What Qualifications Do I Need To Become A Singing Teacher?

Teaching singing is an unregulated profession and therefore there are no specific singing teacher qualifications required. However, many modern singing teachers and vocal coaches partake in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) courses to expand their knowledge of voice pedagogy, which aids in developing their teaching skills and in turn benefits their students.

Voice pedagogy (or vocal pedagogy) is the term used for the study of singing. It covers the physical aspects of singing (e.g. anatomy of the vocal folds, posture/alignment, breathing) and its artistic features (e.g. vocal styles, vocal registration, voice classification), as well as many other interesting topics. As a singing teacher, it is important to understand the varying knowledge needed to teach different genres and/or styles of singing and, with this in mind, it is deemed essential for a prospective singing teacher to have a solid comprehension of voice pedagogy.

In a competitive industry, CPD training gives the teacher the opportunity to establish themselves and differentiate from their peers. For example, singing teachers may develop a specific method of teaching and/or choose to train a selective group of students (classical singers, musical theatre performers, etc.). Some professional voice users and vocal coaches may also wish to develop a specialist understanding of areas such as performance coaching, singing for health or vocal health (including voice disorders related to singing).

Voice Study Centre offers a wide range of online courses to aid CPD and facilitate voice pedagogy learning. There are immersive weekly short courses as well as some even more in-depth longer courses and certificates which are accredited by The Institute of Training and Occupational Learning (ITOL). We even operate our own Voice Professional Training CPD Award Scheme – find out more here.

MA Voice Pedagogy 🎓

To stand out in a crowded market, voice teachers are increasingly turning to specialised postgraduate research. Our master's programme (in conjunction with the University of Essex), lets you tailor your studies to your specific niche - whether that’s vocal habilitation, neuroscience, or genre-specific coaching - giving you a distinct competitive edge. Our fully online MA is available as a part-time (2-year) or full-time (1-year) course, and is tailored to allow busy professionals to study around existing work commitments.

In conclusion, although there are no set qualifications required in order to begin your career as a singing teacher, a strong understanding of voice pedagogy (and its many elements) should be regarded as necessary.