Montessori Tuition And Session Dates
The Center for Guided Montessori Studies (CGMS) offers both teacher certification and professional development programs.
This page provides information on our Infant/Toddler, Early Childhood (Primary), Elementary, and Secondary (Adolescent) teacher certification programs. For information on our continuing education courses for parents, teachers and administrators, please see our Professional Development section.
Our teacher certification programs are offered in either of two forms: as a Full Certificate, or as an Associate Certificate program. What’s the difference? Both of these contain an online component, but the Full Certificate program also requires a small residency, or two small residencies for Elementary students.
Elementary and Secondary students please note: only students incapable of attending the residencies are eligible to enroll in the Associate Certificate programs at these levels, and only at the discretion of CGMS program directors. For more information on the difference between the Associate and Full Certificate programs, please read this page. To apply, please go here for our combined application for Full or Associate certificates.
Cohort Start Dates
The next Infant / Toddler cohort will start October 27, 2025. Application deadline is: October 13, 2025..**
The next Early Childhood cohort will start on: October 27, 2025. Application deadline is: October 13, 2025..**
The next Elementary cohorts (EL-I or EL I-II) will start on: October 27, 2025. Application deadline is: October 13, 2025..**
The next Elementary II Standalone cohort will start on: October 27, 2025. Application deadline is: October 13, 2025..**
The next Secondary cohort will begin on October 27, 2025. Application deadline is: October 13, 2025..**
The next school Leadership cohort will begin on October 27, 2025.
**Please be aware, there is limited space in each cohort, therefore, receipt of application before the deadline is not a guarantee of acceptance. Once a cohort fills, applications will be processed for the next available start date.
Location: *Allison Park (Pittsburgh), PA
Dates : 6/16/2025–6/27/2025
Levels: Infant/Toddler
Location: Tulsa, Oklahoma
Dates : 6/16/2025–6/27/2025
Levels: Early Childhood
Location: Charlotte, North Carolina
Dates : 6/16/2025–6/27/2025
Levels: Early Childhood, Elementary I, Elementary II
Location: Ocoee, Florida
Dates : 6/22/2025-7/2/2025
Levels: Secondary
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Dates: 7/7/2025-7/18/2025
Levels: Early Childhood, Elementary I, Elementary II
Location:*Nashville, TN
Dates: 7/14/2025-7/25/2025
Levels: Infant/Toddler
Location: **Salt Lake City, UT
Dates: 7/14/2025-7/25/2025
Levels: Infant/Toddler, Early Childhood, Elementary I, Elementary II
Location: Canton (Detroit), Michigan
Dates: 7/14/2025-7/25/2025
Levels: Elementary I
*The Center for Guided Montessori Studies has applied for approval of this site as an additional training location and is an Applicant in Good Standing. Applicant in Good Standing status in no way determines the outcome of the accreditation decisions by MACTE .
**The Center for Guided Montessori Studies has applied for approval for the relocation of this residential site and is an Applicant in Good Standing. Applicant in Good Standing status in no way determines the outcome of the accreditation decisions by MACTE.
Tuition
CGMS Associate Certificate tuition is comparable to a traditional training program. Note that the Full Certificate residential programs are not guaranteed to be held at the same location from year to year, although we do try. Full Certificate tuition does not include travel, room and board. We do provide students with information packages that help them travel to and stay at the residencies.
CGMS unfortunately can not offer full scholarships, but we do offer variable pricing based on country of origin, ability to pay and the number of payments tuition is broken into. Please contact us to discuss which custom payment arrangements work best for you.
Infant / Toddler (0-3)
-
Program Tuition Fees Associate Certificate
online only, no residency$5600 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
Full Certificate
Includes residency tuition$7400 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
Early Childhood (3-6)
-
-
-
Elementary I (6-9)
-
Program Tuition Fees Associate Certificate
online only, no residency, not regularly available to US residents$5600 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
- $360 Early Childhood Overview (if applicant does not have early childhood certificate)
Full Certificate
Includes residency tuition$7400 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
- $360 Early Childhood Overview (if applicant does not have early childhood certificate)
-
Elementary I-II (6-12)
-
Program Tuition Fees Associate Certificate
online only, no residency, not regularly available to US residents.$7100 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
- $360 Early Childhood Overview (if applicant does not have early childhood certificate)
Full Certificate
Includes residency tuition$9700 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
- $360 Early Childhood Overview (if applicant does not have early childhood certificate)
Secondary(12-18)
-
Program Tuition Fees Associate Certificate online only, no residency, not typically available to US residents.
$8300 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
Full Certificate Includes residency tuition
$9500 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
School Leadership
-
Program Tuition Fees Associate Certificate online only, no residency, not typically available to US residents.
$6950 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
Full Certificate Includes residency tuition
$9300 - $100 application fee (*)
- $350 Professional fee
- * Note: Michigan applicants are entitled to a refund of $75 if their applications are rejected. However, in order to minimize the chance of rejection, all prospective students are encouraged to first contact us with any questions.
Self Directed Internships
Normally adult learners perform their internship as a classroom assistant under a lead teacher. If an intern will be responsible for being the lead teacher in a classroom while engaging in teacher training, then they are considered a self-directed intern. In this situation the intern will receive extra support, and may be required to perform an extended internship. The fees for this service will vary depending on the location and circumstance of the internship. If there is a qualified mentor onsite who is able to provide support as well, the fee is $700. Please don’t hesitate to contact us to discuss any questions you have about your own situation.
Residency
If you enroll in the Full Certificate then the residency cost is already built into your tuition. Otherwise, the figures below are the additional cost for attending a residency when you originally enrolled in the Associate Certificate.
- Infant/Toddler – $2300
Early Childhood – $2300 - Elementary I Standalone $2300
- Elementary II Standalone $2300
- Elementary I-II – $3300
- Secondary – $3300
- Leadership – $3300
Payment Plans
CGMS is always willing to look at customizing our payment arrangements for motivated and deserving learners. Below are our standard payment plans.
-
# payments Schedule One-time service fee 1 payment in full $0 2 at start then at 9 months $100 3 every six months $200 6 bi-monthly $300 18 monthly $500
Please understand, the service fees above are in addition to standard tuition and other fees.
Example: Sally wishes to take the Associate Early Childhood Course, which has a tuition of $5400 and a $350 professional fee. She has decided she would like to pay bi monthly. Here is how she would calculate her tuition:
-
Tuition: $5400 Application Fee: $100 Professional Fee: $350 Payment plan service fee: $300 TOTAL: $6,150 The application fee is paid when applying, leaving a total of $6,050 to be serviced.
Payments: 6
Per payment: $6,150/6 = $1025
So in this example, Sally would pay CGMS $1025 every other month for 12 months.
-
-
