need to be a middle school principal?
- Bachelor's, 50%
- Master's, 37%
- Doctorate, 4%
- Associate, 3%
- Other Degrees, 6%
What should I major in to become a middle school principal?
- Education, 17%
- Elementary Education, 13%
- Other Majors, 39%
Most common colleges for middle school principals
| Middle school principal common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| Texas A&M University | 7.32% |
| University of North Carolina at Greensboro | 6.50% |
| Pennsylvania State University | 6.50% |
| National University | 5.69% |
| University of Phoenix | 5.69% |
Best majors for middle school principals
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Educational Leadership | 25.2% |
| 2 | Education | 16.7% |
| 3 | Elementary Education | 12.6% |
| 4 | General Education, Specific Areas | 5.9% |
| 5 | Business | 5.6% |
Best colleges for middle school principals
The best colleges for middle school principals are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Columbia University in the City of New York.
A middle school principal with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for middle school principals. 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 middle school principals.
1. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
3. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Enrollment
18,946
4. New York University
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$51,828
Enrollment
26,339
5. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
6. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$15,094
Enrollment
32,974
7. SUNY at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$10,099
Enrollment
21,404
8. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
In-state tuition
$50,420
Enrollment
7,582
9. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$56,225
Enrollment
19,548
10. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,488
Enrollment
30,018
20 best online courses for middle school principals
Advertising disclosure
1. Advanced Instructional Strategies in the Virtual Classroom
Welcome to Advanced Instructional Strategies in the Virtual Classroom! This course will help you apply strategies to the critical areas of K-12 virtual instruction to significantly impact virtual education. We will examine the pitfalls beginning teachers run into and learn how to overcome them by focusing on the fundamentals that have the greatest impact on student learning in a blended or online environment. By the end of the course, you will be able to empower your students to be voracious...
2. Instructional Methods in Health Professions Education
This course provides those involved in educating members of the health professions an asynchronous, interdisciplinary, and interactive way to obtain, expand, and improve their teaching skills. These skills can then be applied within their own professional context, with a variety of learners, extending across many stages. After completing this course, learners will: 1. Understand educational theory as it relates to health professions education 2. Match instructional methods with desired...
3. Instructional Design for Classroom Training
Design effective and engaging in-person classroom training sessions and learning experiences from scratch...
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5. Foundations of Virtual Instruction
Welcome to Foundations of Virtual Instruction! This course will help you 'up' your game and develop the advanced skills and techniques that elude even some of the most experienced virtual teachers in the K-12 space. Examine pitfalls and learn how to overcome them by focusing on the fundamentals that have the most significant impact on student learning in a blended or online environment. When you complete this course, you will be able to: • Craft virtual learning experiences that align with your...
6. Music Education for Teachers
In the Music Education for Teachers specialization, you will explore ways of integrating popular music into your teaching. You'll begin by learning from two highly experienced teachers, Krystal Banfield, the Vice President of Educational Outreach for Berklee College of Music, and David Alexis a Berklee Professor and long-time instructor for the Berklee City Music Program. They will take you through their process of incorporating popular music, improvisation, arranging, and music technology into...
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9. The Teacher and Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
Social and emotional learning, or SEL, programs have flourished in schools during the last decade. These programs vary widely but most share a concern for five individual, student competencies: self awareness; self-management; social awareness; relationship skills; and finally responsible decision making. It is important for teachers and parents to know about and understand these programs. While lots of SEL programs emphasize K-12 student social and emotional learning, only a very few programs...
10. Instructional Planning with Genially
Genially is “the tool that brings content to life.” Genially allows you to map out a learning journey for your students using high interest images and interactive tools. But did you know that Genially is also a wonderful tool for organizing your lessons and units. With Genially, you can plan and organize your units in one central place, simplifying your planning process with templates created with teachers in mind! Throughout this project, we will work together to build your confidence using...
11. The complete Instructional Designer course
Learn the skills to become an e Learning Instructional Designer for Corporate Learning and Development...
12. Instructional Design for Corporate Learning and Development
Giving you the tools to design and deliver on-point, effective corporate training programs...
13. ICT in Primary Education: Transforming children's learning across the curriculum
Why and how are teachers integrating ICT (Information and Communication Technology) into primary education? In this course we analyse examples from schools in different parts of the world, and bring professional teachers, headteachers and policymakers together to share their best ideas and inspiring stories. The materials in the course are based on studies carried out for the UNESCO Institute of IT in Education, Moscow. Learning Outcomes: to be aware of the range of reasons for using ICT to...
14. Instructional Design Pro (Part 2): No Beginners Allowed!
Write Golden Training Curriculum that's Easier to Learn and More Enjoyable to Teach...
15. Educational Psychology & Special Education (Certificate)
Informational content for educators and parents to learn about teaching and understanding exceptional children...
16. Math for Middle Schoolers: Statistics
Learn the Basics of Statistics and Succeed in your Middle School Math Classes...
17. Intuitive Curriculum Development: Make it Easy to Understand
A Time-Tested and Research Based Approach To Making Difficult Concepts Easy To Understand...
18. Introduction to Learning and Development
Become a confident people development practitioner and knowledgeable in Human Resource Development...
19. My Google Classroom: Google Classroom Made Easy to Beginners
Master Google Classroom: Discover How to Successfully Setup and Start Teaching With Google Classroom in Minutes!...
20. Intro to Game Development using Unity - Part I
A 2D game will be developed from scratch - perfect beginning course for middle and high school age students!...
Top 10 most affordable universities for middle school principals
The most affordable schools for middle school principals are Baruch College of the City University of New York, usf sarasota-manatee, and california state university - long beach.
If the best universities for middle school principals 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 middle school principals.
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. USF Sarasota-Manatee
Sarasota, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,587
Cost of attendance
13,043
3. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
4. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
5. California State University - Bakersfield
Bakersfield, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,309
Cost of attendance
16,714
6. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York
Brooklyn, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,240
Cost of attendance
13,991
7. Florida Atlantic University
Boca Raton, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$4,831
Cost of attendance
19,559
8. California State University - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,749
Cost of attendance
14,823
9. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
10. California State University - Fresno
Fresno, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,587
Cost of attendance
16,915
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for middle school principals
The hardest universities for middle school principals to get into are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Columbia University in the City of New York.
Some great schools for middle school principals 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 middle school principals 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. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
4. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
5. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
6. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,520
7. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
13%
SAT average
1,445
8. New York University
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
20%
SAT average
1,419
9. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
Admissions rate
22%
SAT average
1,420
10. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions rate
4%
SAT average
1,497
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for middle school principals
The easiest schools for middle school principals to get into are Mount Saint Mary's University, barry university, and gwynedd mercy university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a middle school principal 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 middle school principals.
1. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
2. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
3. Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private
Admissions rate
92%
SAT average
1,031
4. Notre Dame de Namur University
Belmont, CA • Private
Admissions rate
82%
SAT average
983
5. Curry College
Milton, MA • Private
Admissions rate
93%
SAT average
1,026
6. Felician University
Lodi, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
999
7. Holy Names University
Oakland, CA • Private
Admissions rate
70%
SAT average
849
8. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
9. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
10. Saint Martin's University
Lacey, WA • Private
Admissions rate
96%
SAT average
1,111
Average middle school principal salary by education level
| Middle school principal education level | Middle school principal salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $107,012 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $91,083 |
| Doctorate Degree | $119,820 |
Middle school principal education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025