By: Liam Duncan

Becoming a private music teacher is a very common way for musicians in all walks of life to make a living, or to simply make a little bit of extra money on the side.

There are many benefits associated with teaching privately. You can make your own hours - often teachers will work as little as a couple times per week for three to four hours a day.

Finding students isn’t that difficult but if you want to get teaching right away, getting hired on at a music studio or teaching through a music store is a great way to build your student base.

The pay for teaching music lessons is good. Generally, your pay will start at $30 per hour and go up from there. But if you’re a private teacher, you control that rate (within reason).

Teaching can be very rewarding, especially if you have students who are excited about learning! My favorite part about teaching was always showing a student something that blew my mind when I learned it, and watch at their eye go wide with excitement.

It’s also a relatively easy job to settle into quickly, no matter where you end up. Even if you suddenly move cities (as musicians are often apt to do), music store are always hiring, and you can put up a few ads and start building a practice.

Of course, it’s not all sunshine and daisies.

Teaching is hard work, and many people find it exhausting (that’s why I quit).

Teaching young kids can be frustrating - a lot of kids are only in music lessons because their parents put them there, and then all of a sudden you become a glorified babysitter instead of being a music teacher.

Being a music teacher means you’re self-employed, so if you don’t work, you don’t make money No sick days or holidays. But for musicians, you’re probably already used to that.

How does one become a teacher? What credentials do you need? In this guide, I’ll walk you through the minimum requirements for private teaching as well as some easy steps to get started, and some tips from someone who’s been there!