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Graduate Studies in Education

  1. Whitworth University
  2. Graduate Studies in Education
  3. Graduate Programs for Certified Teachers
  4. Montessori, M.Ed.

Montessori, M.Ed.

With Montessori teachers in high-demand, you can open doors to new career opportunities in the United States and abroad. Whitworth University collaborated with Montessori Northwest and The National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector to develop a program designed to meet your career and personal goals, offering training and expertise from leaders in public Montessori education.

  • Options to earn your Montessori diploma, master's degree and teacher certification
  • Online Montessori Surround Courses focus on working with students in the public sector
  • Programs available in Spokane, Wash., Portland, Ore., and Milpitas, Calif., with internship opportunities in or near your hometown 
  • MACTE-accredited programs in Assistants to Infancy, Primary and Elementary

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Whitworth offers several Montessori Education program options:

Montessori is a teaching philosophy that puts children at the center and fosters a joy for learning and a lifelong desire to explore. Coursework for the Montessori Master of Education program really helped me hone my powers of observation – a valuable tool at a teacher's disposal.

Rachael Morris

Cohort Format

Students in our graduate Montessori elementary and early learning degree programs are concurrently enrolled at Montessori Northwest while working on their AMI Diploma. During the AMI Diploma courses, you will participate as part of a cohort, which will provide a built-in support system and help you establish your own network of professional colleagues. Students in multiple cohorts join together to learn from one another in the final courses of the program.

Program Costs

Tuition for the master's degree is $695 per credit for 2021-22 and includes the AMI Montessori diploma. 

*Variance of total cost may occur due to annual changes in fees and tuition per credit. 

Scholarships and Financial Aid

Scholarships are available through both Montessori Northwest and Whitworth University.

Financial aid is available for students enrolled in a degree program. We recommend that you apply for financial aid at the time you apply for the program. Contact the Whitworth Financial Aid Office (finaid@whitworth.edu) for more information.

How to Apply

Step 1: Apply to Montessori Northwest

Contact Montessori Northwest (info@montessori-nw.org) if you have any questions. 

Step 2: Apply to Whitworth University

After you've been accepted to Montessori Northwest, please follow Whitworth's Graduate Studies in Education . Contact our office (gradadmissions@whitworth.edu) if you have any questions.

You may use the same letters of recommendation, essay and résumé for both applications. Separate official transcripts will need to be sent to both Montessori Northwest and Whitworth University.

Montessori Surround Courses

National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector (NCMPS) and Whitworth University offer three online courses. These courses are designed for Montessori practitioners to extend initial teacher preparation and provide in-depth training on working successfully with special populations, social and emotional needs, literacy, classroom management, and more. 

Contact our Montessori program at 509.777.3226 or spage@whitworth.edu for more information and course dates.

Community Partnerships

Whitworth University collaborates with leading public Montessori education organizations to offer a versatile program designed to meet your career and personal goals, with access to training opportunities from experts in the field.

Montessori Northwest

Since 1979, Montessori Northwest has worked to inspire new thinking about education and the nature of childhood. Montessori Northwest offers rigorous, practical and in-depth adult education, in affiliation with the Associate Montessori Internationale (AMI).

The National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector

Founded in 2012, The National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector (NCMPS) is an independent non-profit organization that provides a range of services, from school start-up, to resource development, professional development and advocacy, in order to support the growth of public Montessori in the United States.

Whitworth is the only university in the country partnered with NCMPS to support and expand public Montessori education.

I am a passionate educator who has worked in public schools before and decided to complete my Montessori Studies. I'm getting a holistic view of the children I will work with and implementing a curriculum that is individualistic and honors their development.

Paige Mendenhall '22, current student

General Statement of Business

This school is a business unit of a corporation and is authorized by the state of Oregon to offer and confer the academic degrees and certificates described herein, following a determination that state academic standards will be satisfied under OAR 583-030.  Inquiries concerning the standards or school compliance may be directed to the Office of Degree Authorization, 255 Capitol St. NE, Salem, Oregon 97310.