Music Teacher Salary

If you love music and want to teach others about it, then being a music teacher can be a very rewarding career.  To kick things off, we will talk about how much money music teachers make in salary each year.  The amount of money a music teacher makes can depend a lot on the type od teaching they do, where they teach, how many hours a week they teach and how experienced they are.  According to the National Association for Music Education, some music teachers can teach privately and set their own rates.  They may charge people anywhere from $15 to $60 an hour.  Music teachers that work in public schools and elementary schools make a median salary of nearly $45,000 a year.  Music teachers at colleges and universities can make as much as $70,000 a year.  It all depends on what kind of music you are teaching and at what level.

Being a Music Teacher

So what does a music teacher do?  Why they teach music of course.  But it is more than that.  They teach groups in methods of singing, how to play instruments and to generally have an appreciation for all things music.  Music teachers can work on their own terms or they can work in schools, colleges and conservatories.  They can also give lessons to people wanting to become better singers or instrument players.  Private music teachers can teach people of all ages right in their home.  These can be kids or even adults.  Some people that hire a music teacher do it just for fun or they may be trying to become better career musicians.  Teachers of music at a school usually lead choirs, bands or orchestras.  They can also give lessons to groups or individuals.  Students learn the technical parts of music and will be led in rehearsals by the teacher.  Music teachers may take choirs or bands to competitions where they compete against other schools.  Field trips can also be part of the deal as a teacher might take a class to see a professional performance.

In order to become a music teacher, you must be properly trained.  The type of education and training you need can depend on what type of music teaching you want to do.  Not only do music teachers have to be masters of their craft, but they must also possess the skills it takes to teach a group of students and be able to work well with them.  You don't need to have a specific training or certification to be a private music teacher, but you should still know what you are doing.  Many private teachers have spend years teaching classes or being part of a choir or orchestra.  They are typically very experienced singers or musicians.  In order to be a music teacher at an elementary school or higher, you need to have at least a bachelor's degree in music and be certified by the state you are teaching in.  School music teachers can also teach privately in their free time for extra income.  If you want to be a music teacher at a college or university, you will most likely need to have more than a bachelor's degree, especially if you want to eventually have one of the higher positions.

When it comes to the type of working environment music teachers can be found in, private teachers usually work out of their own homes.  They may even come to teach where the student lives.  School music teachers of course work at the school building where they are employed.  Teachers at schools have a weekly schedule with rehearsals and musical performances being held in the evening after school hours or on weekends.  School teachers may also have other duties like watching over students during a study hall or lunch period.  It all depends on the needs of the school.  Music teachers that work in colleges have much more flexible schedules and they can teach anywhere from 12 to 16 hours a week.  They spend their time between teaching writing lesson plans, writing music, rehearsing, going to conferences and other things related to music.  They also get paid pretty well.

Once you have all the qualifications to become a music teacher, you need to actually find a job.  In order to work at a college or university, it might be a good idea to see if there are opening at the school you are graduating from.  Private music teachers can advertise at places like music departments of local schools or just about anywhere.  They can even get jobs at music stores as teachers in some cases. 

Once you start your career as a music teacher, you may have the opportunity to further advance in your career over time.  If you are a private teacher, getting more students and building a solid reputation will definitely help you further your career.  If you are a very skilled music instructor, then you can charge higher rates for your services.  Music teachers can even start off in elementary schools and go on to become music professors by earning more experience and higher level degrees.  The next step after being a college professor is moving into the administrative positions of the college.  This requires many years of experience and various forms of recognition.

The biggest problem with finding a job as a music teacher is the budget problems that many schools have been having.  Some schools have limited their music teachers to part time in order to cut costs.  They may also hire fewer music teachers between schools.  However, the job outlook for music teachers still looks good over the next few years.

If you have a passion for music and a desire to teach others, then you might want to consider pursuing a career as a music teacher.  There are plenty of college programs out there that you can take advantage of.  Soon you will be sharing your love of music with others around you while making a career out of it.