The Nationally Certified Teacher of Music (NCTM) is the highest professional credential in private music teaching in the United States. It is awarded by the Music Teachers National Association — founded 1876 — and cannot be purchased, grandfathered, or renewed by inertia.
Awarded by MTNA · Est. 1876
18 certified in NM
Most credentials in professional life are earned once: a degree, a license, a bar exam. NCTM is different. It is earned through a rigorous portfolio evaluation, and then renewed annually through documented professional development.
The Music Teachers National Association created the Professional Certification Program because the field of private music teaching — unlike medicine or law — had no nationally recognized standard of competency. NCTM fills that gap.
To earn NCTM designation, a teacher must demonstrate mastery across five professional standards. This is evaluated through a Teaching Portfolio Project — not a written test, but a documented body of evidence of real teaching practice. The portfolio is assessed by MTNA's national Certification Commission.
Fewer than half of all MTNA members hold the NCTM designation. It is earned, not given.
"The program is based upon a set of five standards defining what a competent music teacher should know and be able to do." — MTNA Professional Certification Program
An NCTM-certified teacher has demonstrated deep, current knowledge of music — theory, history, literature, and the specific repertoire of their instrument or voice. This is the foundation everything else rests on.
Knowing music is not the same as being able to teach it. NCTM evaluates how a teacher communicates, sequences instruction, diagnoses learning challenges, and adapts their approach to individual students.
NCTM is not a one-time achievement. Certified teachers demonstrate ongoing learning — through workshops, conferences, publications, and peer engagement. Annual renewal requires documented professional development activities.
Teaching music is a profession that requires professional management. NCTM evaluates studio organization, policies, communication, and the ethical practices that protect both teachers and students.
Certified teachers are not isolated practitioners. They contribute to the musical life of their community — through student performance opportunities, local music advocacy, and participation in professional organizations.
When you hire a doctor, you expect a medical degree and state licensure. When you hire an attorney, you expect a bar license. When you hire a private music teacher, there has historically been no equivalent standard.
NCTM changes that — for the parents and students willing to look for it.
A teacher who displays the NCTM credential has been evaluated by the same national standard used in Cincinnati, Boston, and Nashville. They have demonstrated their knowledge of music, their ability to teach it, and their commitment to the profession — not once, but every year.
On this directory, NCTM-certified teachers are clearly marked. We recommend them not because they paid a higher membership fee, but because they earned something.
MTNA Professional Certification is available to all active MTNA members who teach music in private or group settings. The application is managed through certification.mtna.org.
Become an active MTNA member
And therefore a PMTNM member. If you're not already — join here.
Complete the Teaching Portfolio Project (TPP)
An instrument-specific documentation process available for Piano, Voice, Violin, Flute, and Organ.
Submit your portfolio
To MTNA's Certification Commission for evaluation against the five professional standards.
Renew annually
By logging documented professional development activities. Annual renewal is the most important ongoing element of the program.