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Music teacher education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a music teacher. Music teachers usually study music, general education, specific areas, or education. 71% of music teachers hold a bachelor's degree, and 16% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 12,254 real music teacher resumes to see exactly what music teacher education sections show.
The most common colleges for music teachers are the Berklee College of Music and the Berklee College of Music.
There are also many online music teacher courses to help get the education required to be a music teacher.
There are certain music teacher certifications that you should consider. These music teacher certifications include Music Therapist - Board Certified (MT-BC) and Nationally Certified Teacher of Music (NCTM).
What education do you need to become a music teacher?
What degree do you need to be a music teacher?
- Bachelor's, 71%
- Master's, 16%
- Associate, 6%
- High School Diploma, 3%
- Other Degrees, 4%
What should I major in to become a music teacher?
Most common colleges for music teachers
| Music teacher common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| Berklee College of Music | 15.88% |
| New York University | 9.15% |
| Florida State University | 5.79% |
| West Chester University of Pennsylvania | 5.65% |
| University of North Texas | 4.71% |
Best majors for music teachers
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Music | 35.5% |
| 2 | General Education, Specific Areas | 28.8% |
| 3 | Education | 10.1% |
| 4 | Elementary Education | 4.3% |
| 5 | Music Performance | 3.0% |
Best colleges for music teachers
The best colleges for music teachers are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard University.
A music 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 music 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 music 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. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$51,354
Enrollment
7,083
20 best online courses for music teachers
Advertising disclosure
1. Adventures in Classical Music-Music Appreciation for All!
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2. Music Theory Comprehensive: Part 1 - How To Read Music
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3. Music Producer Masterclass: Make Electronic Music
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4. Music Theory for Electronic Music Producers - Complete Guide
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5. Music Theory
An in-depth and straight forward approach to understanding music...
6. Orchestral Music Composition & Music Theory for Video Games
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7. Music Theory ABRSM Grade 5
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8. Music Theory for Electronic Music COMPLETE: Parts 1, 2, & 3
Electronic music theory, digital music theory, and dance music theory. Learn music theory with ableton live and more!...
9. Music Theory Comprehensive Complete: Part 4, 5, & 6
Learn music theory through this music theory course app, music theory exercises, and music theory tutorials...
10. Music Theory Comprehensive Complete: Part 7, 8, & 9
Learn music theory through this music theory course app, music theory exercises, and music theory tutorials...
11. Music Composition with the Piano: Ultimate Keyboard Theory
Music Composition - The Ultimate Guide to Piano, Chords & Music Theory for Producers, Film Composers & Songwriters...
12. Game Music Composition: Make Music For Games From Scratch
Learn to compose music for any and every type of video game, from complete beginner to competent game music composer...
13. Music Theory Comprehensive Complete: Part 10, 11, & 12
Learn music theory through this music theory course app, music theory exercises, and music theory tutorials...
14. Music Production + Mixing Music in Presonus Studio One
Learn Presonus Studio One + Music Production in this Complete Course for Creating, Recording, Mixing Music + Mastering...
15. Music Theory - Fundamentals for Composition in Any Genre
Expand your music composition skills through learning universal music theory principles, mindset, and ear training...
16. Complete Electronic Music Production for EDM Music Producers
EDM: Learn professional electronic music production techniques from an expert electronic music producer - produce EDM!...
17. Music Theory for Electronic Producers - The Complete Course!
Join Successful students in Music Theory for Electronic Producers for Creating, Arranging, and Analysing Music Theory...
18. The Complete Piano & Music Theory Beginners Course
Learn all piano and music theory basics quickly, and save big on months of initial private lessons!...
19. Producing Music with Reason
Everything you need to know to get started producing great music with Propellerhead Reason...
20. Music Theory Comprehensive Complete! (Parts 1, 2, & 3)
A Complete College-Level Music Theory Curriculum. This edition of the course includes levels 1, 2, & 3...
Top 10 most affordable universities for music teachers
The most affordable schools for music 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 music 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 music 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. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
9. California State University - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,749
Cost of attendance
14,823
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 music teachers
The hardest universities for music teachers to get into are Northwestern University, University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard University.
Some great schools for music 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 music 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. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
Admissions rate
5%
SAT average
1,520
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. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
6%
SAT average
1,512
7. Brown University
Providence, RI • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,492
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. University of Rochester
Rochester, NY • Private
Admissions rate
29%
SAT average
1,422
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for music teachers
The easiest schools for music teachers to get into are Barry University, felician university, and holy names university.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a music 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 music teachers.
1. Barry University
Miami, FL • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,006
2. Felician University
Lodi, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
81%
SAT average
999
3. Holy Names University
Oakland, CA • Private
Admissions rate
70%
SAT average
849
4. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
5. The University of Texas Permian Basin
Odessa, TX • Private
Admissions rate
91%
SAT average
1,046
6. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
7. Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private
Admissions rate
92%
SAT average
1,031
8. Saint Martin's University
Lacey, WA • Private
Admissions rate
96%
SAT average
1,111
9. College of New Rochelle, The
New Rochelle, NY • Private
Admissions rate
83%
SAT average
982
10. Nyack College
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
999
Average music teacher salary by education level
| Music teacher education level | Music teacher salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $59,862 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $50,433 |
| Doctorate Degree | $59,446 |
Music 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