Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Why Music Educators Choose Berklee's Graduate Programs

05/09/2024

Why Music Educators Choose Berklee's Graduate Programs Explore Berklees flexible master's degrees and certificate in music education, and get advice from working teachers and online learners who've studied here.

By

John Mirisola

September 4, 2024

Music education students play in and conduct an ensemble.

Image by Kelly Davidson

Anybody whos ever benefited from a great music teacher knows the transformative role that music education can play in a persons life. Its one reason why so many musicians wind up becoming music teachers themselves-to share that love for music that somebody else nurtured in them.

But the decision to pursue a career in the classroom-to get a masters in music education, or to earn a graduate certificate-isn't always easy. Most working teachers can't leave the classroom to advance in their careers. And for others, maybe the program they're interested in is far from where they live.

If youre looking to get your masters degree in music education, or to earn a graduate certificate, Berklees graduate music education programs offer a flexible, contemporary approach to the music classroom that helps you to connect your teaching to todays culture and technology. With class formats built to accommodate working teachers, online and hybrid learners, and on-campus study, theres never a bad time or place to start your career as a music teacher, or to take the next step in your professional development.

In this article, well explore some of the key features of the graduate music education experience at Berklee:

Three world-class programs

Online, hybrid, and flexible classes

Contemporary and culturally responsive teaching

Customizing your graduate music education experience

Focused training for teaching students with disabilities

Well also hear from current students and alumni of Berklees graduate music education programs, and theyll share their advice on:

How to earn your music education masters degree or certificate while teaching

How to earn your music education masters degree remotely

Three World-Class ProgramsBerklee offers three graduate programs in music education:

The Master of Music in Music Education

The Master of Music in Music Education (Autism Concentration)

The Graduate Certificate in Music Education and Autism

Each program has been designed to fit the schedules and meet the needs of todays educators. Our Music Education Department is led by Cecil Adderley, the president-elect of the National Association for Music Educators, so students can be assured theyre receiving the most forward-looking and rigorous training available. And graduate students in these programs also have the chance to work with some of the worlds leading practitioners and scholars of accessible music education through the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education.

Read on to learn more about each program and the adaptive course structure that makes them work for teachers in every stage of their careers.

Online, Hybrid, and Flexible ClassesOne of the core values of graduate music education at Berklee is that each program should be able to serve working teachers. Thats why the programs are designed to ensure that teachers enrolled in these programs can keep their jobs while they advance their careers through graduate-level training. Courses are offered in the evenings during the fall and spring semesters, and students can enroll in two full-time sessions during the summer.

This program was flexible for me, a working teacher, which was a must, says Sarah Fard, who took one course at a time and completed her Graduate Certificate in Music Education and Autism in 2018. I had found myself working as a paraprofessional for students with autism early on in my career, before returning to the music classroom, and noticed that there was a lot that I had not learned in my pre-service education that directly impacted how well I was able to best teach various students. I wanted further training so that I could best support my students and also help other teachers do the same.

It is very important to enroll in programs that have you working with the materials that you use in the classroom, so that the work you are doing is purposeful.

- Sarah Fard, Graduate Certificate in Music Education and Autism

During the academic year, students can also participate in classes remotely using web conferencing and student-directed study formats-a model Berklees graduate music education programs have been refining for years before COVID-19 made online learning a necessity at other institutions.

Im teaching a class tonight where I have five students on the web and four students in the room, and we are all together having class, says Rhoda Bernard, managing director of the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education and the founder of all three graduate programs. Weve been doing hybrid and remote learning in graduate music education since long before it was sexy.

Contemporary and Culturally Responsive TeachingPeople today experience, consume, make, and interact with music in a wide range of ways, explains Bernard, and we have now access to music from all over the world and from all throughout time in ways that weve never had before, and it has to change how we teach.

While many music education programs still follow outdated models, graduate music education at Berklee is designed to help todays teachers engage with the latest pedagogical, cultural, and technological shifts shaping contemporary learning environments.

The real future of music is being made at Berklee because the institution is choosing to embrace today's culture for music, people, and music learning that exists in the world outside of the school, says Adam Calus BM '17, MM '21.

Ready to take the next step in your teaching career?

Learn more about applying to Berklees graduate music educat
LINK: https://www.berklee.edu/berklee-now/news/why-music-educators-choose-be...
See more stories from berklee

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

09/10/2026

Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026

September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026 New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...

07/10/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Media Operations from Ingest to Distribution

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...

30/09/2026

SVG Students To Watch: Jacquelynn Dupree, Clark Atlanta University

Drawn to the many moving pieces of a live broadcast, this Los Angeles native is building a path in production management and technical operations...

30/09/2026

NHL on TNT Opens New Season in 1080p HDR With Stanley Cup Final on the Horizon

TNT Sports goes big for its season opener in Philadelphia, and REMI workflows at Techwood will again anchor much of regular-season production...

30/09/2026

Katlyn Alexander Named CEO of Qvest North America

Qvest has appointed Katlyn Alexander as CEO of Qvest in North America, effective August 16, 2026. Alexander, who previously served as COO of Qvest US, succeeds ...

30/09/2026

AAPB Wraps 2026 Season with Record Viewership and Expanded Broadcast Footprint

The American Association of Professional Baseball (AAPB) has wrapped its 2026 season, with leaguewide attendance surpassing 1.4 million for the fifth consecutiv...

30/09/2026

Veritone Partners with ATP Media to License Tennis Archive in North America

Veritone has announced a multi-year content licensing agreement with ATP Media, the broadcast production and distribution arm of the ATP Tour, making ATP's ...

30/09/2026

Netflix To Stream WWE Exclusively in Japan Beginning October 1

Netflix has announced it will become the exclusive home for WWE programming in Japan beginning October 1, 2026. The lineup includes Raw, SmackDown, NXT, Premium...

30/09/2026

SES and Sky Extend Satellite Capacity Agreement for UK and Ireland

SES and Sky have announced a new multi-year agreement for direct-to-home satellite services across the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, running into the ...

30/09/2026

Big Blue Marble Adds Live Multiview Channels to Cloud Video Kit via AWS Elemental Dynamic Multiview

Big Blue Marble has announced the addition of live multiview channels to its Clo...

30/09/2026

NHRA Announces Multi-Year Media Rights Deals With FOX Sports, The CW, and FloSports

The NHRA has announced multi-year media rights agreements with FOX Sports, The C...

30/09/2026

FOX 5 Atlanta to Broadcast Nashville Predators Games in 2026-27 Season

FOX 5 Atlanta (WAGA-TV) will carry Nashville Predators games during the 2026-27 season as part of Scripps Sports' regional broadcast network for the team. G...

30/09/2026

SVG Sit-Down: Brahma AIs Patrio Cummins on the Possibilities of AI (and the Misconceptions)

AI was a big buzz on the IBC show floor but there weren't a ton of companies...

30/09/2026

PGA TOUR Names Ryan Holcomb Senior Vice President and Head of Original Content

The PGA TOUR has announced the appointment ofRyan Holcomb as Senior Vice President and Head of Original Content, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Holcomb wi...

30/09/2026

ESPN Drops the Puck on Enhanced Audio for the New NHL Season

The sound will be more immersive, with improved design and more mikes on the ice and the players The National Hockey League's season opener on Tuesday nigh...

30/09/2026

TNT Sports' Chris Brown, Lee Mabry on Beginning 2026-27 NHL Season With an Onsite Effort in Philly

TNT Sports is dropping the puck on the 2026-27 NHL season in a big way in Philad...

30/09/2026

International Swimming League Names Gravity Media as Production Partner

The International Swimming League ( ISL ) today announced the appointment of Gravity Media, global leader in live production and content and media services and ...

30/09/2026

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Amir Bar-Lev, the Director of The Last First: Winter K2

By Ramona Flume One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festiva...

30/09/2026

Sync Audio release MegaMorph

Add an envelope generator to any plug-in Sync Audio's latest creation is a handy utility plug-in that can be used to combine and modulate other effects ...

30/09/2026

Strymon launch the La Brea

All-analogue tape-style drive joins Series A Strymon's reputation was built on their digital knowhow, so many were surprised (and intrigued) when they a...

30/09/2026

Sonuscore The Pulse: Synth Wave & Epic Atmospheres

Two new expansion packs released Sonuscore have just introduced two new expansion packs for The Pulse, its production engine instrument for modern cinematic...

30/09/2026

Clear-Com's Arcadia Central Station Brings Professional Production Communications to...

eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...

30/09/2026

AWARN Alliance Urges FCC to Let Broadcasters Tap Full 3.0 Capabilities

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Senator Asks If All-GOP FCC Would Violate Federal Law

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Marshall PTZ Cameras Bring Legendary Progressive Rock Exp...

The An Evening with Emerson, Lake and Palmer tour brings one of rock's most iconic bands back to the stage. These performances seamlessly blend live foota...

30/09/2026

Schibsted Media Chooses DHD RX2 and TX2 Mixers for Remote...

Schibsted Media, one of Norways largest and most influential digital media publishers and content producers, has invested in mixers and digital signal processor...

30/09/2026

Big Blue Marble adds live multiview channels to its video...

Big Blue Marble announces the addition of live multiview channels to Cloud Video Kit, its broadcast-grade video processing platform. The feature is powered by A...

30/09/2026

Telekom Slovenije brings local advertising to internation...

Leading video software provider Synamedia today announced that Telekom Slovenije, Slovenia's largest provider of telecommunications and TV services, is open...

30/09/2026

PODCAST EXPO 2026 Recorded Using Blackmagic Design Workflow

PODCAST EXPO 2026 Recorded Using Blackmagic Design Workflow Brie Clayton September 29, 2026 0 Comments Conference featuring 24 sessions over two days ...

30/09/2026

IBC2026 Show Report

IBC2026 Show Report David Kirk September 29, 2026 0 Comments The International Broadcasting Convention has long been Europe's equivalent of the US...

30/09/2026

SGO Unveils Workflows Slate To Enable Automated Burn-ins, Slates

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Public Advocacy Group Urges Broadcasters to Stop Airing Trump Taxpayer Funded Ad

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Qvest Promotes Katlyn Alexander to CEO, North America

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Mavis Camera 8-2 adds iPhone 18 Pro Support with Variable...

Mavis has launched Mavis Camera 8.2, the latest release of its professional camera app for the iPhone and iPad. This update brings support for iPhone 18 Pro and...

30/09/2026

Tribeca Festival Announces 2027 Dates And Calls For Submissions

September 30th, 2026 TRIBECA FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES 2027 DATES AND CALLS FOR SUBMISSIONS Following a Record Box Office Year, the 26th Edition, Presented by OKX,...

30/09/2026

Harmonic Launches Recon Product Family Developed in Partnership with Comcast

New Solution Expands Harmonic's Network Intelligence Portfolio and Brings Comcast-Developed Fiber Monitoring Technology to Broadband Operators, Providing Re...

30/09/2026

A Look Back at (My) 524 Months with Broadcast Cameras

Thank you to Film-TV Video for the original article - you can view it here It was early 1983. I had just turned 21 when I joined Hitachi Denshi's European...

30/09/2026

Claire Brock and Sophie Morris discover how consumers can shop smarter in new RT documentary series

How to Shop Well Now starts Monday at 9.35pm on RT One and RT Player On the...

30/09/2026

From Training to Production, NVIDIA and CoreWeave Close the Loop on Agentic AI

Building on nearly a decade of co-engineering, CoreWeave has built NVIDIA compute, networking and software into a cloud purpose-built for AI that's still re...

29/09/2026

Oak View Group Names Cisco as Official Technology Partner

Oak View Group (OVG) has announced Cisco as an Official Technology Partner, with plans to standardize infrastructure across its venue network on Cisco solutions...

29/09/2026

SportsNet Pittsburgh Wins Three Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards

SportsNet Pittsburgh (SNP) won three honors at the 2026 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards. Program awards went to Bucs BP in the Sports Program Live category (produced ...

29/09/2026

CBC, PWHL Revive Hockey Night in Canada' on Saturdays

The Professional Women's Hockey League has announced home openers for all 12 teams for the 2026-27 season, along with a broadcast partnership with CBC under...

29/09/2026

Manifold Technologies Recognized as MXL Contributor Following IBC Innovation Award

Manifold technologies has been recognized as a contributor to the Media eXchange...

29/09/2026

Fubo Launches My Local Sports RSN Add-On Package

FuboTV has announced My Local Sports, allowing subscribers in select markets to add their local regional sports network (RSN) as an add-on to a Fubo Sports subs...

29/09/2026

ANI Deploys Grass Valley AMPP and Framelight X for News Operations

Asian News International (ANI), a wire agency and video news provider based in India, has deployed Grass Valley's AMPP Media Operating System and Framelight...

29/09/2026

SABC Deploys Ikegami UHK-X600 Cameras for IP-Based Production

South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has deployed Ikegami UHK-X600 cameras as part of an upgrade to IP-based production infrastructure. The deployment ...

29/09/2026

Busy in Bristol: ESPN Headquarters Come Alive With New Studio W, Remote-Production Workflows

REMI, REMCO models will drive the bulk of the broadcaster's NHL productions ...

29/09/2026

NASCAR Productions' Keith D'Alessandro on the Continued Evolution of Its Centralized Production Hub

Three years in, the facility is supporting more centralized race production, com...

29/09/2026

NBC Sports Brings Robust Sunday Night Baseball Production Playbook to MLB Wild Card Round

NBC, Peacock, and NBSN are carrying all four Wild Card series with a production ...