• Music (MU)
• Music Ensemble (MUSE)
• Music Performance (MUSP)

• Individual talents, interests, and philosophies which can be used creatively both to preserve and extend our cultural heritage;
• Professional competence in such disciplines as music teaching, composition and performance, interpretation, and evaluation of knowledge;
• Scholarly competence in the organization, interpretation, and evaluation of knowledge;
• Professional competence in the communication and dissemination of knowledge;
• Individuals with the potential to solve contemporary problems in various aspects of music.

Majors and Degree Offered:
    Music, M.M.
    Music Education, M.M.

Major Programs
    The School of Music offers graduate work in music education, performance, Latin Music, conducting, music theory, composition, and music history and literature leading to the Master of Music degree.  Both majors, Music Education and Music, are 36-hour programs with a core of 12 semester hours, a major field of 12 semester hours, and an additional 12 semester hours of electives within one of the specializations listed below.  In addition, opportunities are provided for independent study with professors in their areas of specialization.
    All five of the specializations under the major Music Education require final research projects.  The Kodály Pedagogy graduate program, approved by the Organization of American Kodály Education (OAKE), leads to certification.
    The remaining ten specializations fall under the Music major.  A final graduate recital is presented for the performance specialization as well as for both the choral and instrumental conducting areas.  A thesis is required for the history and literature as well as theory curricula.  The composition specialty entails a final recital or lecture-recital and the development of a portfolio of original scores including solo and chamber pieces as well as recordings of them; a major original work must be submitted with an accompanying critical analysis to make up the requisite final project.
    Comprehensive Examination. All candidates within the graduate music program must pass a comprehensive oral (viva voce) examination.  The students will be given a maximum of two attempts in order to pass this examination before being eligible for graduation.  Candidates who fail to pass the comprehensive oral examination upon the first try may appeal for re-examination.  The re-examination will be administered during the semester following the first attempt.  Exceptions to this policy are rare and must be approved by the Director of Graduate Studies in Music and by the Director of the School of Music.  Failure to pass the required comprehensive oral examination upon the second attempt shall prevent the student from being eligible for graduation.

Areas of Specialization
    The following specialization are offered under the two basic major programs:

Departmental Policies
    Applicants for the Master of Music degree are expected to have an undergraduate degree in music in order to have the necessary background for graduate study in this field.  In order to be accepted into the graduate music program, the applicant will also be asked to meet successfully one or more of the following requirements: 1) interview with the Director of Graduate Studies, 2) audition (performance emphasis) OR portfolio submission (all other emphases), 3) placement tests, and 4) submission of letters of recommendation.  Upon review of a candidate’s transcript, additional background courses may be required that will not count towards the M.M. degree.
    Before prospective graduate students are approved for one of the Music Education specializations, they are expected to have certification to teach public school music and to have an interview with the appropriate Music Education faculty.  Those students who do not posses a teacher’s certificate must satisfy a deficiency plan in Music Education if they are to pursue the M.M. degree with one of the specializations under Music Education.
    Before prospective graduate students are approved for work towards the M.M. degree in a Performance or Conducting specialization under the Music emphasis, they must audition for the applied faculty in the appropriate area.  Graduate students in Voice Performance must take a minimum of two credits of Diction (MU 2141 and MU 2142) and eight credits of French or German as co-requisite courses if these classes or their equivalents were not taken in an undergraduate degree program.
    Graduate students in Music Theory and Composition must enroll in Counterpoint (MU 4336) and Orchestration (MU 4334) as requisite background studies if these classes or their equivalents are not taken in an undergraduate degree program.  In addition, prospective Composition majors must submit a portfolio of original works while prospective Music Theory, Music History/Literature, and Music Research majors must submit a portfolio of papers and/or writing samples.  Graduate students in History and Literature must take a minimum of eight credits in one foreign language as required work if this study was not included in an undergraduate degree program.
    In consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies in Music, each full-time student is normally expected to enroll in the appropriate ensemble(s) generally offered in the fall and spring semesters.  Credit hours of ensemble participation may not count toward the 36 semester credit hours required for the M.M. degree program.  Students must take Introduction to Graduate Studies in Music (MU 5334) within their first year of studies.